This is a technical feature comparison of font editors.
General
[edit]Basic general information about font editors: creator, first release date, latest stable version, latest release date and license.
| Software | Creator | First release date | Latest stable version | Latest release date | License |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DTL FontMaster | Dutch Type Library | 3.0 | Proprietary | ||
| DTL FontMaster Light | Dutch Type Library | 2.7[1] | Free | ||
| FontForge | George Williams | 20251009[2] | 9 October 2025 | GPL3 | |
| FontLab | Yuri Yarmola | 1993 | 8.4.2.8950 | September 25, 2024 | Proprietary |
| Fontographer | Jim von Ehr | 5.2 | Proprietary | ||
| Glyphs | Georg Seifert | 2011 | 3.4 | October 8, 2025 | Proprietary, file format and parts of the code open source |
| Ikarus | Proprietary |
Operating system support
[edit]The table below lists the operating systems on which each font editor can run.
| Software | Windows | OS X | Linux | Android | iOS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DTL FontMaster | Yes | ||||
| DTL FontMaster Light | Yes | ||||
| FontForge | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||
| FontLab | Yes | Yes | |||
| Glyphs | No | Yes |
General features
[edit]Below is an overview of general features typical for font editors.
| Software | Maximum number of glyphs supported | Colored glyphs | Windows Type 1 (.pfb) editor | Mac Type 1 (LWFN) editor | OpenType TT / TrueType (.ttf) editor | Mac TrueType (sfnt/dfont) editor | TrueType Collection (.ttc) editor | OpenType PS (.otf) editor | Macro / Script |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FontForge | No[3] | import and export[4] | import and export[5] | import and export[6] | import and export[7] | import and export[8] | import and export[9] | Yes[10] | |
| FontLab | unlimited in source file | COLR, CPAL, SBIX, SVG [11] | import & export | import & export | import | import | import & export | Python scripting | |
| Glyphs | unlimited in source file | COLR, CPAL, SBIX, SVG [12] | import | import | import & export | import | import | import & export | Python script and plug-ins, Objective-C plug-ins, free SDK available |
The OpenType cmap table can reference a maximum of 65536 glyphs.[13]
TrueType hinting
[edit]Font editors supporting TrueType hinting can do that either automatically or manually. The availability of these functions and the possibility to debug hinting is indicated in the following table.
| Software | Automatic TrueType hinting | Manual TrueType hinting | TrueType hinting debugger |
|---|---|---|---|
| FontLab | ttfAutohint & FontLab | GUI | code preview and rendering previews, including Windows ClearType on macOS |
| Glyphs | ttfAutohint | GUI | live preview of 3 renderings |
| FontForge | yes (unknown type)[14] | yes | ?? |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ DTL FontTools - Downloads. Retrieved 2016-08-31.
- ^ "FontForge October 2025 Release". 9 October 2025. Retrieved 15 November 2025.
- ^ "Color font COLR/CPAL #677". GitHub. 2013-08-24. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
- ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". Retrieved 2022-05-06.
- ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". Retrieved 2022-05-06.
- ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". Retrieved 2022-05-06.
- ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". Retrieved 2022-05-06.
- ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". Retrieved 2022-05-06.
- ^ "Frequently Asked Questions". Retrieved 2022-05-06.
- ^ "FontForge Scripting Tutorial". Retrieved 2025-07-24.
- ^ "Color Font Formats". Fontlab Ltd. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
FontLab will export all four formats
- ^ "Features". Glyphs GmbH. Retrieved 2022-10-13.
Or tap into the possibilities of color font formats: SVG, CPAL/COLR, sbix and classic layer fonts.
- ^ "Cmap - Character to Glyph Index Mapping Table (OpenType 1.9) - Typography". Microsoft. 10 January 2023.
- ^ "Hinting". FontForge. Retrieved 22 March 2025.
External links
[edit]- Create your own font with these 14 best tools. Retrieved 2016-08-31.
- 5 best font editors. Retrieved 2016-08-31.
