What I look for in typeface licenses

Summary

Typeface licenses 05 August 2025 I can’t remember the last time I undertook a design project where we didn’t use a commercial typeface. I often recommend these to clients because: The world of commercial typefaces is broad and it opens up a range of high-quality options for a project Using a commercial typeface is an easy way to level-up a design (though it won’t fix a bad design) Supporting independent foundries is important There’s no judgement on open source typefaces – I’m often pairing open source and commercial typefaces together. Licenses I’ve sourced typefaces from many different foundries over the years. The licensing terms vary by foundry: some are open and permissible, others are restrictive and trickier to work with. It’s normal and reasonable for each foundry to have its own terms but there are practical considerations that come into play when recommending a typeface/foundry. Here are some of the factors that I consider. Easy to find, clear terms Commercial Type’s EULA is a great example of this: legal text on the left, plain-language on the right. Lots of foundries rely on FAQs to clarify terms. This works to an extent but, assuming they cover the query you have, it’s often not possible to search the page for content inside accordions (e.g. [cmd] + [f] won’t find the content if it’s collapsed). Shareable carts I pass the licensing cost to my clients, usually getting them to purchase the licenses themselves. From a client perspective, this process can feel incredibly complex, so I’ve frequently recorded screencasts showing them exactly what to do. Foundries that allow a cart to be shared make this process much easier. Here’s an example from Klim: Practical payment terms A couple of years ago, a well-known foundry quietly changed their web font license from a one-time payment to requiring an annual renewal. The change went unannounced, wasn’t referenced at any point in their checkout flow, and I only stumbled across it by accident when looking through th...