How much does it cost to trademark an AI character’s name?

This page lists the government fees as the USPTO publishes them, plus the costs people often forget. Fees change, so check the USPTO’s fee page before you file. None of this is legal advice.

The base fee: $350 per class

Since January 18, 2025, a U.S. trademark application has one base fee: $350 per class. The old $250 “TEAS Plus” and $350 “TEAS Standard” options are gone. A class is one of 45 international categories of goods and services. Every class you add costs another $350.

For a character that runs a YouTube or TikTok channel, the usual starting point is Class 41 (entertainment services). If you sell merch or downloadable content, more classes may come into it. More in trademark Class 41 for YouTube and TikTok channels.

Fees that can be added on

The USPTO adds fees when an application is incomplete or uses custom wording. It says it expects most applicants to pay only the base fee.

• $200 per class if you describe your goods or services in the free-form text box instead of picking entries from the USPTO’s ID Manual.
• $200 per class for each extra 1,000 characters in that free-form text, past the first 1,000.
• $100 per class if the application is missing required information.

The cheapest version is a complete application that uses ID Manual entries.

If the channel isn’t live yet: intent to use

If you file before the name brands anything live, the application is “intent to use.” The mark won’t register until you show use. That means another filing: a statement of use (or an amendment to allege use), at $150 per class. If you need more time to start using the name, extension requests add their own fees. See the USPTO’s intent-to-use page.

That’s one reason our free check answers Intent to use rather than File now when the channel isn’t live: you may be paying for two filings instead of one.

Keeping it later

A registration needs maintenance filings to stay alive. Under the 2025 fees, the Section 8 declaration and the Section 9 renewal are $325 per class each. Those come years after registration, but they’re part of the real cost.

Costs that aren’t USPTO fees

• An attorney, if you hire one. Fees vary by attorney and by how much work the application needs. We don’t publish a number we can’t verify.
• Responding to an office action. If the examiner raises an issue, answering it can take time or attorney hours.
• A filing you didn’t need. Filing on a name you later abandon, or one that clashes with an existing mark, is money spent on nothing. A clearance look first is cheaper than a refused application.

Example: one class, channel live

A character named on a live YouTube channel, filing in Class 41 only, using ID Manual wording, with a complete application: $350 in USPTO fees. Add an attorney if you use one. Add $350 for each extra class. If the channel weren’t live, add a $150 statement of use later.

Where CharacterGuard fits

1. Start with the free check. It searches live USPTO records for the name, names that contain it, and close spellings, reads your public channel, and says File now, Intent to use, or Do not file yet.
2. If it’s ready, CharacterGuard’s Lock kit ($249 once) gets the name, mark, and channel record ready for an attorney. It isn’t a filing, and we don’t file. The USPTO fee ($350 per class) and any attorney’s fee are separate. CharacterGuard isn’t a law firm.
3. After that, PromptPatrol ($39/month) watches new USPTO filings each week for your character’s name, names that contain it, and close spellings. With face watch on, it also compares your character’s face with YouTube channel images and TikTok profiles at exact and close-spelling handles. A lookalike isn’t proof of copying, and you file any reports yourself.

Sources

• USPTO, Summary of 2025 trademark fee changes (effective January 18, 2025).
• USPTO, Goods and services (classes and the ID Manual).
• USPTO, Intent-to-use (ITU) applications.