The best font making software

Font making software compared

Prices are as of October 2026, in each maker’s own currency. Glyphs is priced in euros. Check the vendor’s site before you buy, since prices and sales change.

Free font editors

FontForge

FontForge is the long running free font editor, open source and available on Windows, Mac and Linux. It has a professional feature set: full outline editing, kerning, OpenType features, Python scripting, and export to every common format. There are no limits on what you make or how you use it.

The drawback is the interface. It looks and feels old, and new users often find it hard to get going. Releases are slow too, though the project is still maintained.

Best for: people on a budget who are ready to learn real type design, Linux users, and anyone who wants to script their font work. If it feels like too much, see easier FontForge alternatives.

Glyphr Studio

Glyphr Studio is a free, open source font editor that runs entirely in the browser, so there’s nothing to install. You draw outlines with a pen tool, and it exports OTF, TTF, WOFF and WOFF2. It’s actively maintained, with a release in October 2026.

It’s still an outline editor, so you draw every glyph yourself. Variable fonts aren’t supported as far as we could find.

Best for: free outline editing on any computer, including Chromebooks and school machines where you can’t install software.

BirdFont

BirdFont is a desktop outline editor for Windows, Mac and Linux. The free version has a catch worth knowing: fonts you make with it must be released under the SIL Open Font License. To sell a font, you need a paid tier, which starts at $4.99. The Plus tier adds color and variable fonts.

Best for: hobbyists who want a cheap desktop editor that’s simpler than FontForge.

Professional font design software

Glyphs 4

Glyphs is the font editor most professional type designers on the Mac use. Glyphs 4 came out in July 2026 and replaces Glyphs 3. It costs €319 once, with student and teacher prices and a 30 day trial. It handles multiple masters, smart components and variable fonts, and exports everything a commercial font needs.

It’s Mac only, and it’s a big tool. Expect to spend real time learning it before your first font is finished.

Best for: serious type designers on a Mac who plan to make and sell fonts for years.

Glyphs Mini 2

The smaller sibling costs €49 once. It works with a single master, so there’s no interpolation and no variable fonts. It still lists a very old macOS version as its minimum and no longer has its own product page, so check it runs well on your Mac before you buy.

Best for: a first static font on a Mac, with the option to move up to Glyphs later.

FontLab 8

FontLab is the professional choice that runs on both Mac and Windows. It does variable fonts and color fonts, exports almost every format there is. The lifetime license is $499. A Starter license gives you three months for $97 with no renewal, and there are student prices and a 10 day trial.

Like Glyphs, it has a steep learning curve and costs real money.

Best for: professionals on Windows, or teams split across Mac and Windows.

Easy font creators

Calligraphr

Calligraphr turns your handwriting into a font. You print a template, fill it in by hand, scan or photograph it and upload it. The free plan makes one font at a time with up to 75 characters, two variants per character and no ligatures. Pro is $10 a month, or $6 a month on a six month term, and raises the limits a lot. Commercial use is allowed on both, with no watermark.

The font looks like your handwriting, which is the point. If you want a clean typeface with consistent weight and spacing, it’s the wrong tool.

Best for: handwriting fonts.

FontStruct

FontStruct is a free browser tool where you build letters by snapping geometric pieces onto a grid. It’s ad supported, with an optional paid membership. It exports TTF and OTF, and you choose a license when you share a font.

The grid makes pixel and geometric fonts easy. Smooth curves and text faces are hard to get.

Best for: pixel fonts, geometric display fonts and playful experiments.

Letterhead

Letterhead works differently from everything above. You start from a working typeface with a full character set and spacing, then shape the whole thing at once: sliders for weight, width, slant, contrast, roundness and serifs, or drag the letters on the preview. Every glyph changes together, so the font stays consistent. It runs in the browser.

The Free plan gives you Letterhead Sans and Letterhead Serif in Regular and Bold, and an OTF download for personal use. One Custom Font is $29 once and covers one family for commercial use. Pro is $12 a month or $96 a year, and Founding is $149 once for the first 149 people. Paid plans export OTF, TTF and WOFF2 and let you sell what you make.

You can’t draw outlines point by point or trace your handwriting. If you want a custom ampersand or your own script, use an outline editor or Calligraphr instead.

Best for: beginners, designers and makers who want a finished, consistent typeface fast. See how to make your own font for the steps, or what the free font maker includes.

Font making apps for iPad and Illustrator

Fontself Maker

Fontself is an extension for Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. You draw letters as you normally would, then drag them into a panel to make a font, with automatic spacing and kerning. It’s a one time purchase, listed on its store at $39 for Illustrator and $59 for the Illustrator and Photoshop bundle. Those are shown as sale prices and may change. You also need an Adobe subscription.

Best for: illustrators and lettering artists who already work in Illustrator.

Fontself for iPad

The iPad version lets you draw letters with Apple Pencil, with vector brushes and a pen tool. It costs $19.99, with an optional $14.99 in app pack, and exports OTF.

Best for: lettering on the iPad.

iFontMaker

iFontMaker is a $7.99 app for iPad and Apple Silicon Macs. You draw with your finger or a pencil and can fix curves with Bézier editing. It exports TTF. The last update was in October 2024, so it may not get many new features.

Best for: casual handwriting and display fonts on an iPad.

How to choose font design software

• You want your handwriting as a font: Calligraphr, or Fontself and iFontMaker if you’d rather draw on an iPad.
• You want to become a professional type designer: Glyphs 4 on a Mac, FontLab on Windows. FontForge if you can’t spend money yet.
• You’re a beginner and want a real font quickly: Letterhead. You make design decisions instead of drawing every curve.
• You want free and open source: FontForge on the desktop, Glyphr Studio in the browser.
• You work on an iPad: Fontself for iPad or iFontMaker.
• You live in Illustrator: Fontself Maker.
• You want pixel or grid fonts: FontStruct.

Whatever you pick, check what it exports. Most tools give you OTF or TTF for desktop use. For a website you’ll want WOFF2; the OTF vs TTF vs WOFF2 guide explains why. And if you plan to sell the font, check the tool’s terms first, then read how to sell a font you made.