How do I check if my brand name is already taken before I fall in love with it?
The short answer
Run it through the official IP India Public Search first, wordmark, phonetic and combined searches will catch identical and confusingly similar marks already filed or registered in your class. Also Google the name plus 'trademark' and check Instagram/domain availability, since a name can be legally free on the register but already own mindshare elsewhere, which causes its own headaches. Do this before you spend on a logo, packaging, or domain, a name change after money's spent is far more painful than one before.
A quick summary to orient you. The real value is below: the resources worth your time, from people who've actually done it, not us.
Here are the resources
Hand-picked from around the web, each with a note on why it earns your time. India-specific ones carry a badge.
Why we picked it
Explains how to interpret what the search results actually mean (live vs opposed vs abandoned marks) rather than just how to run the search, the part founders usually get wrong.
Why we picked it
A tight, step-by-step availability-check guide that's easy to follow the first time you use the government search tool without a lawyer next to you.
Why we picked it
The official, free government trademark search portal - the non-negotiable first check before you commit to a name or spend money on a logo and packaging in India.
Why we picked it
A friendlier front-end over the same government data, useful if the official portal's interface trips you up, good for a quick second check.
