The Four Types of IP
Patent vs Trademark vs Copyright vs Trade Secret
People conflate these constantly, and choosing the wrong one can leave your work unprotected. Here is what each of the four types of intellectual property actually protects — and the simple rule for picking the right one.
Educational guide, not legal advice. An IP attorney can map the right protection for your specific situation.
The one-line version
Patent = how it works · Trademark = what you call it · Copyright = what you wrote/made · Trade secret = what you keep hidden.
Patent
Protects
How an invention works — a functional process, machine, composition, or design.
Example
The mechanism of a new drug, a manufacturing process, the rounded look of a phone (design patent).
Lasts
20 years (utility) / 15 years (design) from filing.
Cost
$8,000 to $20,000+ with an attorney, plus maintenance fees.
How to get it
File and prosecute an application at the USPTO. Examined; takes years.
A patent gives you the right to exclude others from making, using, or selling your invention — but only after a public examination, and only in exchange for fully disclosing how it works. It is the strongest protection for functional innovation, and the most expensive and slowest to obtain. When it expires, the invention enters the public domain forever.
Trademark
Protects
A brand identifier — a name, logo, slogan, or distinctive look that identifies the source of goods or services.
Example
The word NIKE, the Apple logo, the Coca-Cola script, the McDonald's golden arches.
Lasts
Potentially forever — as long as it stays in use and distinctive (renew every 10 years).
Cost
A few hundred dollars to file; more with an attorney.
How to get it
Use the mark in commerce; register with the USPTO for stronger rights (not required, but valuable).
A trademark protects what consumers associate with your brand, preventing others from using confusingly similar marks. It does not protect the underlying product — only the identifier. Unlike patents and copyrights, trademark protection can last indefinitely. This is why expired-patent products (like the Coca-Cola bottle shape) often live on as protected trade dress.
Copyright
Protects
Original creative expression fixed in a tangible medium — writing, music, art, film, software code.
Example
A novel, a song recording, a photograph, the source code of an app, a film.
Lasts
Life of the author plus 70 years (or 95 years for corporate works).
Cost
Free (automatic on creation); ~$45-65 to register for stronger enforcement rights.
How to get it
Automatic the moment the work is fixed. Register with the Copyright Office to sue and claim statutory damages.
Copyright protects the expression of an idea, not the idea itself. It arises automatically — you do not need to file anything to own it. It is the cheapest and easiest IP to obtain. For software, copyright protects the specific code; a patent would protect the functional method the code implements. The two can cover the same product simultaneously.
Trade Secret
Protects
Confidential business information that derives value from being secret.
Example
The Coca-Cola formula, Google's search algorithm details, a customer list, a manufacturing technique.
Lasts
Potentially forever — as long as it stays secret.
Cost
Low (no filing) — but you must invest in real security measures.
How to get it
Keep it secret and take reasonable steps to protect it (NDAs, access controls, security).
A trade secret has no filing and no expiration — it lasts as long as it stays secret. The catch: there is no protection against independent discovery or reverse engineering. The moment a trade secret becomes public, the protection is gone forever. Patents and trade secrets are opposites: a patent trades disclosure for a time-limited monopoly; a trade secret trades secrecy for potentially unlimited duration.
Which one do I need?
Built a new device, machine, process, or chemical? You likely want a PATENT — it is the only thing that protects function.
Launching a brand, product name, or logo? You want a TRADEMARK to stop competitors from trading on your name.
Created software, content, designs, music, or writing? You already have COPYRIGHT automatically; register it for stronger enforcement.
Have a formula, recipe, algorithm, or method you can keep genuinely secret? A TRADE SECRET may protect it longer than any patent — but only while it stays secret.
Most real products need MORE THAN ONE. A hardware startup might patent the technology, trademark the brand, copyright the software, and keep the manufacturing process as a trade secret — all at once.