free fonts for your business
There are many “Free Fonts” sites on the Internet. However, it is often over with the “free” If you will use these fonts as self-employed for the own company. Because the most free fonts are usable only for “non-commercial” purposes. I put together so here once a list of websites, where you can find free fonts for commercial purposes.
Advantages and disadvantages of free fonts
Free fonts have of course especially the advantage that they are free. While you must spend a small fortune for some professional fonts (which is certainly partly justified), you can choose the appropriate when the free fonts from a huge selection.
However, it must be said the quality of the free fonts, of course, usually to the quality of the fee-based fonts get. Also, many fonts are free but only for private use. Self-employed person must look this already much more accurate get not license anger.
Furthermore free fonts are designed only for a purpose and are not universally applicable because characters missing etc. Also, the characters are themselves often not as well developed as fee-based fonts.
There are primarily three formats where most are offered free fonts:
True Type
True type format 1989 by Microsoft and Apple developed. It has the great advantage that it is a scalable format which is simple and easy to use. However, this flexibility at the expense of the quality is so true type never won in professional printing.
PostScript Type 1 and type 3
The PostScript format it even longer and it is a professional format from Adobe. Today, mainly PostScript is used for printing.
OpenType
The OpenType format is relatively new and was developed by Microsoft and Adobe. Several advantages: to it is a platform-independent and used the same files on both Mac and Windows (and it sees both equal to even out!). The OpenType format can also contain an extended character set and to include more special characters, etc.. OpenType can contain TrueType data or PostScript data.
Free fonts for commercial use
Following a list of websites that offer free fonts, which are also commercially usable. However, you should check again if the selected font is really free can be used for commercial purposes. You can find this info in the accompanying “readme.txt”-files.
Aenigma fonts
You can find more fancy and playful fonts when Aenigma fonts. Hundreds of free and commercially usable fonts for download are available here.
The designer of the Scriptures, Brian Kent provides all as freeware. Some of the fonts are surely for useful purposes.
to Aenigma Fonts
Vitaly Friedman’s free fonts
Vitaly has collected his opinion after 25 best quality free fonts. It is really beautiful, diverse writings.
Most fonts can be used for commercial purposes, but you should check each again shortly.
to Vitaly Friedman’s 25 free fonts
Manfred Klein Fonteria
A great and comprehensive source of commercial-ready free fonts can be on site by Manfred Klein. New fonts are added regularly and you finds back archive in the year 2001.
It is also very nice fonts in the categories “Decorative”, “Historical”, “Picture” and “Text” are divided. This makes it easier to find a specific type of font.
to Manfred Klein Fonteria
Free font cheat sheet
The very recommended Smashing Magazine has borne a list of 50 free fonts. This is really only good, high-quality fonts.
The list can be downloaded as PDF. This overview should be sufficient for most applications.
to Smashing Magazine
Tutorial blog free fonts
Tutorial blog has also brought a list of recommended fonts together. I have some of them already in use.
Partially, it is naturally overlap with other font directories, but all in all a few beautiful free fonts.
to Tutorial Blog
Floodfonts
Floodfonts beitet 8 creative fonts in that are of high quality. The design of the website already shows that here is a real designer at work. It notes in his writings.
Not every day you will use these fonts, but for the right purpose you fit perfectly. These 8 fonts are commercially.
to Floodfonts
40 great fonts
And again an overview of 40 high quality fonts for 2008 the Smashing Magazine. I cannot say why this 40 fonts specifically are now interesting for 2008, but they are nice definitively.
Also here find some known fonts. These fonts are really diverse Web and print.
to Smashing Magazine
Designer in action fonts
Pixelfonts, fonts and dingbats for Windows and Macintosh for visit Designer in action. Again, much has been placed on quality so that these fonts are professionally.
But here too it should ensure again when the individual fonts, commercial use is really free.
to Designer in action fonts
Why pay money for fonts?
There are so many free fonts, why you should pay for fonts as a company. Most free fonts are in one or more problems. A study has examined the quality of a total 4.572 freeware fonts. The result is not very surprising. Around 95% of the freeware fonts are in one or more defects. This study there as a PDF download with 1.675 pages.
This missing some characters in important character sets such as “Windows – West European Latin” (e.g. the euro character, special characters or umlauts). Sometimes there was also invalid or unkomplette hinting tables (this is mathematical instructions which support the display of fonts on roughly resolved output media).
For use in the professional field on various media and countries across such defects can cause major problems. Large enterprises also attach importance to use no other company used font. In these cases, it is certainly useful to spend money for fonts. Because should you choose as a font and important characters missing or the font is displayed incorrectly in certain applications, identify later this can be very costly and annoying.
Also we must not forget that the creation of a new font means much more effort than most can imagine it. There are very good fonts designers just like sand on the beach.
For self-employed persons and business start-ups listed above fonts sources should suffice but first. Also the quality when used in the Webdesignbereich do not so serious. But printed materials such as flyers and business cards can be easily created with good free fonts.
Font management
So many free fonts available, has also disadvantages. On the one hand suffers the list if you have hundreds fonts and secondly at least Windows becomes slower, it has installed more fonts.
There are therefore very useful tools for managing fonts. I am using a freeware program which brings sufficient features here.
FontHit
Software FontHit appears by your manufacturer no longer to be developed. But what is’s as long as it works. This may be display fonts, install, uninstall and show by certain characteristics. Very useful, but nevertheless with too many features overload.
FontHit Download
CrossFont
CrossFont is a nice story. With this tool you can convert Mac fonts in Windows fonts and vice versa. Because not every font for Windows and Mac, it may be sometimes necessary. It is also possible from PostScript fonts OpenType fonts to make.
After a trial period of 15 days costs $ 45 tool. When the present $ course a real bargain.
CrossFont Download
Videos about typography
I recommend everyone interested a beautiful film about the history of writing. How and why, the font is formed and how has it evolved.
A further, somewhat lustigeres video explains a few important features of fonts and introduces some fine.
Books about typography
Is a very recommended book about typography in Web and print “basic course typography and layout” by Claudia Runk. Is there any necessary basis for the design with fonts.
Basic course typography and layout (Galileo design)