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Typography is an essential aspect of digital art. Graphic designers often joke that choosing a font can take longer than the actual design. Thankfully, adding fonts in Adobe Illustrator is easy!

My name is Elianna. I have a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration and have used Adobe Illustrator for over six years in my academic and professional career. As an illustrator and art director, I have been working with fonts in Illustrator to suit the needs of various clients and work projects. 

In this post, I will show you how to add fonts into Adobe Illustrator so you can design more, and troubleshoot less. 

Let’s get into it! 

Key Takeaways

  • You can find custom fonts to add to Adobe Illustrator online, or with Adobe Fonts.
  • Make sure to double-check the licensing agreements on all fonts you download from the internet.
  • Adobe Fonts is a service that comes with your Creative Cloud Subscription and gives you access to a license-free font library.

Where to Find Fonts for Adobe Illustrator

There are many places on the internet where you can find custom fonts to add to Adobe Illustrator. If you have an Adobe subscription, Adobe Font is a great option. Or you can use other font websites like DAfont, where fonts are user-created and uploaded. 

Keep in mind that even if a font is “free” you may not be able to use it for commercial work without a license. Free font websites will often have disclaimers from the creators stating the intended uses for their fonts. Make sure to check the permissions set by a font creator when downloading custom material.

Adobe Fonts 

Adobe Fonts is a service that exists within the Adobe Creative Cloud. It comprises of font library that is free from licensing and can be downloaded directly from all of your creative cloud apps. Adobe Fonts comes with a creative cloud subscription.

How to Add Fonts to Adobe Illustrator 

Sometimes Adobe Fonts may not have a font in the style you are looking for. If you have downloaded a font from another website you can still use it in Illustrator.

Here’s how: 

  • Step 1: Find a font that you would like to download. I’m downloading this font from Dafont.com.
  • Step 2: Go to your Downloads folder, and find the font file 
  • Step 3: Click on your font file and click Download. If you’re using Mac, you can add the font to your font book. 
  • Step 4: Open Adobe Illustrator. 
  • Step 5: Search your font name in the font library. You will see it is now downloaded. 

Final Thoughts

Adding custom fonts in Adobe Illustrator is easy by using Adobe Fonts or downloading them directly to your device. Having a large selection of fonts to choose from can help give you a choice in your design process. Experiment with your typography and a variety of fonts for the best results. 

Always remember when downloading fonts from websites online to check their licensing agreements. Also check if Adobe Fonts comes with your Creative Cloud Subscription, as it includes a font library that is licensing-free. 

What font is your favorite to use in Adobe Illustrator? Let me know in the comments below!