The Best Paid and Free Logo Design Software

A custom business logo is essential for catching customers’ eyes—and increasing the chance they’ll remember your company name. While hiring a professional logo designer on Upwork is easy (and a great way to get a high-quality, custom logo), there are a number of free logo makers that make DIY logo design possible, too.

Whether you’re a designer working with clients, or you want to take a crack at making your own new logo, these paid and free logo design software tools will make the process easy. 

Best logo design software of 2025

First, let’s take a look at all of the best logo makers and design software on the market right now, regardless of price point. The information below can help you figure out what program’s functionality will suit your needs the best. 

1. Adobe Illustrator
2. Affinity Designer
3. Figma
4. Canva
5. Adobe Express

1. Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Illustrator is part of the Adobe Creative Cloud suite, which also includes Photoshop, InDesign, Lightroom, and other programs. It’s a full-featured graphic design software tool that’s perfect for logo creation.

Many professional graphic designers use Adobe Illustrator to design logos, signs, branded merchandise, and more. The software is full of features that give you total control over your design—but this means that Illustrator has a fairly steep learning curve. 

If you want to make just one logo for your small business, the time investment and cost to use Adobe Illustrator probably won’t be worth it. If you’re interested in building a career as a freelance logo designer, though, then Illustrator is one of the best tools you can use. Its top features include:

• Vector tracing and editing capabilities
• Seamless integration with other Adobe Creative Cloud applications
• Easy access to Adobe Stock and Adobe Fonts files
• Support for various export formats (SVG, PDF, EPS)
• Automatic text-to-vector generation with Adobe’s integrated AI

Adobe Illustrator is a subscription-based product. It costs $34.49 per month or $263.88 per year for individuals. 

You can also subscribe to the entire Adobe Creative Cloud, including Illustrator. Creative Cloud pricing starts at $59.99 per month for an individual subscription.

2. Affinity Designer

Affinity Designer is a vector graphics editor developed by Serif. It offers a comprehensive set of tools for creating detailed vector artwork like logos, illustrations, and icons. A big benefit of vector tools like Affinity and Illustrator is that you can make your vector file larger without losing resolution. This is ideal if you need to make different versions of your logo for things like business cards all the way up to billboards.

Many logo designers appreciate that Affinity Designer is available as a one-time purchase versus an ongoing subscription like Illustrator. It’s best suited for professional designers and design teams, but it’s also a good option for students or early-career professionals who want to explore vector design without subscribing to Adobe Illustrator.

Affinity Designer’s top features include:

• Vector and raster design tools
• Fast zooming and panning features
• Advanced typography and text styling options
• Comprehensive color management with RGB, CMYK, and Pantone profiles
• Ability to open Adobe design files

There are several ways to purchase and use Affinity Designer: 

• Single desktop licenses (MacOS and Windows) are available for a one-time purchase of $69.99
• iPad-only licenses are available for a one-time purchase of $18.49
• The entire Affinity suite of products is available for a one-time purchase of $164.99

3. Figma

Figma is a web-based design tool that’s popular with user experience designers—but it’s also a great choice for logo design. Because Figma is cloud-based, you can collaborate with other creatives and clients easily in real time when working on your designs. 

This tool is a great choice for logo designers in need of a reliable, free solution. It’s also a nice option for early-career designers looking for a balance of features and easy usability.

Some of Figma’s great features include:

• Real-time collaboration 
• Vector design and editing tools
• Library of plugins to enhance the design process
• In-browser, cross-platform compatibility 

You can create up to three Figma files for free. Additional features and higher usage limits are available for $15 per month and up.

4. Canva

Canva is a popular online graphic design tool known for its user-friendly interface and extensive library of logo templates. It’s well-suited for both professional and DIY logo creators with minimal design experience. 

Canva is different from Adobe Illustrator and Affinity Designer—you can’t draw your own vector or raster shapes using the tool. Instead, you create designs by layering color, shapes, text, and preexisting graphic elements on top of each other. That said, you can import illustrations from other tools into Canva.

Professional logo designers who are used to working from sketches and creating logos from scratch may find Canva’s limitations to be frustrating. If you’re looking for a straightforward, easy way to create polished logos and graphics, though, it’s a great tool with features like:

• Drag-and-drop design interface
• Vast library of templates and design elements, including stock photos
• Collaboration tools to work with clients and colleagues
• One-click background removal and image filtering
• Export options for various logo file formats, including PNGs with a transparent background
• Built-in AI tools and document editors 
• Brand kit management tools for paid users

You can start using Canva for free, though you won’t be able to access all of the available graphics and fonts. To unlock every element in Canva, you’ll need a Canva Pro subscription for $120 per year. Team plans are available as well.

5. Adobe Express

Adobe Express (formerly Adobe Spark) is a Canva competitor. Like Canva, Adobe Express is best for layering graphics and text—not drawing images yourself.

The tool does have one big advantage, though. As an Adobe Express user, you get access to some of the same generative AI features found in other Adobe Creative Cloud products, including:

• Generative image fill
• Text to image generation
• Text to template creation 

You can use these tools to help you quickly make unique logos as well as branded videos for TikTok ads, Instagram Stories, and more.

Notable features in Adobe Express include:

• Access to generative AI tools powered by Adobe Firefly
• Over 100,000 templates available on the free plan
• Thousands of Adobe fonts
• Adobe Stock photos, videos, and music files
• One-click editing tools including background removal and element animation

Adobe Express has two plans:

• Free, which provides access to basic editing tools and 25 generative AI credits per month 
• Premium, which provides access to all templates and elements as well as 250 generative AI credits each month for $9.99

3 Best free logo makers

1. Canva

We mentioned it before, but Canva can’t be beat when it comes to designing a logo for free. Whether you’re working on your computer or a phone (Android or iOS), you can use a number of free logo templates, fonts, and image assets to create your mark. Plus, Canva makes it easy to develop your entire brand identity and use your logo on all kinds of assets in the future, from social media posts and t-shirts to letterheads and signs. 

2. Hatchful

Hatchful is Shopify’s answer to AI-powered branding. The app asks a few questions about your industry and preferences, then presents customizable logo options. Once you’re happy with your design, Hatchful allows you to download the logo in different sizes and formats, including options that are pre-sized for use across your social media accounts.

3. ChatGPT

If you have a ChatGPT account, you can use it to make a logo! Ask the AI something like
“help me make a logo”—it’ll generate a list of questions to answer. Based on your responses, the AI will then create several logo concepts using DALL-E. Note that while ChatGPT-4o’s image generator is better than its predecessors at rendering text in images, you may still encounter some logo designs that include blurred or misspelled words … including your business name. This can require a longer series of prompts to correct errors and get a usable logo.

3 Best professional logo design software tools

1. Adobe Illustrator

Adobe Illustrator really is the best professional logo design software you can ask for. Many other companies, including professional printers, use Illustrator. This means that no matter where you use or send your logo file, it’s likely to be accepted. Illustrator isn’t cheap, but if you have a freelancer account on Upwork you can get 23% off your Creative Cloud subscription for one year! 

2. Affinity Designer

Affinity is our second favorite platform for professional logo design, for all the reasons listed above. If you plan to share your files with clients, printers, or collaborators, this is the best choice (after Illustrator) for maintaining compatibility. The iPad app is great, too, if you like to work on your designs with an Apple Pencil.

3. Inkscape

If you need a full-featured professional logo design tool for free, check out Inkscape. It’s an open-source vector-based design program similar to Illustrator. It’s not as full-featured as Illustrator, though, and may not be as seamlessly compatible with different file types like Affinity Designer. That said, you can still use the tool to create logos for yourself or clients, and it’s a great program to use when exploring vector design for the first time.

Choosing a logo maker

Many programs are great for beginner, intermediate, and advanced users—but what’s best for one beginner might not be what’s best for you. Consider each of the following factors when purchasing graphic design software for logos.

Ease of use

Consider how easy logo design software will be for you to use. Think about when and how you will access the software. If the program doesn’t fit your workflow or isn’t easy to use, you won’t get its full benefit. 

Professional capabilities and features

Be honest about the features you want and intend to use in a logo design software program. If you don’t intend to convert hand-drawn sketches to vector graphics or do original illustrations, then you can potentially save money by opting for AI or templated graphic design software. 

Jumping right into a full-featured vector art program like Adobe Illustrator can also be overwhelming for beginners. If this is your first time designing a logo, give it a try with a lighter-weight program before buying a professional creative suite. If logos are your primary graphic design niche, though, then you’ll benefit from the wealth of tools available in a full design app.

Pricing

How you would like to pay for your logo design software is a big part of finding the right fit. If you want to create one logo, an AI program may be your best bet (aside from hiring a professional logo designer). If you’d like to make multiple logos, choose a free tool, software with one-time licensing, or a subscription service. 

Remember, you can always switch to another logo maker or upgrade your plan in the future.

Updates

As your computer operating system updates over time, your logo design software needs to as well.

Should you plan to make more than one logo or develop branded assets over time, make sure the program you use either includes updates or is web-based. If the software does not include updates, you may find yourself re-purchasing new versions every year. Browser-based logo design software is a great choice for many people because it always remains up to date.

Expert reviews

Consider what expert designers and experienced business owners have to say about the software you’re considering. If you’re a novice designer interested in a program that a graphic design expert finds hard, you might consider other options. 

Look for reviews by users who seem similar to you—this can help you decide if a particular type of logo software might be worth the investment.

FAQ for logo design software

Some graphic designers make a living only doing logos—so there’s tons to know about logo design. While we can’t answer every question you might have about logo design software, the answers to these frequently asked questions will help you find the right tool to try.

What’s a good logo design?

What makes a logo good or not often comes down to personal preference. You know your brand and what you want to convey best! That said, typically speaking, good logo design always:

• Is easy to read with good contrast
• Remains visible and high resolution at a small or large size
• Incorporates your company name or an icon associated with your business
• Uses negative space wisely

What’s the best software to design a logo with? 

The best logo design software is the one you feel comfortable using. If you’re designing a logo for the first time, play around with online logo makers like Hatchful (or even ChatGPT) and tools like Figma and Canva. See what program you like the best.

Is there a free logo creator without watermarks?

Yes! You can create logos without watermarks using any of the free logo makers in this guide.

What’s the best logo design software for Mac?

We like browser-based logo design software (such as Canva or Figma) because they work on all platforms and devices. If you’re looking for a desktop program, though, Affinity Designer and Adobe Illustrator both work really well on Macs.

Do I need graphic design skills to use a free logo maker?

Nope! While you will need some graphic design skills to use a vector tool like Inkscape, most free logo generators and design tools (including Canva) are meant for use by first-time designers or business owners. There will be easy templates to use, and you can find tutorials for many free logo makers on YouTube if you need a little extra help making your own logo, too. 

The fastest way to get a professional logo

If you want to be sure that your logo is the right size and format, and that it accurately represents your brand, post a job to connect with skilled logo designers. You’ll get to talk to them about your needs and get a price quote before starting a project. You can browse Project Catalog™ for logo design help, too! 

And if you’re a professional graphic designer experienced in logo design, you can work with clients right here on Upwork. Create or log in to your Upwork account today to start offering logo designs for sale in Project Catalog, responding to clients in Talent Marketplace™, and more. 

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Upwork does not control, operate, or sponsor the tools or services discussed in this article, which are only provided as potential options. Each reader and company should take the time to adequately analyze and determine the tools or services that would best fit their specific needs and situation.

Prices are current at the time of writing and may change over time based on each service’s offerings.