Font Licensing · · By Fonts1 Editorial
Understanding font licenses: OFL, Apache and personal use
What the most common font licenses allow, and the questions to ask before using a font in client or commercial work.
Fonts are protected creative software. The license tells you what you can do with the files. Three situations cover most of what you will meet.
Open licenses
The SIL Open Font License (OFL) lets you use a font for any purpose, including commercial work, embed it in websites and apps, and share it together with the license text. You cannot sell the font file on its own. The Apache License 2.0 is similar and asks you to keep the license and notices with the font.
Personal use only
Many decorative fonts are free for personal projects only. A birthday card is fine; a shop sign, a logo for a client or a product label is not. If your use is commercial, buy a commercial license from the designer.
Custom licenses
Some designers publish their own terms. Read them for rules about web embedding, apps, number of users and modifications.
Good habits
- Keep the license file with the font files in your project.
- Record where you downloaded the font from.
- If a license is unclear, ask the designer before you publish.
Our font licensing guide has a short summary. This article is general information and not legal advice.