ReferenceGoogle Ads disapproval
Business logo quality
Google disapproves a business logo as Badly cropped, Blurry, Blank space (a single block of color) or Obscure (an inverted, upside-down or stretched mark). The logo must be square, in PNG or JPG, at least 128 by 128 pixels, and 1200 by 1200 is recommended. Replace the file with a sharp, corrected version, then save.
At a glance
- Where it shows
- The status of the business logo asset on the Assets page, as Disapproved under this policy.
- What stops
- The logo is not shown while it stands.
- How serious
- Low on its own. Repeated violations of any policy can lead to a suspension.
What it means
Google lists these four as separate messages, but they share one cause and one fix: the image file of the logo does not read as the logo, so a corrected file replaces it. The logo is judged on how it reads at the size Google shows it. Google renders it as a circle at 28 by 28 pixels by default and warns that parts of a square logo can be cut off or obscured in that circle. The logo must also work in both light and dark mode.
The logo should match the advertised business and stay consistent for a given domain name. A logo that does not match the business, or is missing from the landing page, carries a different message, covered under confusions below.
What actually triggers it
A single block of color
A logo that is a plain block of color with no recognizable element is listed as blank space.
A blurry or too small logo
A logo that is blurry, out of focus or too small to be legible is listed. Upload a file at 1200 by 1200 pixels where you can.
A crop that misrepresents the company
Cropping that gives an inaccurate or confusing representation of the company is listed as badly cropped.
An inverted, upside-down or stretched mark
Inverted colors, an upside-down orientation and a skewed or stretched mark are listed as obscure. Match the colors, orientation and proportions of the logo on your website.
Key detail close to the edge
Google renders the logo as a 28 by 28 pixel circle and warns that parts of it can be cut off or obscured. A wide wordmark placed in a square file loses its ends in that circle, which reads as a bad crop. Check the logo at that size before uploading.
Fix it in this order
- Open Assets, find the business logo, and read its status.
- Open the logo file and look at it on a light background and on a dark one, at the 28 by 28 pixel circle size. Google recommends uploading a logo already formatted as a circle.
- Correct the problem the status names: re-crop the logo so the full mark is centered, export a sharper file at 1200 by 1200 pixels, add a recognizable element, or restore the orientation and proportions of the logo on your website.
- Hover over the asset, select Edit, upload the corrected logo and select Save.
Google's page does not give a separate fix for each issue, so the steps above follow from its requirements.
When to appeal
Appeal when the logo meets every requirement on the business information page and is still flagged. An appeal does not change the file, so correct it first.
Often confused with
Distortion in an image asset is its own message. A distorted business logo is listed under Obscure, on this page.
Logo not relevant or Logo prominence
Two other logo messages on the same Google page. Logo not relevant means the logo does not match the business name or advertised business. Logo prominence means the logo is not clearly present on the landing page. A sharper file fixes neither: the first needs the business's own logo, the second a change to the landing page.
A business name is a text rule. The logo is an image judged on the requirements in this page, so a name change does not affect a logo disapproval.