Feel-Good Design

Cheatsheets
September 2019 / ver. 1.2

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Feel-Good Design Cheatsheet
ADD TILES VERTICALLY AND HORIZONTALLY AS NECESS
DIPS ARE ALIGNED WITH FRIES.
DO NOT PLACE TOO MANY DIPS.
Overview Our goal Our philosophy Our personality (CYAN LINE INDICATES PATTERN EDGE - DO NOT PRINT)
 Visit Design.McDonalds.com   for downloadable Create an inspirational Every touchpoint is  Lighthearted
assets, additional guidance, training tools, design system that delivers an opportunity for a Welcoming
on our brand promise and Feel-Good Moment. Dependable
application inspiration and case studies.
contemporizes our design Unpretentious
The following pages outline our new Feel-Good Design system and supersede previous brand
guidelines in The Golden Arches Code (the policy and standards section of The Golden Arches
approach globally. Playful
Code is being updated separately).

Our brand promise is at the heart of everything we do. Visual assets

Making Delicious, Speedee Bold

Feel-Good Moments Speedee Regular

Speedee Light

Easy for Everyone. The Golden Arches

Transforming our logo from
Color palette
We’re a Golden Brand with
Typography
A custom, proprietary typeface
a static icon to a sensorial symbol. Red accents. to unify our global voice—available
in three weights.

Our visual identity principles guide our thinking and approach.

 Confidently   Familiar yet    Flawesome 

 humble   surprising
Avoiding extraneous noise and
static allows us to find the bold,
simple essence of McDonald’s.
If it doesn’t add, take it away.
Negative space is a positive.
We don’t follow category norms;
instead, we define them.
Modern, refreshing, and
unexpected interpretations that
stay true to our brand heritage.
Find ways of adding a playful wink
that surprises and delights. Talk
with our audience, not at them.
Success is inspiring a reaction.
Celebrate simple moments
and imperfections that speak on
a personal rather than corporate
level. Play with context, scale,
contrast, balance, movement
and energy. Archery Playful Patterns and Photography
Using our symbol creatively, Product Illustrations Capturing and inspiring delicious,
dynamically, and purposefully. Graphic interpretations that Feel-Good Moments.
celebrate our latent equities.

Brand architecture

Note: These guidelines relate only to the McDonald’s masterbrand.

Different rules and guidance may apply to McDonald’s sub-brands and
platforms (e.g., McCafe, Happy Meal, etc.).

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The Golden Arches Cheatsheet

The Golden Arches Archery Wordmark

Our brand beacon for 2X

Minimum height Everybody knows our name— we don’t always have to say it.
over 60 years, the Print 4 mm
Digital 15 px
Golden Arches inspire
everything we create.
Note: The Golden
They are much more Arches no longer
than a logo, they are require ® or ™, except
within our corporate
an iconic symbol. website and similar
2X X
applications.
Our wordmark is mostly reserved Clearspace is equal to Minimum height
for horizontal restaurant fascias the height of the “o” of the
Clearspace is equal to 2 times the McDonald’s wordmark. Print 3 mm
and corporate applications.
width of a leg of the Golden Arches. Digital 8 px

Note: The wordmark no longer requires ® or ™, except within our corporate website and similar applications.

O G Use of the Golden Arches

is governed by   Archery. 
For best practices, refer to the Archery Cheatsheet.
Do not use colors Do not use in illegible Do not use the Golden Do not apply drop The wordmark is only ever used as Do not lock the wordmark up with Do not modify the wordmark
other than Gold. instances. Arches as a letterform. shadows. black or white. the Golden Arches. in any way.

The Token Using the Token I’m lovin’ it

Celebrate the liberated Golden Place the Token Make sure our tagline
Arches wherever possible. in one of the is used with purpose.
Use the Token to support the corners of a layout.
Golden Arches when scale, The exact corner Overuse will diminish
legibil­ity and contrast pose placement and its meaning. Showin’ it
challenges, particularly on light- positioning within can be more powerful
colored or cluttered backgrounds. the quadrants are than sayin’ it.
flexible, as indicated Worth
X
here. The preferred waking Use the tagline art
placements are up for. as it is provided. Clearspace is equal to the height Minimum height
bottom left or of the “o” of the word “lovin’.”
top right. Print 3 mm
Digital 8 px

Note: The Token

no longer requires
X X
® or ™, except
Scale and placement of the Token
within our corporate
Clearspace is equal to the Minimum height are flexible depending on context.
website and similar
distance between the leg Legibility of the Token ensures that our brand
Print 6 mm applications.
of the Golden Arches and is immediately identifiable.
the edge of the Token. Digital 25 px
Do not center the Token. Do not lock the tagline up with
the Golden Arches or the Token.

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Archery Cheatsheet

 Archery   informs how we use the Golden Arches

creatively and dynamically. Archery is always used
carefully and thoughtfully in order to maintain
the integrity of our symbol.

Do not Cropping Do not

Archery should
only be used if…

It occurs naturally
The Golden Arches can appear in
the world in many different ways.
Use of Archery depends on context
It supports an idea
The Golden Arches can focus
attention or re-stage the expected.
Four cropped sets of the Golden Use the provided artwork to ensure Do not alter the Golden Arches
Arches are available for download consistency and maintain the in any way.
at Design.McDonalds.com. integrity of the Golden Arches.
Do not use as decoration
Without purpose, Archery could
become gimmicky and overused. Exception: Alternative crops may
be used in photography. However,
artwork must be approved by the
Global Brand team.

When the Golden Arches are

less obvious because of extreme
cropping, reinforce the brand
by using the Golden Arches mark
or the Token. Required on out-of-
home activations only.

Archery + photography
 Bold / Overt   Subtle / Implied 
Out in the world, we’re competing for attention. To ensure we In our own branded spaces, such as our restaurants, pop-ups, or digital
stand out, aim for bolder executions of Archery that are clearly apps, we are much more subtle in our application of Archery. This helps
recognizable as McDonald’s. us avoid overuse of the Golden Arches.

Example Archery techniques

Combining the Golden Arches with photography puts our brand in

Cropped Staging Motion Integrated Angled Repetition the center of the action. Elements of the image interact with the Golden
Arches to create depth and dimension.

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Brand Color Cheatsheet

Brand palette - hero

We’re a Golden brand with Red accents. Balance McDonald’s Gold Inspired by melted cheese and
and proportion are important. The use of negative PMS
crispy fries, our McDonald’s Gold
is tasty, cheerful and bright.
space and elements such as photography Coated: 1235 C
Uncoated: 122 U
give our brand colors plenty of room to breathe. CMYK 0.29.96.0
RGB 255.188.13
HEX FFBC0D
Overall color proportion Color proportion in practice

McDonald’s Red Our use of Red is akin to our

iconic fries dipped in ketchup.
PMS 2035 C With our new Red, a little goes
CMYK 0.100.95.0 a long way.
RGB 219.0.7
HEX DB0007

Please make sure to update any outdated color reference files.

If you are in a “European Green Region,” refer to the “Feel-Good Design Cheatsheets European Green Regions.”

Functional palette - limited use

Black Charcoal Light Gray Kraft

Emphasizing Gold is a shift in direction for our brand. Remember: Not every single
But it’s the interaction between our colors that makes application will have the same
balance of color. The overall color
us unmistakable and visually interesting. proportion of our brand includes
plenty of breathing room with lots of
Gold, and splashes of Red accents.
Although we are a Golden Brand,
Red plays an important role in
creating dynamic tension. Be sure
to include an accent of Red at some
point in the Brand experience.
CMYK 0.0.0.100
RGB 0.0.0
HEX 000000
Black is no longer a core
color of our masterbrand.
It is only used for type in
our new visual identity.
PMS Cool Gray 11 C PMS Cool Gray 1 C PMS 2312 C
CMYK 0.0.0.80 CMYK 0.0.0.8 CMYK 25.37.50.04
RGB 45.45.45 RGB 247.247.247 RGB 182.154.129
HEX 2D2D2D HEX F7F7F7 HEX B69A81
Charcoal, light gray and kraft are reserved for use on internal
communications and for some illustrative elements.

Do not Materials palette

Red accents
For restaurants and other physical spaces, please refer
Red is a very to the Restaurant Design Guidelines.
powerful color. Headline goes here
That’s why we Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adip
scing elit. Etiam maximus, dui eget volutpat

say “accents sollicitudin, urna nibh gravida ligula, porttitor

tempor urna nulla id ligula. Vivamus arcu arcu,
ornare sed lectus ut, sollicitudin semper metus.
of Red.” These Aenean tincidunt diam ut orci rutrum, in ornare
quam congue. Nam condimentum turpis
can be added semper, laoreet velit eget, finibus erat. Vestib
lum quis risus id mi tempor hendrerit et ut eros.

through various Morbi varius, odio non hendrerit vehicula, ante

Typography Illustrative
nunc hendrerit ligula, vitae ultricies ligula neque
Information Photography Propping Iconic product Contained
techniques. details graphics forms
Do not use colors outside of
our new visual identity palette.

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Typography Cheatsheet

Print color application Techniques

Inspired by the Golden Arches, Speedee adds Instead of using a different typeface, Speedee has the flexibility to suit
a touch of our personality to everything we say. Black, Red and Black, white and various type treatments. We can create better cohesion across global
campaigns through more consistent and creative utilization of Speedee
One global font. One global voice. Gold type on white. Red type on Gold. in communications.

For more information on bringing Speedee to life, visit

White or Gold type on Red. Design.mcdonalds.com/feelgooddesign/typography-1.5.

Introducing Speedee

Speedee Bold
Black or Red type on White or Gold type on
1234567890 light photography. dark photography.

$£€&#%.;’’!?
Speedee Regular Speedee Condensed Bold Digital color application

Speedee Light Speedee Condensed Regular The following applies to consumer-facing digital media
to ensure legibility for those with limited vision.
Speedee Condensed Light
Speedee is available in three weights (bold, regular and light) Black and Red type on white.
and two styles (full width and condensed). All sets include italics.

White type on Red. Black type on Gold.

Typesetting Line spacing

Keep headlines This leading is Black or Red type on White type on dark
much too tight. light photography. photography.

short and sweet. The leading is

Speedee Regular is great for subheads.
Use Speedee Bold for emphasis.
Speedee Regular and Light are
perfect for body copy and other
applications where we’re conveying
lots of information at once.
just right. Avoid Gold type on Red
in digital contexts.
Avoid Red and white type
on Gold in digital contexts.
This leading is
too spaced out. Avoid Gold type on white in digital contexts.
Though Speedee Bold is highly
legible, it can be difficult to Comfortable line spacing
Ensure that activations comply with accessibility standards for your
read in large amounts. Use Bold is important for legibility
region. For further guidance, please refer to webaim.org/resources/
in body copy only for emphasis. and consistency.
contrastchecker for compliancy standards.

Language support
Limited use Highlighting Do not
Speedee currently supports Latin-based languages.
Italics are used for Latin words, movie titles, etc.  On internal communications,  Visit Design.McDonalds.com to download Speedee.
McDonald’s Gold can be used
Speedee Condensed is only for functional purposes such as legal. as a highlight color to create
Do not use Gold, or Red in body copy Please use the Aktiv Grotesk font for non-Latin characters, such
hierarchy and add emphasis. in either print or digital media. as Arabic, Cyrillic, Mandarin and Hebrew. Visit DaltonMaag.com to
purchase Aktiv Grotesk.
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Food Photography Cheatsheet

The Perfect Serve

The following principles help ensure we showcase
our food consistently, unmistakably and deliciously.

Best practices

Flawesome details
celebrate just the right We use idealized versions of packaging in our marketing
amount of imperfection, communications for increased impact and differentiation.
reminding viewers that
our food is crafted by hand. For more information on using the Perfect Serve, visit
Design.mcdonalds.com/feelgooddesign/perfect-serve.
Authentic materials,
surfaces, wrappers and
backgrounds accurately
reflect the dining experience.
Techniques and details
Food is staged on a wrapper,
not directly on a surface.

Tones of Gold
add richness, depth
and deliciousness.

Natural lighting suggests

a warm, inviting and real
environment.

Depth of field
heroes the product. Authentic environments
A range of surfaces and backgrounds communicates
an authentic experience.

Propping Do not

Wood

Metal

Make Steam Sizzle

Food in motion
Hero materials that are actually used in restaurant. Use Perfect Serve packaging for authentic Do not use materials and props that Every hot sizzle, toasty crunch and melty moment adds
in-restaurant, at-home and on-the-go experiences. are inauthentic to the brand. to our delicious story.
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Lifestyle Photography Cheatsheet

Lifestyle photography is where delicious

meets Feel-Good. Keep the following principles
in mind when capturing moments.

Best practices

Casting Scenario Lighting Setting

Diverse, lighthearted and Always spontaneous, in-the- “Golden,” natural lighting. Clean, warm and inviting. Find
optimistic individuals who find moment, positive and uplifting. opportunities to show how our
delight in the moment. food is enjoyed in many places,
not just in our restaurants.

Composition Color Product and packaging Emotion

Simple and impactful with touches Naturally vivid hues. Touches of Always put our best food forward. From joyful and exuberant to focused
of imperfection. A little surprising, Gold with accents of Red where Idealized packaging, always and determined. Our cast expresses
even a little abstract. appropriate. delicious and unmistakable. a range of emotions appropriate for
the context.

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 Playful Patterns and Product Illustrations Cheatsheet

Watchouts
Patterns and product illustrations bring our color Playful Patterns should not be altered in any way. The following are the
palette to life and celebrate our latent equities in a way most common mistakes and pitfalls to avoid:

that’s distinctly McDonald’s. These impactful graphic

devices should be used thoughtfully and carefully.
ACE BETWEEN BARS IS THE SAME AS THE THICKNESS OF THE BARS.
DD BARS VERTICALLY AS NECESSARY TO FILL SPACE.
TEND BARS HORIZONTALLY TO FILL SPACE.
RIPS ARE ALIGNED WITH BOTTOM OF BARS.
ACE ONLY 1-2 DRIPS PER APPLICATION.
Playful Patterns Product Illustrations

Avoid scaling Playful Patterns too large or too small.

Dipped fries Melty cheese Sesame seeds Jumble Product line up

Use with a white or a Gold background. A version of the Jumble with the Only use the product illustrations provided. Past product
Token is available for download. illustrations should not be used. When creating new product
illustrations, request approval from the Global Brand team.
Note: Playful Patterns are only available by the approval of the Global Brand team.

Avoid using Playful Patterns with Avoid altering Playful Pattern colors.
photography.
Playful Patterns in action

Playful Patterns work best

within internal communications
and temporary spaces, such
as pop-ups or events.

Playful Patterns disrupt flat

colors in surprising and delightful
ways. They create balance for our
Golden Brand and add a wink
when required. Presentations Arch Cards Animation/4D Merchandise
For more information on creating
When using patterns, try to animations, visit Design.mcdonalds. Avoid repeating Jumble.
include Red accents through com/feelgooddesign/animation.
Red font color, inclusion of the
Token or our iconic packaging.

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Restaurant Design Cheatsheet

Inspiring Feel-Good Moments Materiality stages the Golden Arches in a modern context
Restaurants are the stage for our brand—where all
Our visual identity is more than
the ingredients come together. Each and every detail a fresh coat of paint.
contributes to providing delicious, Feel-Good Moments
to our consumers.

Flexible use of Gold

We use our brand colors creatively. Tile Metal Wood

Clean, bright Professional, precise Warm, inviting

Secondary graphics Kiosks and table service

Adding energy Convenience and comfort
and excitement

Concrete Natural Charcoal

From bold statements… …to subtle details. Modern, urban Fresh Neutral, subtle

Integrating Archery Stadium seating Interactive opportunities

Bringing people together Encouraging creativity
We use our symbol creatively, dynamically, and purposefully.

Sky Kraft/Pulp
Optimistic Natural, responsible

Materiality examples

Technology
From bold statements… …to subtle details.
Helping people
stay connected

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