# Trade secret

Confidential business information that provides a competitive advantage and is subject to reasonable efforts to keep it secret. Unlike patents, trade secrets have no registration requirement and can last indefinitely — but only as long as the secret is maintained. The formula for Coca-Cola and the Google search algorithm are famous examples. Trade secrets and patents are often compared: patents give stronger rights but require disclosure; trade secrets keep information hidden but can be lost if independently discovered.

**Full entry:** https://patentbrief.org/glossary/trade-secret

**All patent terms:** https://patentbrief.org/glossary

---

_Source: PatentBrief — https://patentbrief.org. A plain-English glossary of US patent terms._