Self-hosting web fonts

Websites serve as your digital storefront, they need to strike the right aesthetic chords to leave a mark. You’ve nailed down the ideal color scheme, crafted an impressive layout, and now it’s time to focus on a pivotal element – FONTS! Fonts are akin to the voice of your website and, much like your apparel, they convey a distinct message.

The Aesthetic Essence of Your Website

Visualize a high-end law firm’s website utilizing a whimsical, comic-book font – it would seem incongruous, wouldn’t it? Fonts are potent tools! They can set your website’s tone as serious, playful, futuristic, or traditional. A children’s toy store deploying a mundane corporate font wouldn’t hit the mark. Selecting the right fonts can be a game-changer!

Most individuals source fonts from platforms like Google Fonts. It’s a straightforward process: select your preferred fonts, they provide you with a code, and presto – your website looks chic. However, this simplicity comes with a hidden caveat…

The Downside of Simplicity

Font services, even commendable ones like Google Fonts, can decelerate your website. Here’s the reason: your visitor’s browser is required to retrieve the fonts from an external source before it can commence loading your page. It’s akin to your pizza delivery being delayed because the gourmet toppings need additional preparation time.

It may sound unsettling, but some font services monitor what visitors do on your website. They utilize small files called “cookies” and even the fonts themselves to ascertain your interests. It seems a bit crafty, doesn’t it?

Self-Host Your Fonts

Obtain the actual font files from sources like Google Fonts or other commendable font marketplaces. You’ll receive files with designations like ‘coolfont.woff2’.
Store these font files in a dedicated folder on your website. A commonly used location is a folder named “fonts” located within your website’s main folder.
You’ll need to inject a piece of code into your website’s CSS file. It may resemble the following:

@font-face {
    font-family: 'Cool Font'; /* Name you give your font */
    src: url('fonts/coolfont.woff2') format('woff2'),
    url('fonts/coolfont.woff') format('woff'); /* Add more formats if you have them */
}

/* Now instruct your website to utilize your self-hosted font */
body {
    font-family: 'Cool Font', sans-serif;
}

Ensuring Cross-Browser Compatibility

Ensuring that your self-hosted web fonts display accurately across all browsers is critical for a consistent user experience. Testing your font stack on various browsers is an indispensable step. Here’s how I ensure my fonts function everywhere:

Begin by selecting the appropriate font formats. TrueType Fonts (TTF) and Web Open Font Format (WOFF) are widely supported and should be included.
Utilize a service like Fontsquirrel’s Webfont Generator for legacy browser support. Remember to select formats like SVG, EOT, and TTF.
Incorporate a series of web-safe fallback fonts in your CSS. This ensures that if a custom font fails to load, the browser will have several alternatives before it defaults to its preferred web font.

By providing the browser with a few font backups, you can evade an abrupt switch to a default font that may not align with your branding. It’s also vital to consider unique characters and symbols that may not be supported by all fonts in your stack. Testing with tools and resources, such as those provided by MDN Web Docs, can be invaluable in this process. Constantly learn and remain cognizant of how your fonts appear on different devices.

Tips for Success

Don’t Go Font Crazy: A couple of excellent fonts are superior to a plethora. Too many fonts can slow things down.
Smart File Formats: Utilize modern formats like WOFF or WOFF2. They’re smaller and designed specifically for the web.
Subsetting: If you want to get creative, you can eliminate unused letters from fonts to make them even smaller!
Inline font declarations: Inlining @font-face and font-family declarations in the main document, rather than including this information in an external stylesheet, allows the browser to determine which font files will be used on the page without having to wait for a separate stylesheet file to download.
Preloading: This is an advanced technique, but it can provide your website with an extra speed boost.
WOFF2: Of the modern font fonts, WOFF2 is the newest, has the widest browser support, and offers the best compression. Because it uses Brotli, WOFF2 compresses 30% better than WOFF.

Understanding Font Licensing for Web Use

Each font comes with its own set of rules and restrictions, defined in the font’s license. It’s crucial to comprehend these terms to ensure that I’m using fonts legally and ethically.

Here are a few key considerations:

Read the license attentively: Licenses can vary significantly from one font to another. Some may permit commercial use, while others are restricted to personal projects.
Check for usage limitations: Licenses often specify where and how a font can be used. For example, some may allow use on websites but not in printed materials.
Understand the types of licenses: There are different types of font licenses, such as perpetual, annual, or volume licensing. Perpetual licenses are a one-time purchase that allows for ongoing use, while annual licenses may require renewal and can impact budget management and brand consistency.

It’s important to note that some fonts are available under open-source licenses, such as the SIL Open Font License or the Apache 2 license, which typically offer more flexibility. However, even open-source fonts have terms that must be adhered to. For example, the Ubuntu fonts are under the Ubuntu Font License v1.0, which has its own specific conditions.