Typodermic Fonts

A beginner’s guide

How to download and use fonts

New to fonts? Start here. This guide explains which download to choose, how to open the ZIP file, how to install fonts on a computer, and what to check before sharing or embedding them.

Choose a font download Read the licensing guide

Quick decision guide

What do you want to do with the font?

Answer two or three simple questions. This guide covers common situations; the agreement supplied with the exact font still controls.

1 Choose the closest description

Start here

Choose the collection that matches your project

You do not need both packages. The current free-desktop collection is the usual choice for design work. The public-domain collection contains older releases with broader rights.

Most designers

Free desktop fonts

Use these current fonts to make logos, posters, packaging, social-media graphics, video titles, presentations, and other finished artwork on your computer. The included Desktop EULA applies.

View free desktop fonts

Unrestricted older releases

Public-domain fonts

These fonts were released under CC0. You may use, change, embed, and redistribute them. Separate desktop, webfont, and source packages are available.

View public-domain fonts

The downloaded file

Download and open the ZIP archive

A ZIP file is a compressed folder containing many font files. Download it to a Windows or Mac computer if possible. The collection archives are large and can be confusing on a phone.

  1. Choose one collection. Download the free-desktop package or the public-domain package that you need.
  2. Wait for the download to finish. Your browser normally places the ZIP file in the Downloads folder.
  3. Extract the ZIP file. Do not try to install the entire ZIP archive. Open or extract it first so you can see the folders and individual font files.
  4. Choose the fonts you actually want. You do not need to install every font in the collection.

Windows

Install a font on Windows

  1. Find the downloaded ZIP file in your Downloads folder.
  2. Right-click it, choose Extract All, and open the extracted folder.
  3. Find the OTF file for the font or style you want.
  4. Right-click the OTF file and choose Install.
  5. Close and reopen any design app that was already running.

macOS

Install a font on a Mac

  1. Find the downloaded ZIP file in Downloads. Double-click it if your Mac did not extract it automatically.
  2. Open the extracted folder and find the OTF file you want.
  3. Double-click the OTF file to open it in Font Book.
  4. Select Install Font.
  5. Close and reopen any design app that was already running.

After installation

Find and use the font in your software

Open your design, writing, presentation, or video application and look for the font’s family name in its font menu. Styles such as Regular, Book, Bold, or Italic may appear together under one family name.

Installing a font makes it available to compatible applications on that computer. It does not automatically add the font to a website, phone, Canva account, or another person’s computer.

Before you deliver the project

Know what the other person or platform will receive

Fixed artwork

A completed image, outlined logo, printed item, or rendered video contains no working font. This is the normal use for the free Desktop EULA.

Editable text or templates

If another person can type new text in the typeface, the project is not merely fixed artwork. Do not give them your font file or upload a free-desktop font to Canva or another cloud design platform.

Live website text

A website that sends a font to visitors needs webfont rights. The public-domain webfont package includes WOFF2 files that may be used for this. Do not upload OTF files from the free-desktop package for web embedding.

For editable files, Canva, websites, apps, PDFs containing fonts, or any situation where another person receives or uses the working font, check the licensing guide before continuing.

Mobile devices

If you downloaded the ZIP on a phone or tablet

The ZIP will usually appear in the device’s Files or Downloads area. Downloading it does not install the fonts, and many mobile apps cannot use fonts installed by the user. Font installation on iPhone, iPad, and Android varies by device and app and may require a font-management app or configuration profile.

For the simplest and most predictable setup, download and install the fonts on the Windows or Mac computer where you do your design work. Do not solve a mobile-app limitation by uploading the font to a cloud service unless the applicable license expressly allows it.

Common problems

If the font does not appear

  • Make sure you extracted the ZIP and installed an OTF file, not the ZIP itself.
  • Close and reopen the application after installing the font.
  • Look for the family name; individual styles may be grouped beneath it.
  • Restart the computer if an older application still cannot see the font.
  • Check for an older duplicate version of the same font in Windows Fonts or Font Book.

If you still need help, contact Typodermic and include the font name, your operating system, the application you are using, and what happened.