Dear Amigos,
Thanks to the internet and the generosity of many talented type designers who dreamed of worldwide access to typography, designers everywhere are now able to choose from a wide variety of typefaces that are available for free commercial and personal use. However, too many options can be overwhelming, so we present you with a collection of quality-guaranteed type foundries that will give you the delightful font scrolling you were waiting for, and hopefully, a great match for your next project.
Type foundries that offer typefaces free for commercial and personal use
1. The League of Movable Type
According to the founders, The League is the first open-source type foundry. Active since 2009, their mission has been to push boundaries by creating a collection of high-quality fonts accessible to everyone, enabling many designers to educate and empower themselves free of charge. You can check their catalog by using this link.
2. Death of Typography
A type collective developed by Singaporean women with the intention of fostering collaboration, research, and connection between designers. Besides creating typefaces, they also developed a series of typography workshops in Singapore. You can access their work through this website.
3. Velvetyne
Velvetyne is a French collective that, since 2010, has been fostering research, creation, and dissemination of open font licenses. Filled with a bunch of talented collaborators, they seek to create a typographic universe that pushes boundaries through creative inhibition and inclusivity. Discover Velvetyne’s magic here.
4. Open Source Publishing
OSP is a Belgian type foundry (non-profit) founded in 2006 and composed of graphic designers, typographers, and developers. Their objective is to explore and challenge the current graphic design scenario with outstanding typefaces that are open and exclusively free. You can take a look at their library by following this link.
5. Tunera
Tunera Type Foundry is a collaborative project founded by Ariel MartÃn Pérez and Anton Moglia, two designers committed to creating new and original typefaces for everyone. Active since 2020, they got their name from the Tunera plant, also known as the Indian fig cactus because, in their words, it “offers sharp font picks, rich curves, and lots of flavor.” Check out their catalogue at the following link.
6. Collletttivo
Established in 2017 in Milan, Italy, Collletttivo is the first Italian open-source digital type foundry and studio. Committed to education and free distribution, they offer an outstanding catalog of typefaces, as well as digital resources such as workshops and books to enhance access and collaboration. Follow the link and discover Collletttivo’s magic.
7. Indestructible Type
Indestructible Type is a website by graphic designer Owen Earl, where he compiles all the free fonts he has created over more than 5 years of work. He intends to design typefaces that stand out for their variability, excellence, and accessibility. You can access his collection by following this link.
8. U+270D
U+270D is a collection of experimental, free-of-charge fonts that result from a typographic creation workshop led by Benjamin Gomez from the Rennes Art School in France. It reunites the collective work of the workshop students and is distributed under an open license. You can access the project here.
9. Luuse Typotheque
Luuse Typotheque is a free font library created and utilized by Luuse, a Brussels-based editing and publishing studio. It showcases a wide variety of fonts, from experimental to classic, licensed under various open licenses. You can explore their collection by visiting their site.
10. SUVA Type Foundry
SUVA is a type foundry comprised of the work of the Estonian Academy of Arts (Department of Graphic Design) across various workshops and academic projects. Showcasing a collection of highly experimental display fonts, all of their specimens are free to use. Take a look at the student’s typographic projects here.
11. Noir Blanc Rouge
Established in 2019, Noir Blanc Rouge is a Parisian type foundry fueled by Bastien Sozeau’s passion for innovative fonts. They’re an independent force, crafting original typefaces for both purchase and free use. All of their open-source fonts come with the SIL Open Font License for maximum flexibility. You can check them out here.
12. Fontshare
Fontshare is a free fonts service launched by the Indian Type Foundry (ITF), has you covered. Their library is constantly expanding with professional-grade fonts, all completely free for personal and commercial use. Fontshare is on a mission to democratize design by making high-quality, reliable fonts accessible to everyone. Find their fonts here.
13. TypeType
In 2008, Ivan Gladkikh, co-founder of TypeType, launched “Free Fonts,” a project with a mission to make font design more accessible and to champion the creativity of font designers. The free font library extends beyond that, also featuring fonts by TypeType School graduates and offering trial versions of TypeType’s own fonts. Look through their library here.
14. Tropical Type
Tropical Type, a 2016 venture by designer Tom Cunningham, has evolved from a multidisciplinary studio into a commercial type foundry. Unlike traditional font families, their fonts are priced affordably, ranging from $10 to $30, and even cheaper in bundles, making them accessible to solo designers and small studios. Tropical Type also has a free font library you can check out here.
15. Too Much Type
Too Much Type is a creative hub for experimental typography created by Gabriel Drozdov. They design and distribute unconventional typefaces and type specimens that push the boundaries of letterforms. Every project is open-source, empowering you to explore, customize, and innovate with our fonts and code. You can look through their amazing fonts here.
Important considerations
The people behind these foundries work incredibly hard to provide us all with access to incredible fonts every day. Visit their websites and support them in any way you can. Please remember to ALWAYS read the licenses of the fonts you are using and lawfully respect the designer’s work. If you feel like it, share this article with another font-lover friend so they can also learn about these amazing projects.
This list is just the tip of the iceberg. We promise to continue expanding this list periodically, so stay tuned, and remember: sharing is caring.
Talking about sharing, since you’ve reached this point, maybe you would be interested in these other articles and resources about typography:
