McDonald's first used the Golden Arches as a corporate logo in 1962.
The arches had originally been physical parts of McDonald's restaurant buildings. Their bright yellow shape made locations easy to spot, but the design initially functioned mainly as architecture and roadside identification rather than as the standalone corporate mark used today.
In 1962, designer Jim Schindler combined the two arches into a stylized “M.” The result preserved the visual identity of the restaurants while making it suitable for signs, packaging, advertising, and other printed materials. This was a major step in turning a building feature into a global brand symbol.
The logo's shape has been adjusted in later periods, and McDonald's has used different wordmarks and graphic treatments alongside it. Those variations do not change the key historical milestone: 1962 is the year associated with the arches becoming a corporate logo.