06 Aug Grid Based Logo Design

Why I Started Using Grids in Logo Design

I draw cartoon logos freehand, so grid based logo design was a shock the first time a client asked for it. No free hand: only basic shapes, circles and a grid underneath every line.

It turned out to be one of the best exercises I have done. This is what a logo grid is, when it helps, when it hurts, and how I use it in a real project.

What Is a Grid in Logo Design?

A grid is a background pattern of lines and circles that you build the logo on. It helps you align elements, measure distances and check the symmetry of the design.

It also gives you perfect curves, clean corners and smooth lines, the details that make a logo look professional at any size.

The Problem with Grid Logos

The risk of a grid is that it over-rationalizes the design. Every curve follows a circle and every angle repeats, so the logo ends up boring and predictable.

It looks like it was made by a robot: correct, but with no room for personality.

When Should You Use a Grid?

Use the grid as a tool, not as the design. A 100% grid based logo fits a law firm, where tradition and stability are the values to show. The same logo would be wrong for a creative artist.

The best grid logos break their own rules on purpose. Yahoo is built on a grid, but the Y, the second O and the exclamation mark are slightly different, and that is what makes it feel alive.

Grid Logo Tutorial: A Rocket on a Circular Grid

This video by Desainew is a good way to start playing with grids. The whole rocket is built from circles of the same grid.

Watch the smoke at the bottom: it breaks the symmetry on purpose, so the grid is not obvious and the rocket feels like it is moving.

My Grid Based Logo Workflow

I sketch freehand in Photoshop with a Wacom tablet: perfect for ideas, not for a final logo. Once the client approves the sketch, I move it to Illustrator and rebuild it on a grid.

Then I apply the color palette and check that it will look good in print. The grid is only one step: the logo still has to work in every version.

This is the full construction of my first grid based commission: the logo for Forum, an all-in-one sharing device.

The last step is the brand identity: vertical and horizontal layouts, full color, limited gradient, two colors and one color. I use the same grid when I design a mascot logo, in the step where the sketch becomes a clean mark.