Fontself vs Calligraphr vs Typegrove: Which Is Better?

Three tools come up over and over when designers ask "what should I use to make a font?" — Fontself, Calligraphr, and Typegrove. They're often lumped together, but they're actually solving slightly different problems for slightly different people.

This is a real comparison, not a sponsored roundup. We use all three. Below: feature breakdown, pricing, ease of use, and a clear answer to the question you actually came here for — which one is best for me?

The 30-second answer

• Fontself if you live in Adobe Illustrator and have vector artwork already.
• Calligraphr if you want a printable template and don't mind a slightly dated UI.
• Typegrove if you want the fastest browser workflow for drawings, handwriting, or images — and you don't want to install anything.

For the longer version (and the comparison table), keep going.

What each tool actually is

Fontself

A plugin for Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. You draw your letters as vector shapes inside Adobe, select them, and Fontself bundles them into a font. It's powerful and pro-grade — but it lives entirely inside Adobe.

Calligraphr

A long-standing web app for handwriting fonts. The classic flow: print their template, fill it out by hand, scan or photograph it, upload it back to Calligraphr, and download your font. Mature, reliable, opinionated about templates.

Typegrove

A modern browser-based font generator. Drag in drawings, handwriting, images, or SVGs; auto-vectorize; assign characters; export. Works on mobile and desktop, no install, no Adobe required.

Feature comparison

Ease of use breakdown

Fontself: low friction if you're already in Adobe

If you live in Illustrator, Fontself is dead-simple — you select your letters, click "make font," done. If you don't already have Adobe and a comfortable Illustrator workflow, the friction is enormous: install Adobe, learn Illustrator, install the plugin, then make your font.

Calligraphr: low friction if you like the template approach

Calligraphr's template flow is foolproof. Print, write, scan, upload. That's it. The downside: it's only the template approach. If you have existing artwork or want to skip the printer step, you're fighting the tool.

Typegrove: low friction if you want browser + drag-and-drop

Open the site, drag in your files (any combination of drawings, handwriting photos, SVGs), assign characters, export. No template, no install, no Adobe. The mental model is closest to "modern design app" — if you've used Figma or Canva, you'll be at home.

Pricing comparison

Fontself

One-time license per Adobe app (Illustrator or Photoshop). No subscription, but you also need an active Adobe Creative Cloud subscription to use it. Total cost over a year is significantly higher than the others once you factor in Adobe.

Calligraphr

Free tier supports up to 75 characters — enough for a basic alphabet. Pro is a low monthly subscription that unlocks the full character set, ligatures, and advanced OpenType features.

Typegrove

Free tier with full feature access (vectorization, color fonts, OTF export) and a limit on the number of saved projects. Pro is a monthly subscription that lifts the project limit and adds AI character recognition, WOFF/WOFF2 export, and advanced color font controls.

Best use cases per tool

Use Fontself if…

• You're a professional type designer or brand designer
• You already pay for Adobe Creative Cloud
• You want full control over OpenType features (ligatures, alternates, stylistic sets)
• You design fonts from vector artwork, not handwriting or photos

Use Calligraphr if…

• You specifically want to make a handwriting font
• You like the printable-template workflow
• You only need a single-color, single-style font
• You don't care about modern UI

Use Typegrove if…

• You're a creator (illustrator, hand-letterer, brand designer, content creator)
• You want to work in a browser, on any device
• Your source material is a mix of drawings, handwriting, images, and SVGs
• You want color font support out of the box
• You don't want to install anything or pay for Adobe

The clear winner depends on you

For most people reading this — creators, designers without Adobe, anyone working on iPad or phone — Typegrove is going to be the best fit. It's modern, fast, browser-based, and accepts whatever input you have.

If you're an Adobe-native pro, Fontself is excellent. If you want to sit down at a kitchen table with a printed template and a black pen, Calligraphr is still the most opinionated option for that exact ritual.

Want to actually try this?

Pick the workflow that matches what you've got:

• You have handwriting on paper → turn handwriting into a font
• You have drawings (paper or iPad) → create a font from your drawings
• You have an existing image → make a font from an image
• You want a wider survey first → best AI font generators