Add Font in Microsoft Word

The right font can make your document stand out. Windows comes packed with a variety of fonts, but they are just the tip of the font iceberg. There are hundreds of thousands of fonts available for download online, so there's always the chance that the perfect font for your project is just a few clicks away. Once you've found the right font, you can install and use it with just a few clicks.

Steps

Windows

  1. Download the font files from a trusted website. Fonts are a common way to transmit viruses, so take care to only download fonts from trusted sources. Avoid any fonts that come in EXE format. Fonts typically come packed into ZIP files, or in TTF or OTF format. A few of the more popular font sites include:
    • dafont.com
    • fontspace.com
    • fontsquirrel.com
    • 1001freefonts.com
  2. Extract the downloaded font files (if necessary). If the font files came in ZIP format, you'll need to extract them before you can install and use them. To extract a ZIP file, right-click on it and select "Extract All." This will create a new folder containing the files that were packed in the ZIP file.
    • The files in the ZIP file should be TTF or OTF format. These are the two font formats supported by Windows. Don't install any fonts that come in EXE format.
  3. Open the folder containing your new font files. Find the folder that contains your newly-downloaded and extracted files. Leave this window open for now.
  4. Open the Control Panel. You can install fonts through the Control Panel. There are various ways to open this, depending on your version of Windows:
    • Windows 7, Vista, XP - Click the Start menu and select "Control Panel."
    • Windows 10, 8.1 - Right-click the Start button and select "Control Panel."
    • Windows 8 - Press ⊞ Win+X and select "Control Panel."
  5. Switch to an icon view. If your Control Panel is sorted by Category, you'll want to switch it to either Small or Large Icons. This will make it easier to find the Fonts folder. Click the "View by" menu in the upper-right corner and select one of the icon options.
  6. Open the "Fonts" option. This will open a window displaying all of your installed fonts.
  7. Drag the font file into the Fonts window. Drag the TTF or OTF file into the Fonts window to install the new font. You may be prompted to enter the administrator password if you don't have admin access. It may take a moment to copy. You can verify that it was installed by finding it in the list of fonts in the Fonts window.
    • Your font may come with more than one font file. This is common for different styles, such as a bold version and italic version. Make sure that you drag all of the included OTF or TTF files into the Fonts window.
  8. Launch Word and select your new font. You'll be able to find your new font using the Font menu in Word. The fonts are listed alphabetically.
  9. Embed your font if you want to share the document. Installing a new font will make it display and print properly on your own computer, but if you share the document with someone else, they won't be able to see your fonts unless they have them installed as well. You can solve this by embedding your font files into your Word document. With the fonts embedded, anyone who opens it will be able to see the correct fonts. This will increase the file size, since the fonts will be included with the document.[1]
    • Click the File menu in Word and select "Options."
    • Click the "Save" tab in the Options menu.
    • Check the "Embed fonts in this file" option. Make sure your current document is selected from the drop-down menu.
    • Decide if you want to only embed the characters you use. This can reduce the size of the file, especially if you only use a few characters from the special font.
    • Save and share your document as normal. The fonts will be automatically embedded when the document is saved.

Mac

  1. Find the font that you want to download. There are tons of sites that host font files that you can download for free (for home use). OS X supports both OTF and TTF font formats, which are two of the most common. Many fonts will come packed into a ZIP file. Some of the more popular font sites include:
    • dafont.com
    • fontspace.com
    • fontsquirrel.com
    • 1001freefonts.com
  2. Extract the font files (if contained in a ZIP file). Some fonts will come packed in a ZIP file, especially if there are multiple versions. Double-click the ZIP file to open it and then drag the fonts inside onto your desktop or into another folder.
  3. Double-click the font file that you want to install. This will open the font into a preview window, where you can see how it looks in various sizes.
  4. Click "Install Font" to add the font to your system. You will now be able to select it in any program that allows you to change fonts.[2]
  5. Open Word and select your new font. You'll be able to find it in the Fonts menu. The fonts are listed alphabetically.
  6. Create a PDF file if you need to embed the fonts. Word for Mac does not allow you to embed fonts into Word documents like the Windows version does. If you need to share the document with others and want to preserve the extra fonts you added, you'll need to save the document as a PDF file. This will prevent anyone from editing it, but will also preserve your custom fonts.
    • In the Save As menu, select "PDF as the file type to save the document as a PDF.


Tips

  • After a font is installed, it will be available in all Microsoft Office programs.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ https://blogs.office.com/2015/07/06/document-font-embedding-demystified/
  2. ↑ http://osxdaily.com/2011/10/03/installing-removing-fonts-in-mac-os-x/
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