What is the best color scheme for this logo?

April 22, 2021 10:46 AM

Which variant of the logo looks better?

Hi all! I decided to redesign the logo of my web application. The purpose of the redesign is to make the logo brighter and more clickable.
https://i.piccy.info/i9/1520e8d176349ab432a48f6776b2a668/1618510241/90357/1419694/58955logo.jpg
The new version of the logo is shown on the left side.

posted by antonykidless to Computers & Internet (28 answers total)

I prefer the one on the right.
posted by wile e at 10:52 AM on April 22, 2021 [6 favorites]

The one on the left looks like a pokemon christmas ornament. Hard pass.

Right side is much better.
posted by phunniemee at 10:54 AM on April 22, 2021 [15 favorites]

Agreed on the right side one. Also, having the darker shade on the outside of the left segment makes it "pop" a little more 3D to me, whereas the left one doesn't feel like it has depth.
posted by jeffjon at 10:57 AM on April 22, 2021 [3 favorites]

I like the original. The new one looks like a stoplight.
posted by freshwater at 10:59 AM on April 22, 2021

Yeah, too christmas-y, I vote for right

also maybe tighten up the kerning esp between V and A
posted by kpmcguire at 11:01 AM on April 22, 2021 [15 favorites]

I like the original better than the new, but I would probably try a blue and grey color for the darker side of the original to see which one I liked better.
posted by AugustWest at 11:01 AM on April 22, 2021 [2 favorites]

The red on the left feels much too fire-engine and even childish. It’s hard to judge whether this is more clickable without the context of surrounding site, its predominant colors, and how visually separated it is from its neighboring elements.

Related, at Stamen we used to have a design joke that went “If you can’t make it good, make it big. If you can’t make it big, make it red”. Mostly we aimed for big and stayed away from red.
posted by migurski at 11:02 AM on April 22, 2021 [2 favorites]

I prefer the one on the right. The darker color seems more cohesive with the text color.
posted by eponym at 11:06 AM on April 22, 2021 [2 favorites]

I can't really answer without knowing what a VATULATOR does. Absent that I do like the one on the right better, partially due to the faux 3d caused by the light/dark (which could be done with the red). The kerning kinda bugs me.
posted by achrise at 11:06 AM on April 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

Agree with AugustWest. The colors on the left are too saturated, but the right is too montone. I'd like to see the right version, but with other dark colors like navy or gray.
posted by kevinbelt at 11:07 AM on April 22, 2021

Btw, I just downloaded your Android app. Looks good. The term you seem to have coined, Vatulator has stumped my search engine. Found it at bottom of 1st page. Tried to force calculator on me.

Add to Projects if you haven't already?
posted by AugustWest at 11:08 AM on April 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

I don't think Christmas for the one on the left, but I would make a Mexico or Italy connection, at least while it lived on a white background. Prefer one on right.
posted by GoblinHoney at 11:08 AM on April 22, 2021 [2 favorites]

Aside from the association with Christmas that the red and green combo brings up, it also could imply a stop/go thing which may not be applicable.

And, I must second what kpmcguire mentioned. PLEASE tighten up the kerning between the V and A, but also between the A and T (both sets), the U and L, and the O and R. Basically, check the kerning between all the letters.
posted by jonathanhughes at 11:10 AM on April 22, 2021 [3 favorites]

Response by poster: >>I can't really answer without knowing what a VATULATOR does.
This is a universal VAT calculator.

>>I like the original better than the new, but I would probably try a blue and grey color for the darker side of the original to see which one I liked better.
Will these colors fit the current design of the app?
posted by antonykidless at 11:11 AM on April 22, 2021

I also prefer the old one. It isn't a game.

Please kern the VA pair a little.
posted by zadcat at 11:19 AM on April 22, 2021 [3 favorites]

> Please kern the VA pair a little.

I think the TU and/or UL pair also need attention but I can't decide which. Username aside, I'm not an expert.
posted by glonous keming at 11:54 AM on April 22, 2021 [4 favorites]

Another vote for the right hand version.
posted by jquinby at 11:57 AM on April 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

If you think the red pops more than the green, you could use the right-hand logo but sub in red for green. Does green imply currency for countries other than the US, where our paper money is green?
posted by rikschell at 12:07 PM on April 22, 2021

If you want the halves of the logo to be visually distinct, the version on the left will look more brighter and more distinct to a wider audience, including those with common and less-common forms of color-blindness.

You can confirm this for yourself with various browser extensions that simulate color-blindness by applying various filters to window content.

Apart from color, one technical reason for this is that the luminosity histogram of colors in the halves on the right logo are more similar than those on the left. The version on the left is technically both brighter and more visually distinctive, even to those without color-blindness.

A greyscale version of the rightmost logo may be preferred for targeting print, because the saturation levels are more distinct in the right version.

Ultimately, which is better may depend upon the technical criteria you need to meet. Does it need to work well for print and display? Does it need to be accessible? Can you have multiple versions targeting various audiences or media? Etc.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 12:09 PM on April 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

I also prefer the one on the right, and also strongly recommend more kerning. Definitely between the VA; I'd also push both ATs slightly closer together and maybe also the TOR.

Disclaimer: I am not a designer; I just got a high score in that kerning game. ;)
posted by confluency at 12:11 PM on April 22, 2021

Now that I know this is a VAT calculator, the name and logo are genius! I'd go for the one right, but I'd also skip past the kerning issue and go for a different sans serif font. This font is wildly unbalanced. The 'U' and the 'O' are horrendous together in the same word. It's almost as if the V, A and O belong to one family and the T, U, L, and R belong to another, narrower family. As these are the only letters in the name and several of them repeat often, I'd definitely go for a different font where the letter widths are complementary to each other.
posted by iamkimiam at 12:35 PM on April 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

The one on the right.
posted by Splunge at 12:37 PM on April 22, 2021

Nth-ing the sentiment that the left one had too much contrast. I keep thinking Italy. :D

I guess I don't see the link from the logo to the name. Is there any way you can incorporate a vertical bar so they form some sort of a leaning V?

Also consider how your logo will look monochrome. Shading doesn't come through, esp. when it's multiple shades of the same base color.
posted by kschang at 1:04 PM on April 22, 2021

Replace the red section with shades of a rust/dark-orange hue. Two secondary colors ftw.
posted by Thorzdad at 1:20 PM on April 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thanks guys for your advice! I will try to fix the kerning and show the new version of the logo here.
posted by antonykidless at 2:19 PM on April 22, 2021

I like the right hand version but honestly would be more likely to find and click on the left.
posted by A Terrible Llama at 3:45 PM on April 22, 2021 [2 favorites]

A common colour blindness is when a person cannot differentiate red / green. Since I've known a few people with this affliction, the red & green is a no go.
posted by itsflyable at 7:28 PM on April 22, 2021 [1 favorite]

The right logo is not going to hold my attention, and would not stand out in a sea or other logos.
If the Christmas/Italy/color blindness comparisons are a problem, may I suggest changing the red section to either a black and gray or a navy and medium blue example? Blue, green and white are crisp and classic. The dull colors are not helping.
posted by TrishaU at 2:24 PM on April 25, 2021