Can You Use Someone Else's Logo — The Law, Risks and When It's Legal
You downloaded a brand's logo for a slide deck, a landing page or a portfolio case — and a thought flickered: "can I actually get sued for this?" Fair question. A logo is someone else's property, but that doesn't mean you can never use it. Everything depends on how you use it. Let's break it down without the legal fog.
In most everyday cases — mentioning a brand, showing a partner's logo, putting a service icon in a UI — using someone else's logo is fine. Infringement starts where you create the false impression that the brand endorses, sponsors or is affiliated with you, or that the mark is your own.
Why you can't just grab a logo
A logo is protected two ways at once, and the distinction matters:
- Trademark — legal protection for a sign a company uses to mark its goods and services (registered with a trademark office).
- Copyright — protects the logo as a work of design from the moment it's created, no registration needed.
So even a logo that isn't a registered trademark is still protected by copyright. "Found it online, so it's free" doesn't hold: a file being available and you having the right to use it are two different things.
When you can use another company's logo
The key idea is nominative fair use: you show the logo to point at that brand itself, not to pass it off as your own. That's legitimate.
- Mentions in articles, reviews, news — illustrating a piece about the brand.
- Service icons in a UI — a "Sign in with Google" button, "Pay with Visa", a list of banks at checkout.
- Educational and academic material — with a source credit.
- Personal, non‑commercial use — mockups, learning projects, tests.
- Compatibility and comparisons — "works with Google, Apple, Microsoft".
The test that matters most: does your use create a false impression of a connection with the brand? If yes — stop.
When to be careful
There's a grey zone where the details and context decide.
- Commercial decks and advertising. Showing a client's logo in a case study is usually fine, but you can't imply a partnership or endorsement that doesn't exist.
- Portfolio. "Designed for X" is fine if true. "Official partner of X" without a contract is a problem.
- Merch and products. Printing someone's logo on goods you sell is almost always infringement.
When it's definitely not allowed
- Passing another's logo off as your own or building it into your own trademark.
- Implying affiliation, sponsorship or endorsement without permission.
- Distorting the logo — changing colors, proportions, adding elements.
- Using it on a competing product so buyers get confused about who made it.
Situation cheat sheet
| Situation | Allowed? |
|---|---|
| Bank logo in a list of payment methods | ✅ Yes |
| Social icon in a site footer | ✅ Yes |
| Review article showing a brand logo | ✅ Yes |
| Portfolio case "designed for X" | ✅ Yes, if true |
| "Official partner of X" with no contract | ⛔ No |
| Someone's logo on merch you sell | ⛔ No |
| A logo built into your own trademark | ⛔ No |
How to use a logo safely
- Use the official vector and don't distort it — keep the colors and proportions. Many brands publish usage guidelines that spell out what's allowed.
- Don't fabricate a connection — no hints of partnership or endorsement without a contract.
- Acknowledge it's someone's mark — trademarks belong to their owners.
- Unsure about commercial use? Ask for written permission from the rights holder.
That's exactly why every mark in our logo catalog is the official, undistorted vector: you can download it in SVG and PNG, and a brand's page often links to its official guidelines.
Bottom line
You can use another company's logo when you're honestly pointing at the brand itself — in articles, interfaces, reviews, comparisons. You can't when you create the false impression that the brand is connected to you, pass the mark off as your own, or distort it. Stick to the official version, don't lie about affiliations, and you'll be fine.
This is an overview, not legal advice. For a contested commercial‑use situation, consult an IP lawyer.