DUCKDB™ Trademark Use Guidelines

The DuckDB trademarks, service marks, and graphical marks (“DuckDB Marks”) are held by the DuckDB Foundation, a Dutch nonprofit entity that oversees the DuckDB project. To protect the community and ensure clarity about what is and isn’t official DuckDB software, we must set clear rules for how the DuckDB Marks are used.

If you plan to reference DuckDB in software, services, documentation, events, or any other materials, these guidelines explain what is allowed. When in doubt, please ask—we are always happy to help.

The DuckDB project is published under the MIT open-source software license. The software license does not grant any permission to use the DuckDB name, logos, or other DuckDB Marks. Trademark rights are governed solely by these guidelines and any separate written trademark agreements with the DuckDB Foundation.

Rationale: Why These Guidelines Exist

The DuckDB Marks stand for the quality, openness, and engineering discipline of the DuckDB project. Because many people and companies build on top of DuckDB, we must ensure that the names and logos are used in a way that does not imply official status, endorsement, or exclusivity. DuckDB is vendor-neutral and community-driven, and the use of our marks must always reflect that.

No Endorsement, no Exclusivity

Use of DuckDB Marks may never suggest that a third-party product or service is “official,” “preferred,” “primary,” “exclusive,” or endorsed by the DuckDB Foundation. This applies equally to cloud platforms, commercial vendors, libraries, extensions, and integrations. In particular, no company or platform may describe itself as “the official DuckDB platform,” “the primary home of DuckDB,” or use similar language that suggests a privileged or exclusive status.

Factual references to DuckDB are welcome, provided they are accurate and do not imply a special relationship. Statements about collaboration, joint work, roadmap influence, or certification always require prior written approval from the DuckDB Foundation.

DuckDB Marks may not be used in any way that disparages the DuckDB project, its contributors, or its community, or that harms the reputation or goodwill associated with the DuckDB Marks.

Avoid confusion

To keep users confident about what is “DuckDB” and what is not, please follow these rules:

Product and service names.

You may not use “DuckDB” or “Duck” as the brand name of your product, offering, service, or company, or in a way that makes your name look like an official DuckDB project (for example, “DuckDB Cloud”, “DuckDB Engine”, or “DuckDB Service”).

Descriptive phrases such as “for DuckDB”, “compatible with DuckDB”, or “DuckDB connector for ” are allowed, provided your own brand is primary and it is clear that your offering is independent from the DuckDB Foundation. Derivatives such as “duckling” or similar naming are also not allowed. Acceptable descriptive references include “compatible with DuckDB”, “for DuckDB”, or “powered by DuckDB”, provided they remain subordinate to your own brand name and are used purely to describe compatibility. Names derived from “Duck” (such as “duckling”, “duckhouse”, or similar variations) may not be used for software or services that are associated with, built on, or competing with DuckDB.

Events, books, and merchandise have their own guidelines. Please contact us for details.

Logos and visual branding.

DuckDB logos cannot be altered, combined with other logos, used for co-branding, or placed in a way that suggests partnership or endorsement. Modified or look-alike “duck” logos are not permitted.

User interfaces and cloud consoles.

Any use of DuckDB Marks in dashboards, menus, marketplace listings, or developer consoles requires written approval.

Forks, extensions, and derivative software.

If you maintain a modified version of DuckDB or an extension, you must clearly distinguish it from the official project and may not label it using DuckDB Marks in a way that suggests official maintenance or oversight.

Domains.

Domains or subdomains containing “duckdb” require permission. If you operate websites, documentation, or demos involving DuckDB, please use your own branding and refer to DuckDB factually.

Attribution.

When your materials (web pages, whitepapers, presentations) make significant use of the DuckDB name, we recommend including an attribution such as: “DuckDB is a trademark of the DuckDB Foundation.” This helps keep ownership clear while remaining lightweight for users.

Commercial vendors and service providers offering DuckDB-related products, integrations, or cloud services must apply these guidelines with particular care to ensure their materials cannot be interpreted as official, endorsed, or partnership-branded DuckDB offerings.

When Approval Is Required

Everyday, factual references to DuckDB do not require permission. This includes using “DuckDB” in plain text to describe compatibility, document how to use DuckDB, write blog posts or academic papers, give conference talks, or compare DuckDB with other systems, provided such use is accurate, not misleading, and does not use DuckDB logos or visual branding.

Approval is required for higher-visibility or promotional uses, including:

• press releases or launch announcements
• case studies, customer stories, or testimonials
• any marketing or advertising campaign involving the DuckDB name or logo
• uses of DuckDB Marks alongside another company’s brand, product, or logo

If you are unsure, a quick email to us is usually enough to clarify.

License Scope and Limitations

These guidelines grant limited permission to reference the DuckDB project in accordance with the rules above. This permission is non-exclusive, non-transferable, and non-sublicensable, and may be revoked at any time. It does not grant rights to affiliates, contractors, resellers, or partners unless explicitly approved in writing.

No part of these guidelines grants a right to use DuckDB Marks as part of your own branding, product naming, or promotional activities.

Any broader rights (for example, the right to sublicense DuckDB Marks to third parties, resellers, or marketplace partners) must be granted in a separate written trademark agreement with the DuckDB Foundation. In the absence of such an agreement, no such rights are granted or implied.

Enforcement

The DuckDB Foundation may revoke permission to use the DuckDB Marks if a use is misleading, suggests endorsement or exclusivity, resembles DuckDB branding too closely, or otherwise risks confusion in the community. If we determine that a use of the DuckDB Marks is not compliant with these guidelines, we may ask you to modify, rebrand, or remove the relevant materials, and we may revoke permission to use the DuckDB Marks if the issue is not resolved. While we prefer cooperation, we will enforce these guidelines where needed to protect users and the integrity of the project.

Questions? Need Permission?

We aim to be a helpful and responsive steward of the DuckDB project. If you have a question or would like approval for a specific use case, please contact us at: [email protected]. We are happy to review materials and provide quick guidance.