Uncovering the Best Private Character Editor Alternatives for Custom Fonts
Private Character Editor (PCE) is a handy, built-in Windows tool that allows users to create up to 6,400 unique characters, perfect for expanding your font library with special letters or logos. While PCE is functional for basic character creation and editing, many users seek more robust, feature-rich, or cross-platform solutions. If you're looking to elevate your custom font design or simply explore other options, you'll be pleased to know there are several excellent Private Character Editor alternative applications available.
Top Private Character Editor Alternatives
Whether you're a professional typographer, a graphic designer, or just someone looking to personalize their digital workspace, these alternatives offer diverse capabilities to meet your font creation and editing needs.
FontForge
FontForge is a powerful, free, and open-source typeface editor developed by George Williams. Available for Mac, Windows, and Linux, it's an excellent Private Character Editor alternative for users seeking a comprehensive font maker with features like portability and web font support, all under the BSD license.
FontCreator
FontCreator is a commercial font editor for Windows that provides powerful drawing tools for creating and editing TrueType and OpenType fonts. It's a strong Private Character Editor alternative, especially for professionals, offering advanced capabilities like support for multiple font colors.
BirdFont
BirdFont is a versatile, free for personal use, and open-source font editor that allows you to create vector graphics and export TTF, OTF, EOT, and SVG fonts. It's available on Mac, Windows, Linux, and BSD, making it a fantastic Private Character Editor alternative with features like color font support and dedicated OTF/TTF/SVG editing.
FontStruct
FontStruct is a free, web-based font-building tool that allows users to quickly and easily create fonts using a modular grid system. Its drag-and-drop feature makes it an intuitive Private Character Editor alternative for those who prefer an online platform without software installation.
Glyphs
Glyphs is a commercial, Mac-exclusive font editor renowned for its user-friendly interface and ability to create everything from dingbat webfonts to full-fledged text typefaces. If you're a Mac user looking for a professional-grade Private Character Editor alternative, Glyphs is an excellent choice.
Fontself Maker for Illustrator & Photoshop
Fontself Maker is a commercial plugin for Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop CC, available for Mac and Windows. It's lauded as the fastest and easiest tool to create OpenType fonts directly within your design software, offering features like color font support. This makes it a fantastic Private Character Editor alternative for designers already integrated into the Adobe ecosystem.
TruFont
TruFont is a free and open-source font-editing application built with Python3, ufoLib, defcon, and PyQt5. It's available on Mac, Windows, and Linux, providing a robust and flexible Private Character Editor alternative for users comfortable with an open-source development model.
FontLab Studio
FontLab Studio 5 is a commercial, professional-grade font editor for Mac and Windows, widely used by leading companies in the typography industry. For serious font designers, it's a top-tier Private Character Editor alternative offering comprehensive tools and industry-standard capabilities.
Type light
Type light is a free personal version of the Type 3.2 font editor for Windows. It allows you to design, edit, and convert OpenType, TrueType, and PostScript fonts. It serves as an ideal, lightweight Private Character Editor alternative for personal use and basic font manipulation.
The world of font creation software is vast and varied. While Private Character Editor offers basic functionality, exploring these alternatives can unlock new levels of creativity and precision in your custom character and font designs. Consider your operating system, budget, and desired features to find the best fit for your unique needs.