← Atlas · Topics: typography-and-styles, inspiration
Fonts In Use
- Site
- fontsinuse.com
- Type
- directory
- Verdict
- Very useful
- Licence
- Conditional licence, proprietary free
proprietary-freeFree to browse; example images carry their own rights notices and are commonly marked All Rights Reserved. Do not reuse archive images as assets. - Agent channels
- none
- Pricing
- free
- Reviewed
What it is
An independent, searchable archive that connects typefaces to the identities, websites, packaging, publications and other designs where they appear. Entries name the typefaces and link to designers or foundries, while filters cross formats, topics and visual tags.
When to open it
Open it when you need to see a typeface doing a real job rather than in a neutral sample, or when you want references for a particular web or identity treatment. Filter by Web or a typeface, then inspect individual entries and their larger images.
Most useful
- Burning Orange website — /uses/79052/burning-orange-website identifies Store Norske Litteratur, Store Norske Litteratur Text and a modified TT Ricordi Allegria logo. In the captured homepage, compare the fine serif logo and centered white serif copy against a warm orange product photograph; the type panel keeps the attribution visible beside the image.
- Kerama Blue by Redcast Heritage Denim — /uses/63206/kerama-blue-by-redcast-heritage-denim names Dug and shows the same lettering applied across a package, clothing labels and a tote. Look at how a compact all-caps display mark survives several scales and materials.
- Web format — /in/2/formats/3/web narrows the archive to web examples; pair those with the typeface index to compare one family across unrelated sites.
Using it with agents
There is no published MCP, API, CLI or agent guide. A browser can open public pages and read listed typefaces and tags, but the site terms limit use to personal, non-commercial browsing and prohibit robots or data-extraction tools. Do not crawl or bulk-copy the archive. The image source and rights line on each example govern any reuse.
Watch out for
- The archive spans print, packaging and other media, so filter to Web when the implementation target is a website.
- Archive images are for reference, not reusable assets. The Burning Orange and Kerama Blue examples mark source images All Rights Reserved; site terms also prohibit reproduction or commercial reuse without written consent.
- Some typeface identifications are explicitly approximate or marked unidentified. Treat the page's stated certainty as part of the reference.
- The archive’s own interface uses a fairly narrow column and a persistent multi-filter sidebar. Judge the featured work from its image and linked live source, not from the archive UI.
Reusable ideas
- Put typeface names and foundry links directly beside a visual example so comparison does not depend on a separate caption index.
- Tag an example by medium and visual treatment as well as subject; a query such as “web + optical sizes” can then find a more useful reference than a broad industry label.
- Show a family across the logo, headline and body roles when a single project uses multiple related faces.
- Let a full-size image reveal the actual hierarchy and spacing, while keeping the archive card compact enough to scan.