History
In 1997, Larry Page created a computerized version of the Google letters using the free graphics program GIMP. The typeface was changed and an exclamation mark was added mimicking the Yahoo! logo.
"There were a lot of different color iterations", says Ruth Kedar, the graphic designer who developed the now-famous logo in May 1999. "We ended up with the primary colors, but instead of having the pattern go in order, we put a secondary color on the L, which brought back the idea that Google doesn't follow the rules." The font Catull was used, "I was trying to find something that was both traditionally tied to the beautiful fonts in the past and also had a very current and in some ways surprising ways", says Ruth, "I really loved the way that it had these very elegant stems and ascenders and descenders and also had these Serifs that were very, very precise and I wanted something that when you looked at it, it was very clear that it's something you haven't seen before".
In 2010, the Google logo received its first major overhaul since May 31, 1999. The new logo was first previewed on November 8, 2009, and was officially launched on May 6, 2010. It utilizes an identical typeface to the previous logo, but the "o" is distinctly more orange-colored in place of the previously more yellowish "o", as well as a much more subtle shadow rendered in a different shading style.
On September 19, 2013, Google introduced a new "flat" (two-dimensional) logo with a slightly altered color palette. The old 2010 Google logo remained in use on some pages, such as the Google Doodles page, for a period of time. On May 24, 2014, the Google logo was slightly updated with some minor typographical tweaks, with the second 'g' moved right one pixel and the 'l' moved down and right one pixel.
On September 1, 2015, Google introduced a controversial "new logo and identity family" designed to work across multiple devices. The notable difference in the logo is the change in the typeface. The colors remained the same as with the previous logo, however, Google switched to a modern, geometric sans-serif typeface called Product Sans, created in-house at Google (which is also used for the Alphabet logo).
Initial Google logo from September 15, 1997 to September 27, 1998
Original logo in the Baskerville Bold typeface, used from September 28, 1998 to October 29, 1998. It uses a different color combination from the one in use today, with the initial "G" being colored green.
The logo used from October 30, 1998 to May 30, 1999, differs from the previous version with an exclamation mark added to the end, an increased shadow, letters more rounded, and different letter hues. Note that the color of the initial G changed from green to blue. This color sequence is still used today, although with different hues and font.
The company logo changed to one based on the Catull typeface and was used from May 31, 1999 to May 5, 2010. The exclamation mark was removed, and it remained the basis for the logo until August 31, 2015.
The logo used from May 6, 2010 to September 18, 2013, showing a reduced distance of the projected shadow, a change in the second "o" to a different yellow hue and a more flattened lettering
The logo used from September 19, 2013 to August 31, 2015, showing flattened lettering and the removal of shadows
The logo used since September 1, 2015, featuring a new typeface, Product Sans. The colors remain unchanged from the previous logo.
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