Fonts and typography are the main elements of every web design project, and there are a variety of resources available on the Internet to help you with all of your font and typography needs. Regardless of what you are looking for, there are both free and paid resources available at your disposal.
The huge amounts of resources available may leave you confused. This post will showcase the top 10 resources for web fonts on the Internet. Each will have you wondering how you ever survived without them. Let’s get started!
Top 5 FREE Resources For Web Fonts
Font Squirrel
Font Squirrel is the go-to resource for many web designers who seek fonts that are licensed for commercial use at zero cost. The problem with many free resources is that many of them are not actually free. Once you get to the licensing details of many fonts, you will find they are only available for personal use. You can avoid much of this with Font Squirrel.
With Font Squirrel, you will gain access to hundreds of high-quality fonts that are categorized by type such as serif, script, sans serif, slab serif, and more. Font Squirrel prides itself on being the best resource for free high-quality fonts that are ready for commercial use. Keep Font Squirrel bookmarked for your next major web design project.
Google Fonts
Google Fonts is another amazing resource you can use to download free high-quality fonts for your web design projects. The mission behind Google Fonts is to make the web design process easier by offering web designers a robust library of open sources fonts. Currently, Google’s font directory allows designers to test fonts in more than 135 languages.
One of the best aspects of Google Fonts is that all fonts in the library are free and open source, which makes them readily available for anyone, and any project. Since Google takes care of all the licensing and hosting, you don’t have to worry about any legal issues regarding the fonts you implement on your sites.
Google Fonts currently has over 600 fonts in its database, and you can download your fonts right to your computer, or simply get the code to plug into your web designs. Google Fonts will allow you to search by category, and even preview and compare several fonts at the same time. Google Fonts is a tool well worth adding to your web design arsenal.
UrbanFonts
UrbanFonts is a web designer’s dream, offering over 8,000 fonts. The majority of fonts on the site are freeware, while some are shareware, and others are linkware.
A unique aspect of UrbanFonts is that the site also has a library of free dingbats, which can come in handy during your next web design project.
Though most of the fonts on UrbanFonts are free, you will want to go over any files included with your download to uncover any information pertaining to the usage of the fonts.
Some of the fonts that are provided for free are trial versions, which may not allow embedding. Regardless, UrbanFonts is a site you should check out before paying for fonts elsewhere.
DaFont
DaFont provides web designers with access to over 20,000 freeware, shareware, demo, and public domain fonts, and there are fonts available in just about every category you could imagine. Dafont’s website may seem a little bland at first, but don’t let your first impression of the site’s appearance deter you from giving DaFont an honest try.
The only drawback to DaFont is that some of the fonts are not licensed for commercial use. Thus it’s important that you read the license for each font you download to make sure you are able to use it for commercial purposes.
Fontspace
Fontspace provides the modern web designer with over 31,000 free fonts created by designers all over the world. You can browse Fontspace by category, or simply conduct a keyword search to return thousands of results. Like many of the other free resources for fonts on the Internet, you will want to check each individual font for licensing terms to make sure it can be used for commercial purposes.
Top 5 PAID Resources For Fonts
Creative Market
The Creative Market is the go-to resource for web developers who are looking for a variety of elements such as photos, graphics, templates, themes, and fonts. If you choose to make Creative Market your go-to font resource, you will not be disappointed. According to the company site, they have over 13,000 fonts ready for use.
What makes the Creative Market stand out from other paid font resources is the amount of unique fonts that are available. For instance, if you are looking for brush script, hand drawn, or calligraphy fonts, chances are you will have no problem finding the perfect one at the Creative Market.
You pay for font packages with Creative Market credits that you can purchase directly on the site. You can save money and get free bonus credits when you buy your credits in bulk. For instance, if you buy $100 worth of credits, you can get $10 worth of bonus credits free.
The Creative Market is one of the best resources on the Internet for all things web design. In terms of high-quality fonts, it definitely is not lacking. If you are looking to avoid some of the struggles associated with searching for free fonts, give the Creative Market a try.
MyFonts
MyFonts may boast one of the biggest collections of web fonts on the Internet. MyFonts is easy to use and makes finding the perfect font for your website a breeze. You can simply utilize the search menu to search by keyword or browse by font category.
One unique feature about MyFonts is the ability to identify fonts that you like from other websites via the “WhatTheFont” feature. All you have to do is take a picture of the font and submit it to find the closest match in the MyFont database. Pretty cool, right?
MyFonts does offer a few fonts for free, but if you want access to the highest quality fonts you will have to pay for it. MyFonts offers a free 1-hour trial, but after that, you will be required to upgrade to a paid subscription. Paid versions start at $14.99 per month, and provide you with unlimited access to everything in the MyFonts library.
Fonts.com
If free fonts are not cutting it for you, consider giving Fonts.com a try. Fonts.com has a database of over 150,000 desktop and web font packages for you to preview purchase, and download. At Fonts.com you can find anything you are looking for from sans to serif, to script to display, Fonts.com has it all.
Fonts.com makes it simple to find new and unique fonts for your web design projects.
For instance, you can search by category, by device type, classification type, or you can simply use the font list feature to browse by best sellers, new releases, hot new type, new web fonts, foundries, or designers.
Fonts.com makes it not only easy but also affordable to gain access to their enormous font library. You can start with a Fonts.com account free, where you will get access to 3,000 basic web fonts. However, if you want access to premium fonts you will need to sign up for a paid subscription starting at just $5 per month.
Fonts.com may be one of the best deals on the Internet to provide you with access to thousands of high-quality fonts from independent designers. If you are looking for a resource that will not break the bank, Fonts.com is the resource for you.
You Work For Them
You Work For Them’s mission since 2001 has been to provide consumers with the world’s best source for design resources. One unique trait of You Work For Them is that the company is privately owned and ran by designers, which means it is not subject to shareholders. You Work For Them has made a promise to the design world to provide the most useable, affordable, fonts and stocks in the world, all while remaining easy and accessible to users.
You Work For Them currently has over 55,000 fonts available for download. All the fonts in the enormous database are handpicked, so you know they are quality. You pay by the font on You Work For Them, and are able to choose your buying option. For instance, the price will vary between desktop, webfont, ePub, or MobileApp.
You Work For Them provides web designers with a low-cost option to download 100 percent free web fonts. Best of all, you know you are purchasing fonts from a company that is privately owned and free from stockholder interest. This means they will always have your best interest in mind.
Adobe TypeKit
Last, but not least on the list of the top five paid resources for fonts is Adobe Typekit. According to the company website, Adobe Typekit collaborates with the world’s leading type foundries to bring designers thousands of fonts daily. Best of all, the fonts you purchase from Typekit are free from licensing restrictions and can be used on the web or in desktop applications.
One feature that helps Adobe Typekit stand out from other solutions is its ability to synchronize fonts to your applications such as Photoshop, Office, and more. You can also choose to synchronize fonts to your website simply by adding some short code to your site’s template. Sounds convenient, right?
You are able to get started with Adobe Typekit free, but your access to their extensive library will be extremely limited. With a free subscription, you will only have access to a little over 200 of the over 2,000 fonts available. To gain access to the entire library, you will have to invest in a paid subscription starting at just $49.99 per year.
Adobe Typekit is a great tool that will provide you with full licensing rights to the fonts you download, and the packages are very affordable for the independent web designer.
Let’s Sum It Up
If you are just getting started, or have a limited budget, finding a free resource for fonts is probably very important to you. If you want access to a large amount of high-quality free fonts, without having to worry about licensing issues, Font Squirrel or Google Fonts should be at the top of your list. If you have a bit more time on your hands to search and research licensing requirements, you can elect to utilize one or more of the other free resources listed in this article.
If you are an established web designer who works on many projects, it may make more sense to invest in a paid subscription with The Creative Market, MyFonts, Fonts.com, You Work For Them, or Adobe Typekit. A paid subscription will gain you access to extensive libraries of high-quality fonts that will bring your websites to life and engage visitors.
Regardless on if you choose to go the free route or paid route, the Internet has made it possible to have a plethora of resources at your disposal. Any one of the above-mentioned resources will help you bring flare to your web design projects. Choosing which resource is right for you begins with understanding your own personal design needs.
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