Birdfont vs FontMaker

Birdfont is a font editor for creating vector graphics and exporting TTF, OTF and SVG fonts. It runs on Linux, Windows and macOS, and supports monochrome and color font formats. SVG files from Inkscape and Adobe Illustrator can be imported. The Open Source plan costs nothing and includes TTF and monochrome SVG fonts, kerning, ligature substitutions, alternates, SVG import and commercial use. The Freeware plan also costs nothing, and allows creation of free fonts under the SIL Open Font license. Commercial costs $4.99, paid once; it includes commercial fonts and one year of upgrades, while the purchased version continues to work afterward. Plus costs $9.99, paid once and adds color fonts, OpenType SVG, OTF, COLR/CPAL, single-stroke CNC fonts and variable fonts. Plus can export multiple static fonts from a variable master. Birdfont is also available through Steam. The app does not collect user data by default; crash reports are optional.

FontMaker turns handwriting, drawings, SVG files, and images into downloadable fonts. Users can photograph a handwritten page, draw characters with a mouse, finger, or stylus, or import files. It traces PNG, JPG, GIF, and WebP images into vector glyphs. Each glyph can be adjusted for baseline, size, and left and right spacing, with a live preview while typing. Export formats are OTF, TTF, and WOFF; the maker lists Photoshop, Word, Canva, Figma, and Procreate as compatible uses, and says WOFF is for websites. FontMaker says processing happens in the browser and that fonts and files are not uploaded to its servers. The free plan costs nothing and exports 26 lowercase or uppercase characters for personal use. FontMaker Pro Monthly costs $3.99 a month; FontMaker Pro for life costs $19.99, paid once. Both paid plans allow all characters and commercial use. FontMaker Studio is described as available for iPhone, iPad, and Android, with drawing, scanning, and TTF export.