McDonald’s incorporated the Golden Arches into its logo in 1962.
The arches had first appeared as architectural features on McDonald’s restaurants in the 1950s. Their strong shape made them useful beyond building design, so the company turned them into a recognizable graphic symbol during a major identity change in the early 1960s.
The 1962 design combined the arches with a diagonal line, creating a stylized yellow “M.” This version is an important step between the restaurant architecture and the simpler Golden Arches symbol used worldwide today. The arches did not begin as a corporate logo; they originated as physical signs and roof elements.
McDonald’s later simplified its visual identity, but the golden color and paired-arch form remained central. The logo’s adoption is therefore distinct from the earlier construction of restaurants featuring arches and from later slogan changes.