What Do Your Logo Files Mean?

So you have just received your brand new logo. It looks sharp and professional, and it has arrived in more files than you expected.

Why have you been sent the same logo in several different formats? What is a PNG, an EPS, an SVG or a PDF, and what is a vector file?

One file never fits every job

A high-resolution image is not automatically the right image for every situation. A logo that looks crisp on a business card can look soft on a billboard, and a logo that sits perfectly on white can look clumsy over a photograph. Your designer sent you several files because you will use your logo in several places, and each format solves a different problem.

What is a PNG image?

A PNG (Portable Network Graphic) is made for screens. Its most useful quality for branding is a transparent background, so the logo sits cleanly over a photograph, a colour or any other background without a white box behind it. Compression in a PNG is lossless, so saving the file does not soften the artwork. Resizing is a different matter: enlarging any image built from pixels stretches them, so a PNG saved at a small size will look soft when it is scaled up.

PNG benefits

• Saves without losing quality, because the compression is lossless
• Supports a transparent background
• Opens easily on any device

Use a PNG for

• Websites and online material
• Letterheads and documents that should look considered
• Social media profile images
• Adding a watermark over another image

What is a PDF file?

A PDF (Portable Document Format) was developed by Adobe and is most often associated with documents, but it is also a common way to send a logo to print. Formatting stays fixed on every device, so the file your designer prepared is the file the printer receives.

If your device cannot open one, the free Adobe Acrobat Reader will do it. Untick any optional extras if it offers them.

PDF benefits

• Easy to share and easy to open
• Formatting stays the same on every device
• Carries artwork at print resolution

Use a PDF for

• Printed material such as posters, business cards, labels and clothing

What is an SVG file?

An SVG (Scalable Vector Graphic) is not built from pixels. It describes the logo with mathematical instructions instead, which is why it stays crisp at any size and never shows jagged edges when it is scaled up. It is usually a smaller file than a PNG or a PDF as well.

SVG is a specialised format, so not every platform accepts it. Where it is supported, it is the best choice for a logo that will be shown at large sizes or on high-resolution screens.

SVG benefits

• Scales to any size without losing quality
• A vector format, so no jagged edges
• Usually smaller than a PNG or a PDF
• Transparent background
• Web friendly
• Can be edited in vector design software such as Illustrator, Affinity Designer or Inkscape

Use an SVG for

• Websites and high-resolution screens
• Large-format and high-resolution printing
• Sending back to a designer when the logo needs to change

What is an EPS file?

An EPS (Encapsulated PostScript) is a vector file created in Adobe Illustrator, and it is what designers usually mean when they call something the master file. It scales from a business card to a billboard without losing quality, and a designer or printer with professional design software can open and edit it.

Editing an EPS properly needs professional design software, and Illustrator is not the only option: Affinity Designer, CorelDRAW and other vector editors open and edit the format as well, so most designers and printers can work with your file. A basic viewer will open it without letting you change anything, which is why an EPS belongs in your brand folder rather than your everyday image folder.

EPS benefits

• Scales for print, from large formats down to business cards
• A vector file, so no jagged edges
• Transparent background
• Can be edited in professional vector software such as Illustrator, Affinity Designer or CorelDRAW

Use an EPS for

• Printing, at any size
• Handing artwork to a designer or printer when changes are needed

The short version

• PNG: for websites, documents and social media, with a transparent background.
• PDF: easy to share and open, with formatting fixed on every device, suited to printed material.
• SVG: scales to any size without losing quality, web friendly and editable.
• EPS: the master file for print, editable by a designer or printer in professional design software.

Your designer did not send you the same logo four times by mistake. Each file suits a different job, and together they are the set you will need when a standard image will not do.

Keep the whole set somewhere you can find it. If you are still assembling your brand, talk to us about putting the pieces together.