Adobe Typekit for designers
Adobe Typekit for designers
Find the perfect font for your designs
Adobe Creative Cloud includes a new way to access and design with fonts in your creative
work—Typekit desktop fonts. You can now sync fonts to your desktop and use those fonts
locally in any application. Choose from a growing library of more than 1,000 fonts, starting
with over 200 font families from major foundries such as Adobe, URW++, FontFont,
ParaType, and more.
About Typekit
Find the perfect font for
your designs
This guide describes Adobe
Typekit desktop fonts and how
they can be used by designers.
Current offerings include fonts
from the following foundries:
•Adobe
•Dada Studio
•Dalton Maag
•exljbris Font Foundry
•FontFont
•Just Another Foundry
•Mark Simonson Studio
Typekit was founded in 2008 by some of the industry’s most experienced designers and developers, and
was acquired by Adobe in 2011. Adobe Typekit is a subscription service that provides access to a library
of thousands of premium fonts from top commercial foundries and independent type designers. Thanks
to the Typekit web font service, text content on millions of websites can retain beautiful design without
losing important searchability.
Now, Typekit (https://typekit.com) is expanding its offerings to include Typekit desktop fonts, allowing
you to keep your font selection consistent across print and web projects.
Introducing Typekit desktop fonts
As part of your Creative Cloud membership, you can access Typekit fonts for the desktop and web in a
single membership. There’s no installer, no need for a font management program; you can immediately
start using the selected fonts in all of your applications that support desktop fonts, including Adobe
InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, and other desktop applications. In addition, both Illustrator CC and
InDesign CC offer direct access to Typekit desktop fonts right in their font menus, and InDesign finds
missing Typekit fonts for you when the file is opened and prompts you to sync them with a single click.
•Mozilla
•ParaType
•Positype
•Typefolio
•TypeTogether
•URW++
To explore Typekit fonts, first install the
Creative Cloud desktop app. Make sure
that file syncing is enabled from the panel
options, choose the Fonts pane from the
Creative Cloud app and click Browse Fonts
on Typekit.
Creative Cloud and Typekit: Finding the perfect font
From the Creative Cloud desktop app, select the Fonts option, and click Browse Fonts on Typekit.
On the Typekit site, you can refine your search by font classification (e.g., serif, sans serif, slab serif,
script, blackletter, monospaced, handwriting, decorative), or search for a font by name.
Each tile represents
a font family
Mark favorite
Available for web
Search by classification
Search by availability
for web or desktop use
Recommendations
Available for desktop
Search by properties
Browse the Typekit offerings and filter
your search by name, by foundry, and
by classification, such as sans serif, slab,
or decorative. Filter by properties such
as weight, width, and x-height. Expand
the initial list of 16 fonts by clicking
Load more fonts.
Load more fonts
Includes the minimum
characters necessary to
support each language.
You may need to enable
the “all characters” subset
in your kit for some
languages.
You can choose from fonts available for web use, desktop use, or web and desktop use, since both
are offered through Typekit. Take advantage of the Properties options to refine your search by
attributes such as classification, weight, width, x-height, and contrast.
To learn even more about a font family, click on a tile in the Browse Fonts window. Then, select a
tab to view Weights and Styles, Specimens, Type Tester, and Browser Samples.
Click the font family
tile to see more
details and learn
about the foundry.
In the Weights and Styles tab, view all of the members
of the font family. Click the Use Fonts button to sync
the font to your desktop.
Adobe Typekit for designers - Updated April 2014
2
You can view foundry information, classification, recommendations, and properties in all of the
detail screens. Click the Use Fonts button in any screen to sync the font to your desktop.
In the Type Tester tab, choose a style, and enter
your own text to view the text in that style.
To view the styles within the font family at multiple sizes, choose the Specimens tab.
In the Specimens tab, view the styles in the font family
at sizes from 9pt to 36pt. Choose from the style
pulldown menu to change the displayed style. To see a
more extensive display of specimen text, click the
Open expanded Web Font Specimen option.
Because different browsers render web fonts differently on various operating systems, Typekit
also provides a built-in preview option in the Browser Samples tab that allows you to choose a
font style, then select an operating system and cycle through the Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Opera,
and Internet Explorer browsers.
In the Browser Samples tab, preview how a web font
style would appear in multiple browsers on different
operating systems.
Once you’ve found the perfect font family to use on your desktop, select Use Fonts, then choose
Sync To Your Computer Using Creative Cloud, and click Done.
Choose how you want to use the chosen
font family—web, desktop, or both.
Adobe Typekit for designers - Updated April 2014
3
Synced fonts are automatically available for all of your desktop applications—not just those
available in Creative Cloud. You can use Typekit desktop fonts in non-Adobe tools such as Keynote
and Microsoft PowerPoint. This process is managed through the Creative Cloud desktop app as
long as your Creative Cloud membership is active. Fonts synced to your desktop through Creative
Cloud do not appear in font management software; they are managed thorugh the Creative Cloud
app. There is no change to your existing font management setup or font files organization.
Once you have selected fonts, Typekit makes
them available through the Creative Cloud app.
If you have syncing turned on, the fonts will then
be added to the font menus in all of your
applications that support desktop fonts.
Once the fonts are synced to your computer, a quick notification is displayed, indicating how many
fonts have been added.
You are notified that new fonts have
been added, and an update entry is
added to the Home pane of the
Creative Cloud application.
File Sync and desktop fonts
Typekit desktop fonts are immediately available in all of your applications.
If you are uploading large files
to Creative Cloud while you sync
Typekit desktop fonts, there may be
a slight delay in obtaining Typekit
desktop fonts until file upload is
completed.
Choose the added fonts from the font menu in
your application.
If you select a font that is already active on your system, you will receive an alert that the new font
cannot be added, due to a conflict.
Adobe Typekit for designers - Updated April 2014
4
About fonts for web design
Web fonts allow you to use
fonts that are not installed on the
viewer’s computer. With web fonts
the text scales up and down cleanly
with the browser zoom level, and
text content loads quickly. Also, the
text you create is searchable, and is
accessible for visitors who are visually impaired. The Adobe Typekit
service makes it easy to implement
web fonts using “kits.”
Web-safe fonts are a limited list
of fonts that are installed on most
Windows® and Mac computers, and
used as default fonts in the browser.
If the first choice (Helvetica, for
example) is not available on a visitor’s computer, the site will look
for the next font, such as Arial. This
results in differences in the appearance and layout of web page designs
on one user’s computer versus
another user’s computer.
If you select a font that is already installed conventionally
and activated by your system or a font management
program, you’re informed of the conflict. If you would
like to replace the version on your computer with the
one from Typekit, deactivate or uninstall the local
version using your font management software.
In the Creative Cloud app, choose Manage Fonts to view the fonts that are currently synced to your
desktop, add more fonts, and remove unneeded fonts. You can also download non-Latin fonts via
the Creative Cloud app.
To see all the fonts you’ve synced to your desktop
through Creative Cloud, click Manage Fonts In the
Creative Cloud app. You can also remove any fonts you
no longer plan to use; you can always add them back
later.
Because you can use Creative Cloud on two of your computers, your Typekit desktop font
selections are automatically synced to both computers.
Removing Typekit desktop fonts
Choose Manage Fonts in the Creative Cloud app, then click Remove to deactivate a Typekit
desktop font. You’ll receive an alert indicating that the font has been removed, and it will no longer
appear in the font menus of your applications.
Click Manage Fonts to view
your account information, see
a list of synced fonts, and
remove Typekit desktop fonts
you no longer need.
Typekit desktop font format
Adobe Typekit for designers - Updated April 2014
5
Typekit desktop fonts are OpenType® fonts—they are no different in appearance and design
functionality from any other fonts you have purchased conventionally. An OpenType font may be
in one of two formats: either TrueType Format (.TTF) or Compact Font Format (.OTF). Typekit will
serve either version, depending upon what the originating font foundry supplies to their customers.
Creative Cloud membership plan options
Typekit desktop fonts are available as part of complete Creative Cloud plans for individuals, teams,
and education, as well as for single-app Creative Cloud plans. Customers with free Creative Cloud
memberships have access to a limited subset of the desktop font library from Typekit.
Collaborating with Typekit desktop fonts
About Font Licensing
•Most existing end-user licensing
agreements (EULAs) for fonts
stipulate that you are not allowed
to send font files to third parties,
unless the recipient already has a
license to use the font.
•When both parties—for example,
a designer and a collaborator, or
a designer and a print service
provider—are Creative Cloud
members, this ensures that both
entities are in full compliance
with the EULA .
•The Typekit desktop fonts Terms
of Use (TOU) allows you to
embed fonts in PDFs, EPUBs, and
Adobe Digital Publishing Suite
projects.
•Typekit desktop fonts have a
single consistent TOU for all fonts
delivered through Typekit and
Creative Cloud—no more
managing separate agreements
from different font foundries
If you are using Typekit desktop fonts and collaborating with others who are not Creative
Cloud members, e.g., sharing a layered Photoshop file that contains text created with Typekit
desktop fonts, those collaborators will need to obtain the necessary fonts either by joining
Creative Cloud, subscribing to Typekit, or purchasing the fonts directly from font foundries. If
collaborators or clients already own the font, they just need to activate it with their font
management software. As an alternative, you can convert the text to outlines, but you will
sacrifice editability.
If your collaborator is a Typekit subscriber, but not a member of Creative Cloud, Typekit desktop
fonts are included with Typekit Portfolio, Performance, or Business plan subscriptions.
Usage and licensing for Typekit desktop fonts
You can use Typekit desktop fonts as you would use any active fonts on your system: designing
with them in InDesign page layouts or Illustrator projects, creating text effects or designing web
layouts in Photoshop images, producing Microsoft® Word documents, and more. They can be
embedded in PDFs, EPUBs, SWF files, and DPS projects, and can be converted to outlines. They can
also be used to create both personal and commercial content. However, just like conventionally
licensed fonts, they cannot be embedded in native or mobile applications (except DPS apps
created from InDesign), and you are not allowed to post them on the web for downloading.
As with conventionally licensed fonts, the licensing of Typekit desktop fonts does not permit
transferring font files to another user who does not have a license to use them. However, if you are
collaborating with someone who is not a Creative Cloud member, the collaborator can either join
Creative Cloud or subscribe to Typekit, and have access to all the same fonts you are using in
projects. They can also purchase the necessary fonts from type foundries.
Because of licensing restrictions, Typekit desktop fonts cannot be packaged by InDesign or
Illustrator. Any of your conventionally licensed fonts, however, will still be included in InDesign or
Illustrator packages. If you submit packaged files to a print provider who also subscribes to Creative
Cloud, they will have access to the Typekit desktop fonts service, and the same fonts.
Terms of use
Fonts obtained through the Typekit desktop fonts service are subject to the same licensing as other
Creative Cloud applications and services: You can install the desktop applications available in
Creative Cloud on your primary computer and one backup computer. So, if you have a Mac at
home and a PC at work, you can install your applications on both as long as they are not running at
the same time. See the end user license agreement for more information: http://www.adobe.com/
products/eulas/#creativecloud.
See http://www.adobe.com/products/creativecloud/buying-guide.html and https://typekit.com/plans
for pricing details.
If you end your membership or uninstall the Creative Cloud desktop app, Typekit desktop fonts will
be removed, and the fonts obtained through and managed by the Creative Cloud desktop app will
no longer be available to any of your applications.
Adobe Typekit for designers - Updated April 2014
6
Adobe Edge Web Fonts
Adobe Edge Web Fonts are
managed by the Typekit service
independently of Creative Cloud;
if you quit the Creative Cloud app,
any web fonts you have added to
Adobe Muse, Dreamweaver, Edge
Animate, Edge Reflow, or Edge
Code will still be available.
Adobe Edge Fonts are available only
in Adobe Muse, Dreamweaver, Edge
Animate, Edge Reflow, and Edge
Code; they are web-only, and will not
be available to other applications.
Using Typekit desktop fonts in Creative Cloud design applications
Typekit desktop fonts function exactly like any of your other fonts while you’re designing in
InDesign, Illustrator, or Photoshop. The fonts are available in your font menus, and can be used just
like the OpenType fonts you already know. In addition, Illustrator CC and InDesign CC offer
in-product integration with easy access to the Typekit font service, and more, described below.
InDesign CC
InDesign CC offers a convenient new way to browse and sort Typekit fonts, right in the font menu.
Quick access to Typekit desktop fonts:
Click the Add Fonts from Typekit button
in the Character pulldown in InDesign
CC to browse Typekit fonts.
Plus, new functionality searches the Typekit desktop fonts library (or fonts that are not active on
your system) when opening an InDesign file, reducing the chance of the “missing font” warning.
Missing Fonts: To replace missing fonts
with other fonts on your system, click
the Find Font button. To sync fonts from
Typekit, click the SyncFonts button.
InDesign CC will not package Typekit desktop fonts, but will continue to package conventionally
licensed fonts, except Chinese, Japanese, and Korean fonts, which have never been packaged in
InDesign. If a print provider requires that you package an InDesign CC file using Typekit desktop
fonts, the printer can obtain the necessary fonts through a Creative Cloud membership. If you have
provided an InDesign file as InDesign Markup Language (IDML) file to a print provider or client
using an older version of InDesign, the recipient will need to obtain the fonts either by joining
Creative Cloud, subscribing to the Typekit service or by purchasing the fonts directly from a font
foundry. You can convert the text to outlines, but you will sacrifice editability. Since Typekit
desktop fonts can be embedded in PDFs, this is the preferred format for print file submission.
Illustrator CC
Illustrator CC offers a convenient new way to browse and sort Typekit fonts, right in the font menu.
Quick access to Typekit desktop fonts:
Click the Add Fonts from Typekit button
in the Character pulldown in Illustrator
CC to browse Typekit fonts.
Illustrator CC will not package Typekit desktop fonts, but will continue to package conventionally
licensed fonts, except Chinese, Japanese, and Korean fonts, which have never been packaged by
Illustrator. Recipients who are Creative Cloud members or Typekit subscribers can easily obtain the
fonts through their online service. If you have backsaved for a recipient who is using an older
version of Illustrator, they can join Creative Cloud, get a Typekit subscription, or purchase the fonts
directly from a font foundry. You can convert text to outlines, but it will become vector shapes and
no longer be editable text. Since Typekit desktop fonts can be embedded in PDFs, this is the
preferred format for print file submission.
Adobe Typekit for designers - Updated April 2014
7
Photoshop CC
Creative Cloud offline
If the Creative Cloud app is running,
but there is no internet connection,
the Creative Cloud icon is grayed out.
If you send a Photoshop file containing live text which uses Typekit desktop fonts to someone who
does not have a Creative Cloud membership, the recipient will need to join Creative Cloud, get a
Typekit subscription, or purchase the font directly from a font foundry. You can convert the text to
a shape layer, but type will become vector shapes, and will no longer be editable text.
Tip: if the file is not intended to be edited by the recipient, save a copy as a Photoshop PDF
with no compression or resampling; any fonts will be embedded, and the file will display and
print correctly.
FAQ
Are Typekit desktop fonts the same as the Adobe Font Folio?
No. While some of the fonts from Adobe Font Folio are also available as part of Typekit desktop
fonts, each source also contains fonts that are unique to that product. Font Folio will still be
available for purchase, and its licensing will remain perpetual, as in the past.
Can I purchase the same fonts directly from font foundries?
Yes. Many of the same fonts are available as either conventionally-purchased fonts or through the
Typekit service; you can choose to acquire them either way.
Does the Creative Cloud desktop app need to be running in the background for
fonts to be active?
Yes. If you quit the Creative Cloud app or turn off file and font syncing, Typekit desktop fonts will be
temporarily unavailable on your system for InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop and other apps that
use desktop fonts. Dreamweaver, Adobe Muse, Edge Animate, Edge Reflow, and Edge Code use
the Typekit web fonts service, so those web fonts will still be available. Just relaunch the Creative
Cloud app or resume syncing to restore desktop font access.
Are Typekit desktop fonts still available if I have no internet connection?
Yes. Typekit desktop fonts that you have already synced will be available to all of your applications,
even if you are offline. However, you will not be able to manage fonts or browse for new fonts.
The Creative Cloud app is available even if you are offline. While you cannot browse or manage fonts
without an internet connection, Typekit desktop fonts are still active for your applications.
What happens to Typekit desktop fonts if I end my Creative Cloud
membership?
Typekit desktop fonts are available for desktop use as long as your Creative Cloud membership
remains active and the Creative Cloud desktop app is open. If your Creative Cloud subscription is
ended or the Creative Cloud desktop app is uninstalled, Typekit desktop fonts will be removed.
Adobe Typekit for designers - Updated April 2014
8
What happens to published EPUB files or Digital Publishing Suite apps that
contain Typekit Desktop fonts if I end my Creative Cloud membership?
Creative Cloud membership only manages the availability of the font on your desktop. There is no
impact on published EPUB files or DPS apps when a Creative Cloud membership is ended.
Can I create content for commercial use that includes Typekit desktop fonts?
Yes, both the Typekit Terms of Use (TOU) and the Adobe Type Library End User Licensing Agreement
(EULA) allow commercial use. No additional costs are needed to create and distribute commercial
content, such as PDFs, that use Typekit desktop fonts or fonts from the Adobe Type Library.
What if my print service provider requires me to send a packaged version of an
InDesign or Illustrator project?
The Typekit TOU do not allow copying or moving of font data that has been synced to your desktop
computer. Print service providers will be able to access desktop fonts through their own Creative Cloud
or Typekit subscriptions, or you can create a PDF to transfer for print output. Note that most existing
font license agreements—including those for the Adobe Type Library and Font Folio—do not allow
sending font files to a third party, unless the third party has a license to the same font.
Additional resources
Creative Cloud
Creative Cloud Help
http://adobe.ly/13H41yi
Community forum
http://adobe.ly/14ktBrd
Team blog
http://adobe.ly/1743nry
Creative Cloud on Twitter
https://twitter.com/creativecloud
Creative Cloud Status
http://status.creativecloud.com
Typekit
Typekit help
https://typekit.com/help
Typekit blog
http://blog.typekit.com
Typekit on Twitter
https://twitter.com/typekit
For more information
Product details:
www.adobe.com/creativecloud/
design
Other
Community forum
http://adobe.ly/174ZvbP
Understanding Web Fonts and Web Safe Fonts
http://adobe.ly/14Eweki
http://adobe.ly/12qCjDd
Adobe Systems Incorporated
345 Park Avenue
San Jose, CA 95110-2704
USA
www.adobe.com
Adobe, the Adobe logo, Adobe Muse, Creative Cloud, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, InDesign, Photoshop, and Typekit are either registered trademarks or
trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. OpenType is either a registered trademark or trademark of Microsoft
Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
© 2014 Adobe Systems Incorporated. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA.