List of open source typefaces
An overview over open source typefaces.
See also commercial typefaces.
The SIL Open Font License (OFL) is one of the most commonly used open-source font licenses and is specifically developed for font software.
In this list I try to only include releases that have one or more of the following qualitites:
- High quality drawing
- Large character set
- Wide unicode support
- Supports multiple scripts (in addition to latin)
Lists by other people
https://localfonts.eu/freefonts/free-fonts-without-cyrillic-script/
https://fontlibrary.org/en/catalogue
http://luc.devroye.org/opensourcefonts.html
https://github.com/Homebrew/homebrew-cask-fonts/tree/master/Casks
National Park
A rounded router-style typeface in four weights released with SIL OFL.
https://nationalparktypeface.com/
D-DIN
Open source. https://www.fontsquirrel.com/fonts/d-din
See also https://fontsarena.com/blog/free-din-font-and-alternatives/
Clear Sans
Open source, Apache license. Designed by Intel. Font files are free to use. But source files by Monotype are not available.
https://github.com/intel/clear-sans
RW Garamond
Open source version of Stempel’s Garamond (a favourite of Derek Birdsall)
‘RW Garamond is a freeware Garamond font in OpenType format. (‘RW’ stands for Rudolf Wolf, the designer who created Stempel’s version of Garamond from the Egenolff-Berner specimen.)’
https://github.com/dbenjaminmiller/rwgaramond
Munson
‘A Victorian style slab serif font’ Clarendonesque.
https://github.com/PJMiller/Munson
Linik Sans
Linik Sans is developed from Inter, versions 3.3 and 3.13, and Manix Sans HL fonts.
https://fontlibrary.org/en/font/linik-sans
Similar to Inter but different numerals and DIN-style tails on lowercase l and i.
TT2020
Grungy, multilingual typewriter font with 10 glyphs per character! A monster in terms of file size, but subset it could work quite well!
There are multiples styles, in varying degrees of dryness of the band/hardness of the typing.
https://fontlibrary.org/en/font/tt2020-style-b
Standard
Sans-serif grotesque typeface designed by Bryce Wilner. Comes in 4 styles. Well drawn. Hints to British grotesques, captial Q sends me in the direction of Folio (Bauer 1957).
Download via Font Library
OFL
Inter
Sans-serif typeface with many weights and unicode symbols.
High quality. Released unfer SIL OFL.
Original design and development by Swedish designer/developer Rasmus Andersson.
Can be downloaded via the (very nice) official home page https://rsms.me/inter/ or Google Fonts https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Inter
Did it have some relation to Figma?
Century Schoolbook L
The original Century Schoolbook was designed by Linn Boyd and Morris Fuller Benton.
This old classic is supplied as open-source software with some linux/unix systems.
It is released under the GPL license.
It can be found repackaged as downloadable desktop and web fonts on TimothyGu’s github.
Besley
A Clarendon-style egyptienne designed and developed by indestructible type*. Released under SIL OFL.
https://indestructibletype.com/Besley.html
Space Grotesk
Typeface by Florian Karsten. High quality drawing.
https://fonts.floriankarsten.com/space-grotesk
Space Grotesk is a proportional sans-serif typeface variant based on Colophon Foundry’s fixed-width Space Mono family (2016). Originally designed by Florian Karsten in 2018, Space Grotesk retains the monospace’s idiosyncratic details while optimizing for improved readability at non-display sizes.
Source Serif Pro
Designed by Frank Grießhammer
‘Source Serif Pro is a serif typeface in the transitional style, designed to complement the Source Sans Pro family.’
Licensed under OFL
https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Source+Serif+Pro#about
%%TODO: Make separate notes for each typeface. Parts of this list is starting to duplicate around other notes. %%