Logo design by Maciev on 99designs by Vista
Logo design by Maciev on 99designs by Vista

Seven of the Biggest Logo Design Trends for 2022

There’s a palpable sense of expectation in the air as we enter 2022 and this is playing out in unexpected (but beautiful) ways in the design world.

Design trends from eras gone by seeming to be cycling back into vogue faster than ever before, and logos are getting bolder and less constrained as designers look to exercise full creative expression after almost two years of feeling cooped up inside.

We spoke to the global community of freelance designers at 99designs by Vista about what logo design trends they think will define the year ahead – here’s what they had to say:

‘McBling’

Like them or not, the naughties are back with vengeance. While some may feel it’s way too early for a 2000s revival, design culture disagrees and a growing number of logos are leveraging this Y2K aesthetic. Featuring diamontes, bling, gothic fonts and plenty of pink, it’s a blend of emo, kitsch, grunge and hip hop all rolled into one – and it has an endearingly ‘cheap’ and youthful feel that’s brimming with the optimism of the era in which it was born.

Logo design by Fahrenheit 32 on 99designs by Vista
Logo design by Fahrenheit 32 on 99designs by Vista
Logo design by spARTan on 99designs by Vista
Logo design by spARTan on 99designs by Vista

Stretched and Continuous Lettering

In 2022, we’re seeing a growing trend towards wordmarks that play with stretched and continuous lettering as designers increasingly create customized typography to produce truly unique logos and visual identities for brands. Stretching singular or multiple letterforms increases the expressivity of the type, placing emphasis on different letters that mimic the vocal stress when read aloud. This technique directs the viewer’s gaze around the design and gives the mark an infinite feel – as if the word were to go on forever.

Logo design by bo_rad on 99designs by Vista
Logo design by bo_rad on 99designs by Vista

A Groovy Revival

Will the 70s ever go out of fashion? Logo design doesn’t seem to think so as we tend to see the decade revisited in different ways each year. This trend is categorized by its optimism and peaceful, laid back attitude – no wonder we’re seeing it brought back to life for 2022. Bold, saturated colours and curvy, bubbly letter forms bring minimalist layouts to life for some seriously smooth retro vibes.

Image by Rockswell _ via Behance
Image by Rockswell _ via Behance
Logo design by KisaDesign on 99designs by Vista
Logo design by KisaDesign on 99designs by Vista

Blurred Logos

For 2022, we’re also seeing more designs that distort letterforms with blur effects to create movement in type. Whether that’s simply blurring the edges of a word or the whole mark, the focus here is less on readability and more on intrigue. This is all about creating an air of fluidity to give logos a 3D feel in 2D environments which also opens up the door to animation for digital assets.

Image by Tania Bell via Behance
Image by Tania Bell via Behance

Layered Elements

A new twist on an old classic, logos that feature layered, sometimes contrasting, elements are also rising to prominence this year. These designs take simple elements like geometric shapes and lines and layer them with striking washes of color. Again, readability comes second to aesthetics here with experimentations with color, patterns and line thicknesses creating unexpected interruptions.

Logo design by annalisa_furia on 99designs by Vista
Logo design by annalisa_furia on 99designs by Vista
Design by Hitsik on 99designs by Vista
Design by Hitsik on 99designs by Vista

Grunge Revisited

The 00’s aren’t the only recent decade to receive a revival in 2022. The pre-millennium 90s grunge aesthetic is also making a ferocious comeback as design rebels against the mainstream. Here we’re predominantly seeing wordmark logos that feature gritty typefaces to place brand names front and centre. The use of rough textures give these logos a handmade feel and the dark, moody colour schemes ooze of brooding energy.

Logo design by 99Spy on 99designs by Vista
Logo design by 99Spy on 99designs by Vista

Scribbles and Sketches

While some designers are seeking solace in simpler times of decades gone by, others are looking to charming, child-like scribbles that infuse a welcomed innocence to logo design. While these sketches have an unfinished and raw feel to them, monochromatic colour schemes create an air of simple sophistication to logo designs.

Logo design by 99Spy on 99designs by Vista
Logo design by 99Spy on 99designs by Vista

Looking at these logo trends together, it’s evident that designers are keen to push traditional creative boundaries in 2022 – not only to breathe new life into styles of yesterday but give rise to innovative new ones too. They’re unpredictable and experimental, and something tells us they will be the perfect backdrop to the year ahead.

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Creative Gaga
www.creativegaga.com