How to use your Fontlo font

You made your handwriting into a real font — here's what to do with it. Five apps, one native shortcut, all step-by-step.

In this guide

  1. Send messages in your handwriting (fastest, free)
  2. About exporting your font
  3. Use in Canva
  4. Use in CapCut (videos)
  5. Use in Adobe Express / Photoshop
  6. Use in Google Docs, Word or PowerPoint
  7. FAQ & troubleshooting

1 Send messages in your handwriting

You don't need to install anything for this — it works right inside Fontlo, free, no export needed. This is the fastest way to share your handwriting with friends on WhatsApp, Instagram, iMessage, Snapchat, and any other app.

  1. Open the Fontlo app
  2. Go to the Create & Share tab
  3. Type any message you want to send
  4. Pick a style — Card, Story or Note — and a template: Classic, Sticky Note, Lined Paper, Birthday or Minimal
  5. Tap Create and share to WhatsApp, Instagram Stories, or any other app
Why not just type in WhatsApp directly? Android and iOS don't allow apps to change WhatsApp's typing font — that's a system-wide restriction. Sharing your handwritten message as an image looks the same to the recipient and works everywhere.

Free sharing includes a small "Made with Fontlo" watermark on the image. Premium removes it.

2 About exporting your font

The next options (Canva, CapCut, Adobe, Word, etc.) all use the exported .TTF file from Fontlo. A few things to know before you start:

3 Use your font in Canva

Canva accepts custom fonts on Canva Pro, Teams and Education plans (paid). If you have a free account, this option won't be available — jump to CapCut, Adobe Express or the messaging shortcut above.

On mobile:

  1. Open the Canva app and start a new design
  2. Add a text element
  3. Tap the font picker → Brand Kit or Upload a font
  4. Select your Fontlo .TTF file from Downloads
  5. The font is now available in any text element

On desktop:

  1. Sign in at canva.com
  2. Click Brand in the left sidebar → Brand Kit → Add a font
  3. Drop in your .TTF file

4 Use your font in CapCut

Perfect for adding a personal touch to Instagram Reels, TikToks or YouTube Shorts.

  1. Open CapCut and start a project (or open an existing one)
  2. Tap Text → Add text
  3. Type your text, then tap Font in the toolbar
  4. Scroll to Local or Device → tap Import
  5. Pick your Fontlo .TTF file
  6. Your handwriting font is now selectable for any text overlay

5 Use your font in Adobe Express / Photoshop

Great for polished social posts, printables, and logo-style designs.

Adobe Express:

  1. Sign in at express.adobe.com (free account works)
  2. Open any design and add text
  3. Click the font picker → Brand fonts → Upload font
  4. Select your .TTF file
  5. Your font is available across all your Adobe Express projects

Photoshop / Illustrator (desktop): install the font on your computer first (see step 5), then it appears in the font picker.

6 Use in Google Docs, Word or PowerPoint

Great for personalised letters, invitations or CV headers. Requires installing the font on your computer first.

Windows:

  1. Transfer the .TTF file from your phone to your PC (email, Google Drive, USB)
  2. Right-click the file → Install
  3. Restart Word / PowerPoint / Docs. Your Fontlo font is now in the font list

macOS:

  1. Transfer the .TTF to your Mac
  2. Double-click the file → click Install Font in Font Book
  3. Restart your document app

Google Docs: Google Docs doesn't support arbitrary font uploads directly. Use the workaround: install the font on your computer, then use the Extendify add-on or export to Word to keep the styling.

FAQ & troubleshooting

Why can't I type in WhatsApp directly with my font?

WhatsApp, Instagram, Snapchat, iMessage and Facebook Messenger all use their own fixed typing fonts — they don't let you change them, regardless of any font you have installed. This is a limitation of these apps, not of Fontlo. Use the Share flow inside Fontlo to send messages in your handwriting to those apps.

Where do I find the .TTF file on my phone?

After you tap Export in Fontlo, the file is saved to your Downloads folder. Open the Files app on your phone and browse to Downloads — the file is named after your project. For example, a project called My First Font becomes My_First_Font.ttf (spaces become underscores).

The font looks broken or missing letters in [app]

Fontlo lets you export even if you only filled in a few characters — the other slots are simply empty in the exported font. So if you're seeing blank boxes where a letter should be: (1) the corresponding cell was probably not filled in when you generated the font — fill it in and export again. (2) Some apps only preview the font in Latin characters; accented letters and punctuation won't render if you didn't draw them. (3) For the fullest font, fill in all 80 template cells (A–Z, a–z, 0–9 and common punctuation).

Can I sell products that use my Fontlo font?

Yes — your handwriting is yours. You can use the font commercially: t-shirts, invitations, logos, packaging, etc. Fontlo doesn't claim any license on fonts you create.

Can I make more than one font?

Yes, but with a limit: the free version lets you create one font. Fontlo Premium (one-time payment) unlocks unlimited font creation and exports, removes all ads, removes the watermark from shared images, and removes the "Made with Fontlo" metadata from exported fonts.

Can I edit individual letters after exporting?

The Fontlo app lets you fine-tune each letter before exporting (in the Create & Share tab). Once exported, editing the .TTF requires a desktop font editor — we recommend FontCreator by High-Logic, the industry-leading font editor for Windows and macOS (paid, with free trial).

Made a great font?

Share it on Instagram tagged #fontlo — we love seeing your creations.

Get Fontlo on Google Play