How to Make a Logo Scan Strictly Black and White in Illustrator

The short answer

To turn a scanned logo into strictly black and white artwork in Illustrator, use Image Trace with the Mode set to Black and White. Don't use Edit > Edit Colors > Convert to Grayscale. That command keeps the full range of gray values. Image Trace in Black and White mode applies a threshold instead: every pixel lighter than the cutoff becomes white or empty, and every pixel darker becomes solid black. After tracing, expand the result into editable vector paths. Then set the black fill to the exact black your output needs, and check that no gray objects or leftover raster images remain.

A few terms are used throughout this guide. A raster image, such as a scan, is a grid of pixels. Vector artwork is built from paths: mathematically defined lines and curves that scale without losing sharpness. Grayscale means many tones between black and white. Strictly black and white, sometimes called one-bit or line art, means only two states, ink or no ink. A threshold is the brightness cutoff that decides which side of that line each pixel falls on.

Before you start

• A clean, flat scan of the logo works best. Dust, paper texture, creases and skew all get traced as shapes. Fixing them in the scan, or in an image editor before placing, is usually faster than deleting stray paths later.
• Scan at a resolution high enough that small details, thin strokes and the gaps inside letters stay clearly separated. Higher resolution generally produces smoother traced edges, but it can also pick up more paper noise.
• Check whether the original logo contains tints, gradients or halftone dots. A strict black-and-white conversion cannot keep these. Each area becomes either solid or empty, so the design may need adapting instead of simply converting.
• Make sure you have the right to reproduce and modify the logo. Owning a scan, or receiving a file with a vector-sounding extension, does not grant permission to reuse it.

Step-by-step: converting the scan with Image Trace

The commands below follow the menu structure of recent Illustrator releases. Panel layouts and option names have shifted between versions, so confirm each one in the version you're using. This guide does not cover version-specific differences.

• 1. Create or open a document in the color mode that matches the final use: CMYK for print workflows, RGB for screen.
• 2. Place the scan with File > Place. Embedding it is optional, but it keeps the file self-contained while you work.
• 3. Select the placed image and open Window > Image Trace.
• 4. In the Image Trace panel, set Mode to Black and White. You can also start from the Black and White Logo preset and adjust from there.
• 5. Turn on Preview so changes appear on the artboard as you adjust settings.
• 6. Adjust the Threshold slider. Raising it makes more of the image black, which thickens strokes and fills light areas. Lowering it makes more of the image white, which thins strokes and can break fine lines. Aim for the value where letter shapes and fine details match the original most closely.
• 7. Open the Advanced section. Paths controls how tightly the trace follows the pixel edges. Corners controls how readily sharp corners are kept. Noise sets the size of specks to ignore, which helps clear dust and paper grain.
• 8. Under Create, choose Fills for solid logo shapes.
• 9. Turn on Ignore White if you want only black shapes. Counters, the enclosed spaces inside letters like O and A, and other white areas then become true holes instead of white-filled objects. That matters when the logo will sit on a colored or photographic background.
• 10. When the preview looks right, click Expand in the Control bar, or choose Object > Image Trace > Expand. This turns the trace into ordinary editable paths.

Setting the correct black

Traced black is not automatically the black your printer or developer expects. After expanding, select the black shapes. Select > Same > Fill Color is a quick way to grab them all. Then check the fill in the Color panel.

• For a one-color print logo in a CMYK document, a black built only from the K channel (C0 M0 Y0 K100) prints on a single plate. A black made from all four inks, often called rich black, prints on four plates. That works against a strictly one-color result.
• If the job will print with a named spot ink, assign that spot swatch in place of process black.
• For screen use in an RGB document, pure black is R0 G0 B0, and the hex equivalent is #000000.
• Which black is "correct" depends on the printer's or platform's specifications. If you don't have them, ask before final delivery.

Cleaning up paths and handling lettering

Traced artwork usually needs some tidying before it counts as usable logo artwork.

• Switch to View > Outline to see the actual path structure without fills. Stray specks, doubled edges and wobbly segments are easier to spot this way.
• Delete leftover fragments, and use Object > Path > Simplify to reduce excess anchor points where curves look lumpy. Compare against the original after simplifying, because aggressive settings distort shapes.
• If one visual element was traced as several touching pieces, merge them with Unite in Window > Pathfinder.
• Traced letters are just shapes, and they often inherit irregular edges from the scan. If you can identify the typeface, you may get cleaner results by resetting the text and converting it with Type > Create Outlines. Check the font license first, and compare spacing and letterforms carefully, since many logos use modified type. If the typeface can't be identified, redraw or refine the letters by hand with the Pen tool, using the trace only as a guide.

How to confirm the result is truly black and white

• Select one black shape, then choose Select > Same > Fill Color. Compare that selection with Select > All. If some objects aren't included, inspect them for gray or off-black fills.
• Check for white-filled objects if you meant to use Ignore White. Selecting a white area should reveal whether it's a filled shape or an empty hole.
• Open Window > Separations Preview, available in CMYK documents. A K-only black logo should appear only on the Black plate, with nothing on Cyan, Magenta or Yellow.
• Open Window > Links or Window > Document Info to confirm the original scan has been removed. A hidden or leftover raster image makes the file not purely vector, whatever its extension.
• View the artwork in Outline mode and at high zoom to confirm the edges are clean paths, not pixel steps.

Saving and exporting

Keep a master Illustrator file with the cleaned, expanded paths. Then export the formats the recipient needs: commonly PDF or EPS for print workflows, and SVG for web use. Re-run the checks above on the exported file, or ask the recipient to confirm it opens as expected. Settings applied during export can alter colors or embed unexpected content. As with any logo file, the extension alone doesn't prove the contents are vector-only, editable or cleared for reuse.

Evidence gaps to keep in mind

This guide doesn't give recommended scan resolutions, specific Threshold values or exact Path and Noise settings. No verified figures were available, and the right values depend on the scan and the logo's level of detail. Menu locations should be checked against your installed Illustrator version. Color requirements such as K-only black or a particular spot ink should come from the printer's or platform's own specifications.