Flat-fee pricing
Trademark pricing without the billing surprise
Every attorney fee is quoted in writing before work begins, and shown separately from the government fees paid to the USPTO.
Trademark pricing across the industry is inconsistent, some advertised prices cover the full process, others cover only a narrow slice of it, and government fees are sometimes buried or omitted entirely. This page lays out what The Branding Iron charges, what the USPTO charges separately, and what can cause the fee to change once your specific facts are known.
How pricing works here
Four rules that don’t change.
- Flat fees, quoted in writing. Before any work begins, the scope and the fee are set out in a written engagement agreement. There is no hourly clock running in the background.
- Attorney fees and government fees are always separate. The fee paid to The Branding Iron for legal work is distinct from the fee paid directly to the USPTO to file or maintain an application. Every price on this page is shown both ways so you can see the full picture.
- Additional work is quoted before it starts. If your matter turns out to need something beyond the agreed scope, an added class, a second mark, a later or final Office Action response, you will see a proposed fee for that work before it begins, not after.
- No outcome is guaranteed. A registrability opinion, a filing, or a response can improve your position, but neither The Branding Iron nor any attorney can guarantee that the USPTO will register a particular mark. Results cannot be guaranteed, and government filing fees are generally nonrefundable regardless of outcome.
Service pricing
What each service costs to start.
Attorney fees are shown separately from USPTO government fees. Where a specific price or scope has not been fixed in advance, that is stated plainly rather than estimated.
| Service | Attorney fee | USPTO government fee |
|---|---|---|
| Clearance Search | From $295 per proposed mark, one class | None (a search is not a filing) |
| Full Filing | From $695 per mark, per class | From $350 per class |
| Additional class | $695 per additional class, same mark | From $350 per additional class |
| Additional mark or logo | Priced the same as a new Full Filing for that mark | From $350 per class, per additional mark |
| Two marks, same class (e.g., word mark + logo) | $1,200 flat attorney fee for both marks (same class, same goods/services) | From $350 per mark |
| Office Action Response | From $595, depending on the refusal and record | None, unless the response itself requires a fee (for example, an amendment fee) |
| Statement of Use / Amendment to Allege Use | Included in Full Filing | Set by the USPTO at the time of filing |
| Intent-to-use extension | Included in Full Filing | Set by the USPTO at the time of filing |
| Monitoring | Quoted after review | None |
| Maintenance | Quoted after review | Set by the USPTO based on the filing (Sections 8, 15, and 9) |
| Enforcement consultation | Quoted after review | None |
Standalone search credit
If you retain the firm for a Full Filing within 30 days after the search assessment, the full search fee will be credited toward the filing attorney fee. The credit applies to the same proposed mark and begins on the date the written search assessment is delivered.Example: You pay $295 for a one-mark, one-class standalone search. If you engage the firm for the $695 Full Filing within 30 days after receiving the search assessment, the $295 is credited and the remaining filing attorney fee is $400, plus the USPTO government fee.
Intent-to-use work through registration is included
For an intent-to-use application, the Full Filing package includes preparation and filing of the appropriate Amendment to Allege Use or Statement of Use and, when needed, up to five six-month extension requests permitted after the Notice of Allowance. USPTO fees remain additional. The included scope covers ordinary review and filing based on timely, acceptable evidence supplied by the client. Replacement-specimen strategy, responses to refusals arising from a use filing, petitions, appeals, contested proceedings, or other work outside the ordinary filing process are separately quoted.USPTO fees apply to each use or extension filing.
Worked examples
What a filing actually costs, start to finish.
Common scenarios, with the attorney fee and USPTO fee broken out separately.
One mark, one class
Attorney fee (Full Filing)$695
USPTO filing fee (1 class)$350
Starting total$1,045
One mark, two classes
Attorney fee ($695 × 2 classes)$1,390
USPTO filing fee ($350 × 2 classes)$700
Starting total$2,090
Word mark + logo, same class
Attorney fee (two marks, same class)$1,200
USPTO filing fees (2 applications)$700
Starting total$1,900
Standalone search followed by filing within 30 days
Search attorney fee$295
Full Filing attorney fee$695
Search credit−$295
Remaining filing attorney fee$400
Plus USPTO base feeFrom $350 per class
Intent-to-use application
Initial attorney fee (1 mark/1 class)$695
Initial USPTO application feeFrom $350
Later attorney fee (ordinary SOU/extensions)$0
Later USPTO feesPaid per filing
These are starting figures for straightforward, single-category filings. Additional classes, additional marks, or complications discovered during the clearance search or application drafting can change the final fee, and any change is quoted before it is charged. For the intent-to-use example, extraordinary or separately scoped work is quoted before it begins.
Government fees can increase
The USPTO can assess additional fees beyond the base $350.
The $350-per-class base application fee is not always the final USPTO charge. Depending on how the application is drafted and filed, the USPTO may assess one or more additional per-class fees.
Additional USPTO surcharges (per class)
- +$100 if certain required information is missing from the application at filing.
- +$200 if the identification of goods or services is not selected from the USPTO’s own pre-approved ID Manual wording (a “free-form” identification).
- +$200 for every additional 1,000 characters used in the identification of goods or services beyond the included allotment.
How this is handled
- Careful drafting of the goods-and-services identification is part of the application preparation and is intended to avoid these surcharges where possible.
- When a surcharge cannot reasonably be avoided given your actual goods or services, it will be identified before filing so you know the full government-fee total in advance.
- These are USPTO charges, not attorney fees, and are paid directly to the USPTO.
USPTO fees are current as of July 2026 and are subject to change by the USPTO at any time.
What changes the fee
What creates additional legal fees.
A starting price assumes a straightforward, single-mark, single-class filing. The following can add to the attorney fee, and each is quoted before the work begins.
- Additional classes. Each additional class of goods or services beyond the first adds its own attorney fee and its own USPTO filing fee.
- Multiple marks. Protecting a word mark and a logo, or two different marks, generally requires separate applications and separate fees.
- Complex clearance searches. A crowded field of similar marks, ambiguous common-law use, or a mark that raises descriptiveness questions can require more analysis than a routine search.
- Difficult specimens. Specimens that are borderline, ornamental, or otherwise likely to draw a refusal may require additional review or a revised approach before filing.
- Office Action work beyond the first response. The package includes one response to the first non-final Office Action, including substantive refusals. Any later or final Office Action, reconsideration request, appeal, consent agreement, unusually extensive evidence project, or work beyond the first response is separately quoted.
- Appeals. Appealing a final refusal to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board is outside the scope of a standard filing or Office Action engagement.
- Oppositions. Defending against a third party’s opposition to your published application is a separate contested proceeding, not included in filing fees.
- Expedited work. Compressed deadlines or rush handling can require a separate fee arrangement.
- Enforcement. Evaluating potential infringement, sending demand letters, or responding to someone else’s claim is quoted as its own matter.
Comparing providers
What to confirm before you sign.
Trademark providers package services differently. The useful comparison is not simply the lowest advertised number; it is who performs the legal work, which stages are included, and what additional charges may arise later.
| Question to compare | The Branding Iron | What to confirm with any provider |
|---|---|---|
| Who prepares the matter? | John E. Dugger, a former USPTO Trademark Examining Attorney | Ask who personally evaluates the search, develops strategy, and signs the filing |
| Attorney access | Direct communication with John | Ask whether attorney contact is included, scheduled, limited, or an upgrade |
| Clearance | Attorney-directed search plus written risk assessment | Ask whether the quoted price includes a legal assessment or only database results |
| Application drafting | Ownership, filing basis, goods/services, and specimen reviewed by counsel | Ask who selects the owner, basis, classes, and identification wording |
| First non-final Office Action | One complete response included, whether procedural or substantive | Ask whether substantive refusals are excluded or separately billed |
| Intent-to-use prosecution | Ordinary use filings and permitted extensions included; client pays USPTO fees | Ask what attorney fees apply after a Notice of Allowance |
| Price unit | Quoted per mark and per class | Confirm whether additional marks, logos, and classes create separate charges |
| Government fees | Shown separately | Confirm all USPTO fees and possible surcharges |
| Written scope | Flat fee confirmed in writing before work begins | Ask for inclusions and exclusions in writing before payment |
Common questions
Pricing questions answered plainly.
Last updated July 2026.
Are government fees refundable?
Generally, no. USPTO filing fees are paid to the federal government and are generally nonrefundable, regardless of whether the application is ultimately approved, refused, or abandoned. This is a USPTO policy, not a firm policy.
Is the fee per mark or per class?
Both figures apply together. The attorney fee is charged per mark, per class, and the USPTO filing fee is charged per class as well. A single mark filed in two classes is billed for two classes on both sides of the ledger; two different marks each filed in one class are billed as two separate filings.
What is included?
A Full Filing engagement is described in detail on the trademark registration page and confirmed in your written engagement agreement. In general terms, it covers intake and strategy, an attorney-directed clearance search, ownership and filing-basis review, goods-and-services drafting, specimen review, application filing, status monitoring, one response to the first non-final USPTO Office Action, whether procedural or substantive, and ordinary intent-to-use attorney work through registration for the originally engaged mark and classes.
What happens if the name is not clear?
If the clearance search identifies a meaningful conflict, John will walk you through the options in the written risk assessment, which may include adjusting the mark, narrowing the goods or services, proceeding with a documented risk, or reconsidering the name. There is no additional filing fee owed if you decide not to proceed after a search; the search fee covers the search and assessment themselves.
Do you offer payment plans?
Payment terms are addressed in the written engagement agreement for your matter. Ask about available options during the free 15-minute fit call.
Is an Office Action included?
The package includes one response to the first non-final Office Action, including substantive refusals. Any later or final Office Action, reconsideration request, appeal, consent agreement, unusually extensive evidence project, or work beyond the first response is separately quoted. If you filed on your own and received a refusal, see Office Action response services.
Are renewals included?
No. Post-registration maintenance filings, Sections 8, 15, and 9, happen years after a registration issues and are not part of a filing engagement. See renewals and maintenance for how the firm helps track and prepare those deadlines.
What will I know before signing?
Before any work begins, you will receive a written engagement agreement stating the scope of work, the flat attorney fee, and the applicable USPTO government fee. You will know the full cost picture before you sign anything.
Book a free 15-minute fit call
Get a fee that’s specific to your mark.
Tell John what you are filing, and he will explain the likely scope and fee in plain terms, before anything is written down or signed.