We often search for answers to life’s questions ourselves. Questions about our fonts, on the other hand, are answered below, and we are happy to answer the really tricky ones directly.
Fontwerk is a label offering exclusive fonts and a range of services for brands, agencies and designers looking for typographic expertise and leading edge font technology.
A somewhat more detailed description of what and who we are can be found on the About page.
We are an international network of design and engineering experts.
You can find out more about the faces behind the fonts on our Team page.
Our founder Ivo Gabrowitsch, grew up near the gates of a large mill (German = Walzwerk). He always had the greatest respect for the huge workforce (which also included many of his relatives) who worked so hard in the factory. He regards type design as, on the one hand, arduous and taxing but on the other an intellectual and delicate craft, so the name Fontwerk is a tribute to both the work that goes into type design and a little nod to the labor and hard work that took place inside the factory.
But type design isn’t just about hard work or manual and technical skills, it is also a combination of creativity and artistic expression. The design of a typeface and the interplay of its characters is also a work of art (Kunstwerk).
No other word combines hard and creative work such as the German expression ‘Werk’. And in Fontwerk, it is exactly that special combination of work that goes into both our Fonts and Services.
A good name also always gets extra bonus points when it looks great on the page no matter which font it is set in. We also think a little reference to German engineering goes a long way too ;)
Yes. We were a little inspired by the trend of upcycling and adopted the name from the German-language blog about typographical and design topics, which was run by our founder Ivo Gabrowitsch. It still lives on today (partly): ivo.berlin.
The name FontWerk was also used by Monika Bartels. Monika is a highly regarded and sought after Type Technology Expert, especially in the area of TrueType hinting. We have, of course, received her blessing to use the name exclusively.
When should I use ‘Typeface vs ‘Font’? And what do they actually mean? These terms have become interchangeable for many and it can be confusing to work out what to use when. In essence, a Typeface is what you see (the design) and the Font is what you use (computer files or metal blocks in the past).
The word ‘Font’ originally came from the French word ‘fonte’ which meant melting or pouring. Back in the early days of manual printing, each page was set in a block with metal letters, ink was then rolled over the block and it then pressed onto paper. Each page had to be individually laid out in a block, the ‘Typeface’ was the design, while the ‘Fonts’ back then were the whole set of metal blocks that were associated with the design (one size was one font, e.g. 20pt).
Today, ‘Font’ refers to the digital files and includes all characters and sizes. This font software contains the outline of the characters, information on its spacing (distribution of horizontal space on both sides of each character in a font), kerning (horizontal space between individual pairs of letters), screen display (hinting) or OpenType layout features (which consist of fractions, small caps, ligatures, different sets of digits or alternative characters and much more). Fonts are available in various formats, e.g. .otf and .woff2.
A ‘Weight’ (also called Style) is a variant of a typeface, for example italic or bold, usually each in its own font. A ‘Family’ is a related set of typefaces that share certain design features. A small family like Romaine™ for instance, consists of the two weights Regular and Bold as well as corresponding Italics, so in this case it would have four styles that come in one font each.
We have to admit that sometimes we use the term font when it would be more appropriate to use typeface or weight. But in favor of more fluent reading and general understanding, we allow ourselves this freedom. After all, Fontwerk is not a scientific platform, but a place that should inspire a love for type and typography.
A Superfamily is a collection made up of different styles, designed to work together in perfect harmony. It is formed from subfamilies with a similar appearance, but the members are from different categories (e.g. sans and serif).
From a purely typographical point of view, optical sizes (e.g. Micro and Poster) do not fall under this definition, but from a practical point of view we consider the term superfamily to be just as useful here and also designate collections such as Case™ (with ‘Normal’, Text and Micro), Nice™ (with Poster, Headline, Text and Micro), Pangea® (with ‘Normal’ and Text) or McQueen™ (with ‘Normal’ and Grotesk) accordingly.
Superfamilies are also known as a font system or type system, and more recently, they are often referred to as a collection. Because we are convinced that some font-theoretical issues are increasingly taking a back seat in practice, we are also gradually switching to the term Collection for both “real” superfamilies and those consisting of optical sizes.
Not enough! So far, we offer 556 single weights, 24 families and five Collections.
Our 20 Designers come from six different countries: Germany (14), Switzerland (2), Italy (1), the Netherlands (1), South Korea (1) and the United States (1).
Great that you ask! It goes without saying that the quality and interplay of the glyphs remain crucial, but we also attach huge importance to the characters behind it. Our designers share our values, our passion and positive craziness.
We are always on the hunt for new talent and would be delighted to receive your submission. Find out more here.
A panel of type design and marketing experts choses the typefaces. Your submission will be assessed by this committee, taking into account various criteria and you will receive feedback within a few days. To read more about our submission process, head to our Become a Fontwerk Designer page.
Erm, absolutely! That is in fact a major focus and something we love to do. Have a look at our Service page or get in touch directly.
We love to share our knowledge. At the moment, we’re afraid we can’t offer internships but do please follow us on social media (Instagram, LinkedIn, X) and sign up to our Newsletter to keep up to date with what we’re doing.
As we operate as a decentralized network, and most of us work from home, there’s honestly not too much exciting stuff to see here. But we would like to get to know you, e.g. for a coffee in Prenzlauer Berg or Pankow, just let us know in advance. There is also a high probability of meeting us at local Berlin type and design events such as the Typostammtisch.
Our logo isn’t actually based on an existing font but is our own specially designed logotype. The new development and modification of logos is also part of our comprehensive Services that we offer.
Fontwerk typefaces are available exclusively from us. Most types of font licenses can be purchased through this site. Should you need something a bit more specific or special we can help you with custom jobs and enterprise solutions offline.
We accept Visa, Mastercard, and PayPal. In exceptional cases, companies may contact us with a purchase order, to arrange payment by invoice.
At the moment, all prices are shown in Euros €. We plan to extend this to also show US-$ prices in the future.
By email yes, unfortunately we cannot take orders by telephone yet. The quickest way is online through our webshop.
Hell, yes! Please contact us directly.
Yes, all you need to do is enter the separate Licensee Address when you order. This way, you can save your customer or client the license work and bill directly. Please make sure that you have the proper license for your own use. If you’re using the full version of the fonts then you will need your own license. But if you’re only using the slightly reduced versions for the mock-up or presentation phase, then you can use the free Trial license for this purpose.
Fontwerk.com offers Fontwerk typefaces exclusively – from Case™ to West™. If you can’t find what you’re looking for, maybe you are not searching for a font from our library. Try FontsInUse.com or Identifont.com for instance, where you can find most commercially available fonts. If you still can’t find what you’re looking for, feel free to contact us.
Isn’t Value Added Tax-Identification Number a nice word? So many letters … um, what was the question again?
Our webshop is connected to an EU service that compares your address data with that of the VAT ID. Both addresses must match, otherwise the number will be rejected by the external service. In very rare cases, the API “gets lost”. So if you are sure that you have not made a typo or something similar, please get in touch with us.
Absolutely, that’s exactly what our Trial Fonts are for. They are special test fonts with a slightly reduced character set (just the currency symbols are missing), but otherwise have full functionality. There is no time limit on using them.
To find out more and how to download them easily, head to the Free Trial Fonts page.
Normally, no you don’t. As long as you only design drafts that are not published (this includes printing, publishing on the web or as an app for example) and only present them in draft form to your client. In this case, the Trial License will suffice. If the client actually uses the fonts, your client will need to purchase a license.
If you need the full versions of the fonts for the presentation or pitch phase, then you will need to purchase at least one Base License.
Yes, our complete font library is available as variable fonts. From Pangea® to Case™ to Supermarker™ – just purchase the most complete package and the variable fonts are included. For web applications, fonts are supplied in .woff2 format, for all others in .ttf format.
Since 2022, we have been pursuing an increasingly variable-first approach, which has led us to creating innovative design solutions such as Neue DIN™ or Push™ for instance.
We also offer variable fonts as a custom solution for our clients’ typefaces. Please contact us to find out more.
As with most software, fonts are licensed to individuals and organizations. The End User License Agreement (EULA) defines the terms and provisions for use of the font software. The EULA also indicates the number of concurrent users the fonts may be used by as well as the number of monthly web pageviews and social media followers. You need to agree to the EULA before downloading the fonts you are ordering. You can find our EULA here.
You don’t have to, but you should understand what it says. Reading can contribute to this. But we understand that you may not enjoy it. That is why we have summarized the meaning of the individual sections in brief sentences under this link.
The decisive parameter for our licenses is the number of users that work with the fonts. If you purchase our Base License, you can install the font for use in the desktop (print) area for use in applications such as Adobe Creative Suite, Figma or MS Office on an unlimited number of computers and devices, as long as only you and you alone work with the fonts.
However, if another user is added, a License for 2 users must be purchased. If you have more than 100 additional users, we are happy to issue an individual license, which can be requested by email.
There are no limits to the location that the font can be used in, but the Licensee must be the same legal entity. For example, if there are 14 people working at the ‘Incredible Design Company’ they can all work under the same 14 Users License. If their sister organizations the ‘Incredible Marketing Ltd.’ and the ‘Incredible Innovation Inc.’ want to use the fonts, then they will need a separate license. Individual agreements can be requested via email.
Webfonts are included in our Base License. They are licensed by the average monthly pageviews (10,000 included), regardless of the number of domains or bandwidth. The total of all pageviews of your web projects applies. In addition to websites, this also includes dynamic web ads and email marketing. Licenses for up to 10,000,000 pageviews per month can be purchased online. Enterprise licensing beyond that level is negotiable on a case-by-case basis.
No, our webfont licenses are all perpetual, with a one-time fee for use within a defined scope. You purchase a license, not a subscription, and only need to upgrade if the number of pageviews per month is consistently higher than the license allows.
Licenses for the use of fonts on social media are part of our Base License. This includes static images on channels such as Instagram or LinkedIn. They are calculated according to the number of followers of the licensee’s largest channel (10,000 included). Online licenses can be purchased for up to 1,000,000 followers. Enterprise licensing beyond that level is negotiable on a case-by-case basis.
Important: For video posts on social media channels that show the fonts, an additional “Audio-Visual License” is required.
Audio-Visual Licenses for use in cinema, TV, streaming service productions, commercials and similar audio-visual formats are calculated according to the total number of viewers; Audio-Visual Licenses for use in video postings on internet portals and social media channels such as YouTube, Instagram. TikTok etc. are calculated according to the total number of views. Online licenses can be purchased for up to 1,000,000 viewers or views. Additional viewer numbers will require an Enterprise license, just contact us by email to purchase one.
App licenses are calculated according to the total number of downloads or installations of all of your app projects (titles). Online licenses can be purchased for up to 1,000,000 downloads or installations. Additional downloads/installations require an Enterprise License, which can be requested by email.
Updates to the app are covered by the license as long as the number of downloads or installations is within the agreed framework and the content or scope of the app does not change significantly (more than 10%). Mobile and native apps for all platforms and operating systems are considered apps.
EBook licenses are covered by the Desktop (Print) type of use. They are therefore part of our Base License and are licensed according to the number of users involved in the production of such digital publications. Our Base License covers 1 user.
Use on Web-to-Print Servers is not part of our default Licenses and will require an Enterprise License, which can be requested by email. Such licenses are calculated by the average monthly number of pageviews recorded by the web-to-print platform, regardless of the number of servers. Part of the agreement for use for web-to-print servers is also the naming of the font name and Fontwerk as well as a link in the imprint, colophon or other comparable places of the platform.
Please contact us for a License Extension and we will issue this offline.
In accordance with our provisions of the EULA under §3.6.1, you may transfer all your rights to use the fonts to another person or legal entity provided that the transferee accepts and agrees in writing (with copy to us) to be bound by all the terms and conditions of this agreement, and you destroy all copies of the fonts.
We grant universities, schools and other educational institutions a 50% discount on the entire range. If you represent an educational institution or work as a teacher, activate the “Educational Discount 50%” button before selecting the product. You will then see the reduced net prices.
We offer students, pupils and trainees as well as teachers a 50% discount on the entire range. If you are currently in training or teaching, activate the “Educational Discount 50%” button before selecting products. You will then see the reduced net prices.
We trust you, so you do not have to show or upload your student ID or similar before purchasing. However, we reserve the right to request proof of your status if we have reasonable doubts.
Best of all: the license remains valid indefinitely, even once you graduate or leave education!
No. You are not allowed to modify, adapt, translate, reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, or alter your licensed fonts, unless you have the prior written consent of Fontwerk GmbH. So please get in touch.
What you can do is convert the type to outlines and customize it for your own work, for example when designing a custom headline. Please see the EULA that came with the font software for specific information about modifications.
No, you are not allowed to modify, adapt, translate, reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, or alter your licensed fonts, unless you have the prior written consent of Fontwerk GmbH. This includes conversions into other formats. So please get in touch.
Please see the EULA that came with the font software for specific information about modifications.
A separate license is required for the use of the typefaces in word marks (logos), which can be requested by email. This license is subject to a fee for figurative and word marks of larger organizations or for those that are to be or are registered as trademarks on a national or international level. For individuals and smaller organizations, such a license can also be arranged free of charge.
In the first instance, please contact us, if you intend to use the fonts in a logo.
Our EULA states that ‘We grant the Licensee a non-exclusive license […] to use the Font Software …’. This just means that you shouldn’t be surprised if other people use the same typeface.
If you would rather have your own custom font, we can help by designing one for you. Please get in touch if you want to find out more about this service.
There are a few things to note here. For one, all persons who edit such documents are considered users within the definition of our license agreement. This means that a license must be purchased for the corresponding number of people.
Secondly, technical aspects must also be taken into account. Embedding in Office documents is only reliably recommended with .ttf fonts. These are available on request for a small fee. The fonts must also be prepared for this purpose so that this is technically possible (for the technology freaks: the “Font Embedding bit” must be set accordingly in the OS/2 table).
Last but not least, the Office file should have been created on a Windows computer. Although this is supposed to work just as reliably on a Mac, a possible source of error cannot be ruled out here.
All our typefaces are provided in static .otf (OpenType fonts with PostScript outlines; usually used for desktop, social media, apps, audio-visual, ebooks, and hardware) and .woff2 (Web Open Font Format 2.0; OpenType fonts for the use on the web) formats. Most of the formats which people request such as .eot, .svg, .ttf or .woff are outdated and not necessary anymore today. However, we can generate those files in case they are really needed but there will be a fee for creating these formats so please get in touch.
Our typefaces are also available as variable fonts. From Pangea® to McQueen™ to Push™ – just purchase the most complete package and the variable fonts are included. For web applications, fonts are supplied in .woff2 format, for all others in .ttf format (OpenType fonts with TrueType outlines).
No, you really don’t. From experience, we know that this sort of requirement often stems from an old habit or in a case where the old file formats are required because of old hardware. If this is the case or if you are unable to put old habits to rest, we will of course still be happy to produce the formats on request, but please note there will be a fee for this.
Variable Fonts are the most exciting development in font technology in recent years. The OpenType Specification 1.8 opened up the possibility to continuously change and alter type characteristics such as weights, widths, x-height, contrast, serifs, the appearance of the i-dots … the opportunities are truly endless.
Variable Fonts are the perfect partner for use in responsive digital projects, as the fonts adapt and respond. If you have no experience with this type of font yet, just try out our trial fonts. There is a good chance that you will share our enthusiasm for this afterwards.
All of our typefaces support all Latin-based European languages such as English, French, Spanish, German, Czech, Polish and Turkish, a few even support Vietnamese. Some families such as Ika™, Change™, Case™ or Pangea® also support Greek and Cyrillic (e.g. Russian, Bulgarian). Pangea also includes support for Hebrew and Arabic; Pangea, Case and Neue DIN™ also support Latin-based African languages. When in doubt, check the “Languages” section on the family page of each font or download the PDF specimen.
Our fonts already include extended language support. But if you need further languages or script systems that are not included, do get in touch and we can make custom fonts for you. We can design many extensions in-house and work together with our international long-term partners to make sure we can provide anything from Cyrillic and Greek to Hebrew, Arabic, and Thai and even Chinese, Japanese, Korean (CJK), and Devanagari. More often than not, it will actually be less expensive than you think.
The DIN standard DIN 91379 is a standard that will require German authorities and organizations to recognize and machine-read a normative subset of the Latin Unicode character set in the exchange of data between authorities or with citizens and businesses. This means that the names of people (İlkay Gündoğan, Pippi Långstrump, Lech Wałęsa, …) and companies (Kärcher, İşbank, Kværner, …) will be securely processed electronically and spelled correctly throughout Europe.
Pangea® and Neue DIN™ comply with this standard, which supports around 230 characters and 37 languages more than our already extensive minimum character set. However, we can promptly add the required characters to all our typefaces if required. Please contact us for a quote. We’d be delighted to help!
Our webfonts come in Web Open Font Format .woff2 which is supported by all relevant browsers. Because webfonts work using basic CSS, using them is pretty straightforward. If you are even vaguely familiar with CSS you can make them work on your website. There are many good tutorials available with simple instructions that make it easy, for instance from the fine folks from A List Apart.
For privacy reasons, we can’t tell you your password, but we can help you reset it to something new. Simply visit the login page, click the link “Password forgotten“, and enter your email address you use with Fontwerk. We’ll send you an email that will help you reset your password.
If you have enjoyed the convenience of a guest checkout and have not yet created an account, you can still access your previously licensed fonts and invoices: If you click on the “Create new account” link and then do this with the email address you used previously, the orders you created as a guest will be linked to the new account and you can access all the purchases you have made in your order history.