FontMaker vs Prototypo

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.

Prototypo is an online app for designing typefaces from four parametric starting points: Prototypo Fell, Prototypo Grotesk, Prototypo Elzevir, and Spectral. Its controls cover more than thirty characteristics, including thickness, aperture, and roundness, with separate adjustments for serif details. Users can change individual letters or groups of letters, then export fonts in OTF format for installation on macOS, Windows, or Linux, or display them in a browser. A Chrome extension previews font changes on websites, and fonts can be sent to Glyphr Studio for further editing. Prototypo supports the Latin Extended 3 glyph set, but has no cursive templates and does not let users import their own fonts to modify. The maker says exported fonts use a CC0 license, permitting commercial use without permission. The free plan has limited parameter range and one week of support; Pro is $8.25 per month and Team is $49.96 per month. The FAQ lists a free trial and requires an up-to-date Chrome, Firefox, or Opera browser.