Fontello vs FontForge

Fontello is a free web and API service for turning vector artwork into icon webfonts for websites. It can reduce glyph collections and combine symbols from multiple fonts into one generated file. The web app includes open-source artwork and accepts custom SVG icons or SVG fonts by drag and drop. Generated files arrive in a single ZIP archive, with a config.json file that can be imported later to continue editing. Its API can create a session from a font configuration, reopen that project, and download the resulting font; API sessions remain stored for 24 hours. Fontello lists Makefile, Node.js, Ruby, and Grunt integrations for workflow automation. It does not offer accounts for project storage, so archives should be kept in version control. Generated font icons are single-color. The code is MIT-licensed, while embedded fonts retain their own licenses.

FontForge is a free, open-source font editor for Windows, macOS and GNU/Linux. It creates and modifies PostScript, TrueType and OpenType fonts, saves fonts in outline formats and can generate bitmaps. Users can draw letter outlines, set glyph metrics and ligatures, and manage related metadata. FontForge supports OpenType and Apple Advanced Typography tables, including GPOS and GSUB features. Its font, bitmap and metrics views offer ways to inspect and edit typefaces. For automation, it includes Python and a legacy native scripting interpreter; Python-package plugins can add tools to the Font View or Char View menus. The command line accepts PostScript, TrueType, OpenType, Mac resource, bitmap and SVG files, among others listed. The project makes source code available under a libre license and permits redistribution with or without a fee. Releases are available for Windows, Mac and GNU+Linux, with developer builds also offered. The Mac installation requires OS X 10.15 or later. The Windows page warns that the launcher may upset some antivirus and firewall applications. For questions, the homepage directs users to consult documentation and web searches before using its mailing list.