Short answer The main alternatives are another marketplace (Upwork), another contest site (DesignCrowd), an AI logo maker (Looka or Tailor Brands), a fixed-price design service (Logomint) or a freelancer you hire directly. Pick by what bothered you: fees and vetting on Fiverr, contest prices on 99designs, or simply wanting a human designer at a fixed price.

Logomint is our own service. To keep this fair, every fact about other companies comes from their own pages, checked on 14 October 2026, with links at the end. Prices can depend on where you are.

Why people look for alternatives

From Fiverr, the usual reasons are the time it takes to vet sellers among more than 190,000 logo gigs, packages where the useful files cost more than the headline price, and the buyer service fee added at checkout (we break it down in Logomint vs Fiverr).

From 99designs, it’s usually the price of a contest and the time it takes. When we checked, logo contests cost €289 (Bronze), €479 (Silver), €859 (Gold) and €1,299 (Platinum), excluding sales tax, for our location. A contest runs about 7 days, and 99designs says the number of designs you’ll receive is an estimate, not a guarantee. To its credit, 99designs offers a 60-day money-back guarantee on contests (with exceptions, for example once a contest has entered the final round) and doesn’t allow generative AI in logo contests.

We compare a contest with a dedicated designer point by point in Logomint vs 99designs.

The alternatives at a glance

Option Type Price (as published) Human designer Guarantee
Upwork Freelance marketplace Upwork’s logo page cites $150 – $500 for a simple logo; plus client fees Yes, you hire one Depends on your contract
DesignCrowd Design contest Package prices shown after sign-up; posting fee up to $129 plus 4% Yes, many Refund of the project budget only, with conditions
Looka AI logo maker $35, $72, or a $96/year brand kit No, AI plus your edits Not stated on the pricing page
Tailor Brands AI logo maker inside an LLC-formation service Logos come with its business plans ($0 – $249/year) No, AI Fees generally non-refundable
Logomint Logo design service €129, €199 or €299, no fees on top Yes, a senior designer from our team Money-back guarantee
Direct freelancer Hire one person Usually €200 – €2,000 Yes Depends on your agreement

Five kinds of alternatives: a marketplace like Upwork, a contest like DesignCrowd, AI makers like Looka, a design service like Logomint and a freelancer hired directly The five kinds of alternatives, and who each one suits.

Upwork: when you want to hire one person for the long run

Upwork works like hiring: you post a job, review proposals, interview and agree a fixed price or an hourly rate. Its own logo designer page says logo designers “generally” charge $15 to $30 an hour, and gives ranges of $150 to $500 for a simple logo concept, $500 to $1,500 for a full logo package and $1,500 to $5,000 for a brand identity.

On top of that, Upwork charges clients a marketplace fee (its help centre says up to 7.99%, or 3% for eligible US bank payments) and a one-time contract initiation fee of $0.99 to $14.99 per new contract. Its own pricing page showed both 7.99% and an older 5% figure when we checked, so look at the total before you hire.

Best for: founders who expect ongoing design work and want to build a relationship with one freelancer. Full comparison: Logomint vs Upwork.

DesignCrowd: a contest with a smaller entry ticket

Like 99designs, DesignCrowd runs contests where many designers submit ideas; its logo page promises 25 to 100+ designs per project. Its fees page lists a posting fee of up to US$129, a 4% transaction fee and, on packages of US$200 and over, a 20% project management fee included in the budget. We couldn’t verify the package prices themselves: they only appear after you enter your email.

Its money-back guarantee refunds the project budget, not the posting or transaction fees, as long as no winner is chosen, the contest isn’t guaranteed and you ask within 60 days.

Best for: founders who want lots of ideas from many designers and are happy to manage a contest. Full comparison: Logomint vs DesignCrowd.

Looka and Tailor Brands: when an AI logo is enough

Looka combines your preferences with AI and lets you edit the result yourself. Its pricing page lists a Basic package at $35 (one PNG file), a Premium package at $72 (vector files, colour variations, unlimited changes after purchase) and a Brand Kit subscription at $96 a year. Looka gives you copyright of the logo as a whole, but not of its individual elements, such as symbols.

For a side-by-side look at an AI maker and a human designer, read Logomint vs Looka.

Tailor Brands also uses AI. Its logo maker now sits inside its business-formation plans, which list “8 free logos”; high-resolution vector files cost extra. Its terms say logos are provided “as is”, with no check for conflicts with existing trademarks.

We look at it in detail in Logomint vs Tailor Brands.

AI makers are fast and cheap, but nobody thinks about your brand for you, and similar businesses can end up with similar logos. Protection is another question: the US Copyright Office has said AI output is only protected where a human determined enough of the expressive elements (more in can you trademark an AI-generated logo).

Best for: a placeholder logo for a side project or a quick test of an idea. Building your site on Wix or Squarespace? See Logomint vs Wix and Squarespace logo makers.

Logomint: a fixed price and a designer from our team

Logomint is a design service, not a marketplace or a contest. You pick a plan, fill in a short brief, and a senior designer from our team creates your concepts.

  • Price: €129 (1 concept, 2 revisions), €199 (2 concepts, unlimited revisions) or €299 (3 concepts, unlimited revisions and a full brand kit). No fees on top.
  • Speed: first concepts within 48 hours of your brief, final files within 7 days.
  • Files: transparent logo, vector, printable and source files on every plan.
  • Guarantee: a full refund before you approve a concept, and within 7 days of approving one if the final files haven’t been delivered (refund policy).

Best for: founders who want a custom, human-made logo at a known price, without running a contest or vetting sellers.

A freelancer you hire directly

Hiring a freelancer outside any platform avoids platform fees, and the good ones bring real strategy. In return, you do the vetting, write the contract and agree on files, revisions and ownership yourself. Prices usually range from €200 to €2,000 (how much a logo costs in 2026).

Best for: founders with time to find the right person and a clear contract.

How to choose

  1. Under €100 and in a hurry? An AI maker like Looka, knowing its limits.
  2. Want many ideas and have a week? A contest on 99designs or DesignCrowd.
  3. Expect ongoing design work? Upwork, or a freelancer you hire directly.
  4. Want a custom logo at a fixed price, with everything included? A design service like Logomint.

Whatever you choose, check four things before paying: the total price with fees, which files you get, who owns the logo, and where a refund goes if things go wrong. Our list of questions to ask a logo designer helps.

FAQ

How much does a 99designs logo contest cost?

When we checked, logo contests cost €289 (Bronze), €479 (Silver), €859 (Gold) and €1,299 (Platinum), excluding sales tax, for our location. A contest runs about 7 days.

What is a good alternative to 99designs for a logo contest?

DesignCrowd runs contests in a similar way, and its logo page promises 25 to 100+ designs per project. Its fees page lists a posting fee of up to US$129 and a 4% transaction fee, but package prices only appear after you enter your email.

Does Upwork charge fees for hiring a logo designer?

Yes. Upwork charges clients a marketplace fee (its help centre says up to 7.99%, or 3% for eligible US bank payments) and a one-time contract initiation fee of $0.99 to $14.99 per new contract.

Is there a logo design option without contests or marketplace fees?

Logomint is a design service rather than a marketplace or contest: you pick a plan at €129, €199 or €299 with no fees on top, and a senior designer from our team creates your concepts. First concepts arrive within 48 hours of your brief and final files within 7 days.

Sources

Checked on 14 October 2026. Some sites showed prices for our location (Germany): 99designs in euros, Looka and Upwork with “$”.

Want to skip the contest and the vetting?

At Logomint, a senior designer creates your custom logo from €129, with first concepts in 48 hours, all source files and a money-back guarantee.