"At some point, the album was going to be titled Everest, after the brand of cigarettes I used to smoke", recalls Geoff Emerick (manager). The idea included a cover photo in the Himalayas , but by the time the group was to take the photo, they decided to call it Abbey Road and take the photo outside the studio, on 8 August 1969. The cover designer was Apple Records creative Director Kosh. The cover photograph was taken by photographer Iain Macmillan.

Macmillan was given only ten minutes around 11.30 that morning to take the photo. That cover photograph has since become one of the most famous and most imitated album covers in recording history.

The man standing on the pavement in the background is Paul Cole , an American tourist who was unaware that he was being photographed until he saw the album cover months later. The zebra crossing today remains a popular destination for Beatles fans; see the Abbey Road webcam, although the crossing is no longer in the same location as it was in 1969, having been moved further East in the 1970s. Looking across the street in the direction the Beatles crossed it, the crossing was moved from the left side of the light pole on the destination side of the street (the side John is closest to) to the right side of the pole.

The Volkswagen Beetle parked next to the zebra crossing belonged to one of the people living in the apartment across from the recording studio. After the album came out, the number plate was stolen repeatedly from the car. In 1986, the car was sold at an auction for $23,000 and is currently on display at the Volkswagen museum in Wolfsburg, Germany.

The front cover of Abbey Road has become an icon within popular culture and has been imitated and lampooned repeatedly. The zebra crossing at Abbey Road is also a popular tourist destination, with visitors making their own recreation an extremely common sight.