12 Top Free Online Font Generators

Font is an important part of web design — even if we don't consciously notice how letters and characters are designed and arranged on a web page, they impact our experience. The art of designing and arranging type is known as typography, and it's something that brands think about a lot.

Apple, for example, switched its typeface from Helvetica Neue to a custom typeface they designed in-house and named "San Francisco.”

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Chobani also rolled out a new typeface as part of its rebrand.

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Both of these changes made text more readable across their products and strengthened their brand identity.

Thanks to online font generators, you can add a custom typeface to your website even if you don't have an in-house team of typographers or the budget to hire one. With these tools, you can simply type in some text, pick the colors and effects you want, and generate the font file with the click of a button. Let's take a look at the best font generators that don't cost anything to use.

Some typefaces are expensive to license and use. Lexicon, for example, is a serif font created by Dutch designer Bram de Does that costs $4,996 to license.

But most fonts are priced much lower than that to make them more accessible to the public. In fact, there are many tools that offer open-source fonts that are free to use. Let's take a look at some of these tools below.

1. Glowtxt

Glowtxt is a simple online font generator for creating beautiful text as PNG or GIF files. Just select the size and style you want from the drop-down menu, check off whether you want to add an animation or glow effect, and change the glow background color. Once you're satisfied, you can click the download button. If you did not add a glow effect or animation, then it will be downloaded as a PNG file. If you did, it will be downloaded as a GIF.

Here's an example of text generated in Glowtxt:

2. Font Meme

Font Meme is a free online font generator you can use to create an attractive typeface inspired by your favorite brands and logos. You can click on Harvard Business Review, for example, and learn that it uses the National 2 Bold font. Since it's a premium font, you’ll be invited to click on the link to purchase the font, then return to Font Meme to upload it.

You can also browse through the free font collection, select one, then select a color and effect and hit "Generate." You'll then be able to embed this font using an auto-generated HTML snippet or direct image link.

Below is an example created with the Chapelone font and gradient effect in pink.

3. Stylish Text Generator

Stylish is the simplest solution for changing the characters within a word or phrase and surrounding the word or phrase. Under "Text Effects," you can add special characters, symbols, and other language characters in your text. Under "Text Decorations," I can add characters around the text. When I'm ready, I can click "Generate" and simply copy and paste the result onto my website, social media platform, or messaging app.

Here's an example of using a cursive effect and bar decoration:

4. Cool Text

Cool Text is a free online tool that allows you to quickly create a logo design or download a free font. All you have to do is select the text style you want, input your text, select your colors, add a shadow effect and image if desired, and create your logo. You can then download it as a PNG file or fill out a form to get the HTML code.

Here’s an example using the "Costura" font:

5. Online Text Generator

If you're a big fan of graphic fonts, then Online Text Generator is the solution for you. This will help you create a custom font based on a wide range of themes they currently support. These themes include 3D, bubble, gothic, graffiti, calligraphy, and cartoon text. Within each theme, there are different styles you can select, making this a highly versatile tool. You can also select the size of the image and font and color of the font and background. When you're ready, click "Create" and then embed the image with HTML code.

Below is the Cartoon-80 style with a 12 px font size and different shades of blue as the font and background color.

6. Instagram Fonts

Instagram Fonts is an online font generator specifically designed for Instagram, but it will work on any website as well. With this tool, you type text into the input field and different typeface options are automatically generated. Once you see a style you like, you can simply copy and paste it into the bio of your profile or site.

The best part is that these are Unicode fonts — they’ll always show up regardless of the device or browser your user is using.

Here's a look at some of the available styles in Instagram Fonts:

7. Font Generator

With Font Generator, you start by selecting from a number of font categories, such as handwriting, gothic, and elegant. Within each category, there are several styles to choose from. You can click on one and then customize the font size, color, and background color. You then have the option to download it as a PNG, JPG, or GIF file. The only downside is that there will be branding for Font Generator included in the logo.

Here's a look at a Gothic text called "Ruritania."

8. Flaming Text

Flaming Text is a free service that allows you to make amazing logos based on a large selection of templates. For example, from the selection below, you could click the top left style called "Comics."

You'd then be able to select from pre-designed variations with different colors, gradient effects, and background colors. Or, you could customize it yourself, then download the final product as a PNG file or create an account to get the HTML code.

9. GraffWriter

If you are exclusively interested in a graffiti-style font, then you'll love GraffWriter. This online font generator makes the alphabets, images, effects, and concepts from the official and premium Graffiti Fonts® collection available to users for free. You can use these designs to create customized artwork for banners, buttons, logos, flyers, and other purposes without needing to register an account or provide any personal information.

Here's an example using the "Paint Cans" style:

10. Cool Fancy Text Generator

Cool Fancy Text Generator is an easy-to-use tool for generating fonts for your social media and messaging apps. All you need to do is input some text and different typefaces will automatically be generated. You simply have to copy the style you like and paste it anywhere in your Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, Snapchat, or Tiktok profile. You can also add it to your website.

Below is a look at some of the styles available in this tool.

11. FontSpace

FontSpace is an easy-to-use font generator that lets you insert text and then immediately copy it straight from their website into your website. It uses Unicode styles, meaning that you won’t run into compatibility issues with other browsers or devices.

You can use this tool to spice up your social media profiles and your author page on your website. You can also use it to style headings and quotes.

12. TextFX

TextFX.co is a free font generator that allows you to create a logo or a banner with custom text. To start, choose the font you’d like to use from the drop-down menu and type a word or phrase. You can change the color if you’d like. After, choose a style from all of the ones they’ve listed on the page. Last, choose a background pattern. You can then download the image as a JPEG or PNG, then insert it into your site.

Here’s an example with the “Iron” effect:

Customizing the Font on Your Website

Using any of the font generators above, you can create a custom font for your logo, web pages, or social media platforms — without needing to know anything about Photoshop, vectors, or any complex web design topics. Instead, you can get the exact font you want in a few clicks. When you're done customizing your font, you can turn your attention to generating leads from the beautiful content you're creating.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in August 2020 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.