Copyright, trademark or patent: which one do you need?
Updated November 13, 2026
People mix these up all the time, and filing the wrong one wastes the fee. Here is the plain difference.
Copyright: creative work
Copyright covers things you create: writing, art, photos, music, recordings, videos and scripts. It protects the way you expressed something, not the idea behind it. You get it automatically, and you can register it with the U.S. Copyright Office.
Trademark: names and logos that identify a business
A trademark covers what tells customers who is selling something: a business name, a product name, a logo or a slogan. Trademarks are filed with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, which is a different office with a different form and higher fees.
Patent: inventions
A patent covers how something works: a machine, a process, a device or a formula. Patents are also handled by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. They are the hardest and most expensive of the three.
Quick examples
- You wrote a book: copyright the book. The title alone cannot be copyrighted.
- You named your band: the name is a trademark question. Your songs are copyright.
- You drew a logo: the business use is a trademark question. Simple logos often do not qualify for copyright.
- You invented a tool: patent. The instruction booklet you wrote for it is copyright.
Copyright Man prepares copyright filings only.
Source: the U.S. Copyright Office's Works Not Protected by Copyright (Circular 33).
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This guide is general information, not legal advice. Copyright Man is not a law firm and does not give legal advice. We prepare your filing; you file it yourself on the U.S. Copyright Office website. The Copyright Office, not Copyright Man, decides whether to register a work. Fees and rules are set by the U.S. Copyright Office and can change. Its website, copyright.gov, has the current ones.