If you walked into a grocery store a few years ago and someone asked you to draw the Pepsi logo from memory, you probably would’ve messed it up. Don’t feel bad. Most people did. They’d draw a circle, put the red and blue stripes in, and then slap the word "Pepsi" right across the middle.
The problem? For fourteen years, that wasn't actually the logo.
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From 2008 until very recently, the word "Pepsi" sat off to the side, lonely and lowercase, while the "globe" icon featured a weird, thin white stripe that looked more like a smirk than a wave. It was minimalist. It was "clean." And according to Mauro Porcini, PepsiCo’s Chief Design Officer, it just didn't have the energy the brand needed anymore.
Honestly, the new logo of Pepsi is a massive course correction. It’s bold. It’s loud. It’s a little bit nostalgic, and it finally puts the name back where consumers always thought it belonged: dead center.
What’s Actually Different?
This isn’t just a "tweak." It’s a total overhaul of the visual identity that rolled out globally through 2024 and 2025. If you look at a can now, the first thing you’ll notice is the color. The "electric blue" is deeper and more vibrant than the previous sky-blue shade.
Then there’s the black.
Black is everywhere in the new branding. It outlines the globe, it’s the color of the font, and it’s stitched into the "pulse" design. This wasn't an accident. Pepsi is pivoting hard toward Pepsi Zero Sugar. By making black a core part of the primary logo’s palette, they’re visually tying the entire brand to their flagship health-conscious product.
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The typeface is different, too. Gone is the thin, breezy lowercase font. In its place is a custom, heavy-set, all-caps font that feels like it could survive a 1990s Super Bowl commercial. It’s got "unapologetic" energy—a word the marketing team uses a lot.
The Pulse and the "Phygital" Shift
Designers today have to worry about how a logo looks on a tiny iPhone screen just as much as how it looks on a 50-foot billboard in Times Square. Pepsi calls this the "phygital" world.
To solve this, they introduced the Pepsi Pulse.
Instead of a static image, the logo is often surrounded by a digital "ripple" that looks like it’s vibrating to a beat. It’s meant to evoke the "pop and fizz" of the drink. More importantly, it makes the brand look alive on TikTok, Instagram, and digital menu boards. It’s less of a sticker and more of an animation.
Why Change It Now?
Timing is everything in business. Pepsi hit its 125th anniversary in 2023, which provided the perfect excuse for a "next era" launch. But the real reason is simpler: the old logo was too quiet.
In a world of "Brat Summer" aesthetics and maximalist design, the 2008 logo felt dated. It belonged to the era of the "Apple aesthetic"—thin lines, lots of white space, and a certain coldness. But Pepsi isn't a tech company. It's a soda. It's supposed to be fun, slightly messy, and energetic.
The design team actually went out and asked people to draw the logo from memory. When they saw that almost everyone put the word "Pepsi" inside the globe, they realized they had "brand equity" they weren't using. They decided to stop fighting consumer intuition and embrace it.
The 2025 Corporate Shift
It’s worth noting that while the soda got a retro-modern glow-up, the parent company, PepsiCo, did something very different in late 2025.
While the soda logo is all about "Thirsty for More," the new corporate identity is softer. It uses lowercase letters and a literal "smile" graphic. Why the discrepancy? Because PepsiCo owns over 500 brands, including Quaker, Gatorade, and Lay's. Only about 21% of people realize those brands are all under the same roof.
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The corporate rebrand is trying to show a "gentler" side focused on sustainability (pep+) and food, while the new logo of Pepsi (the drink) stays in its lane as the loud, cultural powerhouse.
What Most People Get Wrong
A lot of critics initially called the new look "just the 90s logo again."
That’s a bit lazy.
If you put the 1991 logo next to the 2024 version, the differences are night and day. The new one uses different proportions, a completely different blue, and lacks the "italic" lean that the old-school logos had. It’s "retro-forward." It takes the feeling of the past but uses modern digital tools to make it pop.
Actionable Takeaways for Brand Watchers
If you’re a business owner or a designer watching this rollout, here’s what you can actually learn from Pepsi’s big gamble:
- Don't fight your customers' brains. If everyone remembers your brand a certain way, lean into it rather than trying to "educate" them into a new, counter-intuitive design.
- Design for movement. If your logo doesn't look good as a 2-second GIF or a pulsing icon, it’s going to struggle on social media.
- Color is a strategy, not just a preference. Pepsi used black to signal a shift in their product formula (Zero Sugar). Every color in your palette should do a job.
- Vary your touchpoints. Pepsi launched the logo with drone shows at the Gateway of India and "The Pepsi 125 Diner" in NYC. A logo isn't just on the packaging; it’s an experience.
The next time you grab a can, look at that centered wordmark. It took 14 years to get back there, but it feels like the brand finally found its pulse again.
Next Steps for You:
Compare the new can on the shelf with any remaining old stock you find. Notice how the "electric blue" reacts to the fluorescent grocery store lights compared to the older, muted blue. If you're looking to refresh your own brand, start by asking five people to draw your logo from memory—you might be surprised at what they prioritize.