HN Explorer

Ask HN: Where do you buy logos for your MVP?

18 points by marioluigi ↗ HN
I'm looking for a cheap logo for my MVP. I'd be more than happy to pay a professional designer for a logo, but only after I have validated my MVP. Right now, I'd like something that looks good enough but does not cost a lot. I know about 99designs where the minimum cost is $299. Are there any other websites for cheaper logos, say around the $100 mark?

30 comments

[ 2.3 ms ] story [ 40.4 ms ] thread
onion2k
"looks good enough" for your MVP is not bothering with a logo and just getting the damn thing out there in front of people. Seriously, at this stage the logo is wholly unimportant - smashing down every barrier to feedback is critical.

Just move forward without a logo and stop wasting time.

marioluigi
With my design skills the best I can come up with is a text logo in Gimp which looks really really bad. I've seen a lot of sites that show up with such a logo and it does not look good. Maybe to the technical HN crowd a logo doesn't matter, but a lot of people would be put off with a bad looking logo and that would definitely affect feedback and validation.
disdev
Google font the header.
onion2k
What is a logo? It's an aide-mémoire - a convenient shortcut for users to recognise and remember your company's image. When you have a strong brand a logo can be a phenomenal tool to keep your products in the public consciousness - but at the stage you're at now, a logo is just a small picture to put in the corner of a website. That's it.

Your company cannot survive without validation, and a logo (or lack of) is not stopping you getting that.

Lionga
Just do not add any logo at all. You imagine problems that are no problems at all.
mrmagoo312
Then go to fiverr and get a decent one for $5
codonaut
crowdspring.com is around $100 minimum IIRC
imrehg
Can try http://www.reddit.com/r/freedesign/ , I got some interesting submissions for my project, when I submitted a logo design brief as an experiment. In general, though, logos are not important when you are not even sure what will your project turn into.
atom-morgan
For a project I just recently did, I purchased a font from www.myfonts.com and cleaned it up to the point of looking like a "good enough" custom made text logo. Path's font is on there as well: Coquette.
makerops
The noun project also has some decent art you could convert to a logo.
dirktheman
For $100 you can hire 20 designers from fiverr.com to make you a logo. I'm sure one of them will come up with something useful.
wikwocket
Fiverr is fun for this. Don't expect brilliant work, or even anything that looks as good as the samples posted, but you can get a ton done for cheap to at least inspire some ideas or use as a placeholder.
27182818284
Wow, that's way cheaper than 99designs. Is the quality similar?
wikwocket
As in most areas of life, you get what you pay for.
ledfinzep
try fiverr.com. I've used the service a few times for a logo. Decent results for 5 bucks.
izolate
I design my own. As for recommendations, I'd first like to request you avoid sites like Fiverr because it devaluates design work.

Forums/reddit are your best bet. Try /r/forhire, or your nearest forum that has a buy/sell board. Frequently tech boards do; I used to design logos for $50-100 on neowin.net. You can give their graphic exchange board a shot if you like.

avenger123
I see fiverr as an opportunity for people to make a little money where the US dollar translates to something a lot better than $5 bucks in their currency.

Also note that $5 bucks is a starting point. I think for $5 bucks its a win/win to see if someone is "good enough". Usually, the good ones will tack on more money if you want the raw files or additional work done.

I get that $5 is nothing for work done in North America but in the rest of the world where the currency isn't US, it's likely to be worth it.

wikwocket
As an alternative to spending on a logo, consider buying a really nice theme at themeforest.net or somewhere similar. This will rapidly give you a slick-looking design for the overall site/app, and then you can get away with some text in a nice font for a "logo."
27182818284
Students looking to fill out portfolios. Flat rate $200 for wordmark, logo, etc. It is student work so I've had mixed results with sometimes stuff being awesome and other times stuff being just OK.
cik
I post the job on freelancer, and let people bid. Sure, it takes more time than fiver and friends - but at least I can see an artist's portfolio.
livestyle
Fiverr and Google Web Fonts are your best friends.
miriadis
I can recommend Logoturn.com, great logos and great support. You can also find very nice domains.
avenger123
Try this person. He's done a reasonable job on work I have seen:

http://fiverr.com/experthq

I would try others on fiverr.com. Spend your $5 bucks on 3-4 different designers and you're still ahead and likely to get something good out of it.

Note that, if you want the raw files (psd, etc.) you'll pay a little extra ($10 extra for the person above).

amogh10
If its an MVP, why care to spend on a logo? Just create a text one with a nice font and bg color. Segoe UI or Open Sans look good. There are also some websites which can generate logos for you.

If you want someone to do it, put it up on freelancer.com and get it done for 10-15 bucks or fiverr as someone already mentioned.

arcdigital
I've had pretty good luck with Envato's Microlancer site. A good number of people are offering decent logos for under $100.
maxbrown
Reach out if you're still looking, I'd be happy to help out.