Which Font Licence Do I Need? A Guide for Designers

What is a font licence?

A font licence is permission to use font software under a defined set of conditions. You are not normally buying the typeface itself. You are buying rights to install and use its digital files for particular people, devices, projects and forms of output.

The distinction between a typeface and a font file matters. The typeface is the visual design. The OTF, TTF, WOFF or WOFF2 file is software that makes the design usable. Creating a poster with that software does not automatically give you permission to distribute the software with the poster.

What does EULA mean?

EULA stands for End User Licence Agreement. It explains what the licence covers, what it excludes and whether limits are based on users, computers, websites, apps, titles, impressions, audience size or time.

There is no universal font licence. Two foundries can both sell something called a Desktop Licence while applying different limits. The label is useful. The small print is the part doing the actual work.

Which font licence do I need for my project?

The correct licence depends on how the font is used and delivered. Static design work normally begins with a Desktop Licence. Live website text needs webfont rights. Apps, commercial e-books, HTML advertising, servers and video may require their own licences or a tailored agreement.

This is a starting point, not a substitute for the relevant agreement. My plain-English licence guide explains the options available with Simon Stratford fonts.

Does a Desktop Licence cover commercial work?

A Desktop Licence can cover commercial design work, but it does not mean unlimited use everywhere. It generally lets licensed users install the font in desktop software and create static finished artwork. It does not automatically cover webfont use, app embedding, editable customer templates or distribution of the font file.

Typical desktop projects include:

• Logos and brand identities supplied as finished or outlined artwork.
• Packaging, posters, brochures, signs and printed advertising.
• Static social-media graphics and flattened online images.
• Presentations and ordinary design documents.
• Printed merchandise within the licence’s production limit.

For Simon Stratford fonts, desktop use is limited by the number of licensed users or computers and a 250,000-instance commercial-production limit. Personalised products, reproducible alphabets, servers, font embedding and broadcast work need additional permission.

The word commercial is not a magic all-access wristband. It tells you the work is connected to business. It does not tell you whether the font may be embedded in an app, installed on a server or handed to twenty other designers.

When do I need a Webfont Licence?

You need webfont rights when a website loads a font file so visitors see live, selectable text in that typeface. A Webfont Licence can specify permitted domains, traffic levels, hosting arrangements and file-protection requirements. Desktop rights alone do not normally include this use.

If you export a headline as a JPG or PNG and place that finished image on a website, the font file is not being served to the visitor. That will usually remain desktop use, subject to the specific EULA.

If the browser downloads WOFF or WOFF2 files through @font-face, the font is embedded in the website. Changing an OTF into a WOFF2 does not turn a Desktop Licence into a Webfont Licence. It merely gives the problem a new file extension.

Check:

• Which domains and subdomains are included.
• Whether the font is self-hosted or supplied through a service.
• Whether pricing is perpetual, annual or traffic-based.
• How the files must be protected from casual download.
• Whether staging and development domains are covered.

What counts as embedding a font?

Font embedding means including some or all of the font software inside another file, website or application so it can display or generate text. PDFs, e-books, apps, websites and adverts embed fonts differently, which is why they are often covered by separate licence types.

Common forms of embedding

• Website embedding: a browser downloads a webfont to display live text.
• App embedding: the font becomes part of an application or software package.
• Document embedding: font data is stored inside a PDF or e-book.
• Advertising embedding: an HTML advert or email loads the font dynamically.
• Server installation: software uses the font to create documents, images or personalised output automatically.

Software may offer an “embed fonts” checkbox, but a technical feature is not legal permission. The licence still decides whether embedding is allowed and what restrictions apply.

Do the designer and client need separate font licences?

The person or organisation installing and directly using the font needs suitable permission. A client does not normally need the font simply to receive finished artwork. If the client wants editable text, brand templates or the ability to create new material, they will usually need their own licence.

A clean handover normally works like this:

1. Agree who will buy and hold the licence before design begins.
2. Count every designer, freelancer and client user who needs to install the font.
3. Supply PDFs, images or outlined artwork when the recipient does not need editable typography.
4. Do not automatically package the font with the job files.
5. Record the font, foundry, licence, purchase date, project and permitted users.

Adobe makes a similar distinction for fonts activated through Adobe Fonts: a client may receive rasterised or correctly embedded output, but needs appropriate access when editing and using the font directly. Other services and foundries may set different terms, so check the source of the exact font.

A client handover is not a small ownership ceremony. Sending the artwork does not transfer the font licence with it.

Can I share a font file with a printer or another designer?

Not unless the licence expressly allows it or the recipient has suitable licensing of their own. Printers, developers, freelancers, production agencies and client teams may all need direct access, but packaging a font with your project does not override its EULA.

If the recipient only needs to reproduce a finished design, supply a print-ready PDF, outlined artwork or flattened image. If they need to edit the wording, generate new material or install the font, check whether they are covered before sending it.

This is one of the most common licensing mistakes because the “Package” command makes sharing a font technically easy. Software being helpful is not the same thing as the foundry agreeing.

Can I use a font in a logo or trade mark?

Many desktop licences permit logo design, but buying a retail font does not make it exclusive or provide automatic trade-mark clearance. Other businesses can usually license the same typeface. Word marks and stylised or figurative marks also protect different aspects of a brand.

A word mark generally protects the wording independently of one particular visual style. A stylised or figurative mark can concern the specific appearance of the lettering. The details vary by jurisdiction, so obtain appropriate professional advice before filing.

My Desktop Licence permits logo creation, but the typeface design itself may not be included in a trade-mark registration without further agreement. If registration matters to the project, ask before filing rather than after the forms and invoices have started breeding.

If a brand needs typography that competitors cannot buy, a retail font is the wrong route. That is a conversation about modification, exclusivity or custom type—not a larger desktop seat count.

Can I outline or modify a licensed font?

Outlining text for finished artwork is not the same as modifying the font software. A licence may allow you to convert words into vector outlines for a logo or print file while forbidding changes to the underlying OTF, TTF, WOFF or WOFF2 files.

Do not assume you can:

• Rename the font and treat it as a new product.
• Add, remove or redraw glyphs inside the font file.
• Convert a desktop font into a webfont without web rights.
• Upload the font to a template service for customers to use.
• Remove creator or copyright information.
• Sell or distribute your altered version.

If the typeface is close but needs new characters, language support, alternates or technical changes, read about font modification and customisation. The original licence must permit the work, or the rights holder must approve it.

Are free and open-source fonts licence-free?

No. Free fonts and open-source fonts still have licences. Those licences may permit commercial use, modification and redistribution without payment, but they can still impose conditions. “Free for personal use” is not permission for client work, packaging or advertising.

The SIL Open Font License generally allows fonts to be used in commercial design work. It also allows modification and redistribution when its conditions are followed. Some families use Reserved Font Names, which can affect the naming of modified versions.

Artwork created with an OFL font does not have to be released under the same licence. The conditions become especially important when you modify, bundle or redistribute the font software.

Fonts distributed through Google Fonts are open source, but the individual family still has a licence that should be checked. Free download does not mean “no rules,” just as a free chair left outside somebody’s house does not include the house.

How do I check a font licence before buying?

Describe the complete job before choosing the licence. Identify everyone who needs the font, every place it will appear and every system that will contain the file. Then check limits covering users, devices, domains, titles, impressions, audiences, production volumes and time.

Ask these eight questions

1. Who will install or directly use the font?
2. How many computers or team members need access?
3. Will the result be a static design or live, editable text?
4. Will the font be embedded in a website, app, document, advert or server?
5. Does the client need editable files or only finished artwork?
6. Are there limits based on print runs, page views, users, titles or impressions?
7. Is the licence perpetual, subscription-based or renewable each year?
8. Does the project require modification, exclusivity or trade-mark registration?

Keep a simple licence record

• Font name, version and filenames.
• Foundry or authorised retailer.
• Licence type and purchase date.
• Receipt or order number.
• Copy of the EULA supplied at purchase.
• Licensed person or company.
• Permitted users, devices and usage limits.
• Client and project.
• Renewal date or written special permission.

It is not the glamorous end of typography. It is considerably easier than reconstructing five years of font purchases when a client asks for an audit by Friday.

If you are ready to choose a typeface, browse my handmade display fonts and check the licence options shown with each family.