Adding Custom Fonts to Use with Existing Programs and Applications

No matter how many fonts are included with an application, there are times when a proprietary or additional font is desired.  Whether the additional font is for a specific project, time of year or simply a new font to represent a brand, installing new fonts is quick and easy.  This post describes how to install and use an additional font once the font has been chosen.  NOTE:  This post is provided for informational purposes only.  The acceptable use of fonts should be verified before using fonts for business or commercial purposes.

Once a font has been chosen, download the font files.  If the font files are being downloaded from a website, be sure to use a trusted website or one recommended by a trusted colleague.  When downloading the font files, it is easiest to download them to the desktop so they are easy to find and copy.  If the files download as a zip file, unzip them before copying them.

Once the font files have been downloaded, open Windows Explorer.

• In Windows 10 or on the Desktop screen of Windows 8.1, click the folder icon in the taskbar to open the "This PC" folder
• In Windows 7, right click on the start button and select "Windows Explorer"

Navigate to the fonts folder.

• Double click the C: drive (the most common local disk drive letter, if yours differs, click the letter for the corresponding local disk drive)
• Double click the Windows folder
• Double click the Fonts folder to display all fonts

Drag and drop the files from the desktop into the Windows Font folder.  Be sure to copy only files over to the Windows Font folder.  Do not copy a folder into the Windows Font folder as this will not work.  In this example the font "Santa's Sleigh" was downloaded and copied to the Windows Font folder.

Open an application to verify the font is accessible.  If the application was open when the font files were copied to the Windows Font folder, close and re-open the application so the new font is listed in the list of available fonts.

Once the new font is selected it can be used like any other font.

Installing a new font is quick and easy while choosing the perfect font can take some time considering the tens of thousands of available fonts.  Whatever the reason for wanting additional fonts, it is important to get them from trusted sources since it requires copying files into a system folder on the local device.  Once a font is installed, most local programs and applications will be able to access and use the additional font the same way any font is used.

As always, having choices is best, especially when implementing them takes only a few minutes!

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