Logo, symbol, icon and wordmark
A company usually has several versions of its logo, and lookup APIs name them differently. What each term means, where to show which, and the formats returned.
Last updated 2026-11-10
A company usually has more than one version of its logo, and brand APIs use different words for them.
| Term | What it is | Where it fits |
|---|---|---|
| Logo, wordmark or brandmark | The full logo, often the name set in type, usually wide | Headers, footers, documents |
| Symbol | The mark on its own, without the name | Next to the name set in your own type |
| Icon | A square version, often the symbol on a background | Lists, avatars, small sizes |
Brandfetch's Logo API serves an icon, a symbol or a logo, each in a light or dark theme. Logo.dev's image URL serves the square logo; its Brand API also returns the wide one, which it calls the brandmark.
Which one should you show?
In a list or a table of companies, use the square icon so the rows stay aligned. In a header or a document, use the full logo. Ask for the theme that matches your background: both Brandfetch and Logo.dev have light and dark versions.
Which file format?
SVG is drawn from shapes, so it stays sharp at any size and is what designers prefer. PNG, JPG and WebP are pictures at a fixed size. Brandfetch returns SVG for the logo and symbol types. Logo.dev's image URL serves JPG, PNG or WebP but not SVG; its Brand API reports the format of the source file and downloads come as JPG, PNG or WebP up to 800 pixels.