Justfont

What Justfont does

justfont (legal name: 就是字股份有限公司 / Just Font Co., Ltd.) is a Taipei-based Taiwanese typeface design studio and typography education platform founded in 2010 by three co-founders: Michael 葉俊麟 (CEO), Aresa 林霞 (Type Director), and Winston 蘇煒翔 (Marketing Director). The company designs, produces, and licenses Chinese typefaces — primarily Traditional Chinese — with a portfolio of 20+ commercial products including flagship 金萱 (Jin Xuan, a Ming-Gothic hybrid with 9 weights and 130,000+ characters), 金萱那提 (Jin Xuan Latte), 蘭陽明體 (Lanyang Ming), 凝書體 (Cream Font), 激燃體 (Burn Font), 臺灣道路體, 淚體, 柑仔蜜, and others, plus open-source offerings including 粉圓 (Huninn), 精靈文字體 (Elf Font), and 諧靈附體 (AllPunType). The company's typefaces are distinguished by support for Taiwanese Hokkien, Hakka, and indigenous language characters, addressing gaps in Traditional Chinese coverage relative to Japanese and Simplified Chinese fonts.

justfont's core technology includes the world's first and largest Chinese web font service (launched 2012 at webfont.justfont.com), a one-time perpetual licensing framework (jf 通用授權) that permits installation on up to 2 devices with broad commercial rights including print, video, and PDF embedding, and the open-source jf 7000 當務字集 character set designed for Taiwanese contexts. The company employs 5 professional typeface designers out of fewer than 60 estimated in all of Taiwan. Revenue streams include one-time perpetual font license sales, web font subscriptions, brand consulting via jf plus, mobile app revenue sharing via the 下筆 partnership, and educational program fees (字體研修所 courses). Go-to-market combines community-led engagement (字戀 Facebook community, 字嗨 forum, monthly 字戀小聚 meetups, 黑與白的饗宴 seminars), product-led crowdfunding on 嘖嘖 (zeczec) for new typeface launches — with 金萱 raising NT$25M+ from ~10,000 backers in 2015 and 5+ typefaces clearing NT$10M each — event-driven brand building (e.g., the 怎辦！字型怪怪的？ exhibition at Songshan Cultural and Creative Park), and direct e-commerce at store.justfont.com.

The company serves four customer segments: design professionals and creative agencies (primary), corporate brands and organizations including enterprise clients in entertainment such as the 第32屆金曲獎 and the 人選之人 TV drama (primary), individual consumers and content creators (secondary), and aspiring typeface designers supported through the 造字鼓勵元 scholarship and jf 字友社 mentorship program (secondary). Justfont is privately held, has not raised institutional venture capital, and bootstrapped its growth largely through the 2015 crowdfunding campaign and ongoing font sales.

Name

Justfont

Legal name

就是字股份有限公司

Website

https://justfont.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

justfont is a Taipei-based Taiwanese typeface design studio and education platform founded in 2010, designing and licensing Traditional Chinese typefaces for designers, agencies, brands, and content creators, and operating the world's first and largest Chinese web font service.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Taipei

HQ country

Taiwan

HQ region

Asia

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Font Sales (Direct Download): One-time perpetual license purchases for desktop fonts. Single price per typeface family with permanent usage rights. Includes VVICP (Very Very Important Customer) pricing for early supporters.
2. Web Font Service: Subscription or usage-based licensing for web font embedding. Requires using justfont's web font platform rather than direct file distribution.
3. Brand Consulting Services: Corporate branding and typography consulting services under the 'jf plus' brand.
4. Mobile App Font Subscription: Partnership with '下筆' app allows monthly subscription (NT$60/month) for using fonts on Instagram stories.
5. Educational Programs: Revenue from typeface design courses including '字體課' professional training and '字體研修所' courses.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Justfont designs, develops, and licenses proprietary Chinese (Traditional) typefaces, offering a 20+ product portfolio that includes commercial fonts, open-source fonts, and a cloud-based Chinese web font subscription service. The company also delivers typography education through courses, a published knowledge book, a free online pocket book, and a designer mentorship/scholarship program that cultivates the Taiwanese typeface design ecosystem.

Product overview

justfont 就是字股份有限公司 is a Taiwanese typeface design studio and education platform founded in 2010. The company operates a portfolio spanning commercial typefaces, open-source typefaces, a web font subscription service, typeface education, and designer mentorship. The commercial typeface lineup includes flagship products such as 金萱 (a Ming-Gothic hybrid, the company's landmark product, crowdfunded in 2015 for NT$25M+), its sister product 金萱那提 (Mincho-Round hybrid), high-impact display typefaces 激燃體 and 柑仔蜜, classical-inspired serif 蘭陽明體, minimalist 凝書體, 淚體, 臺灣道路體, and 粒線體, among many others. Open-source offerings include the freely downloadable 粉圓 (Huninn, a Kosugi Maru derivative), 精靈文字體 (elf-style bopomofo font), and 諧靈附體 (zodiac pun font), alongside the open-source jf 7000 當務字集 character set. The web font subscription service at webfont.justfont.com enables website embedding of the full typeface catalog. justfont also publishes educational content including the bestseller 《字型散步》, the online jf 字體口袋書 textbook, and the 字體研修所 course program. Designer support programs include the 造字鼓勵元 scholarship (est. 2017) and the jf 字友社 mentorship program (est. 2018) which has guided multiple crowdfunded typeface projects.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• jf: Brand prefix used for font products (e.g., jf 7000, jf open 粉圓, jf 字友社, jf 字體口袋書)
• jf Font Friends (jf 字友社)
• Font Encourager (造字鼓勵元)
• 字戀 (Font Love)
• 字嗨 (Font Hi)

Products and services

• 金萱 (Jin Xuan) justfont's flagship commercial typeface, a Ming-Gothic hybrid combining the emotional warmth of Mincho (serif) with the clean simplicity of Gothic (sans-serif). Nine weights, over 130,000 characters. Used by major Taiwanese brands, award shows, and TV series including the 32nd Golden Melody Awards ceremony and the TV drama《人選之人—造浪者》.
• 金萱那提 (Jin Xuan Latte) Sister product of Jin Xuan, a Mincho-Round hybrid with nine sweetness levels (from 一分糖 to 九分糖) suitable for charming, approachable visual design in packaging, menus, and social media.
• 蘭陽明體 (Lanyang Ming) Classical-inspired Mincho (serif) typeface reinterpreting traditional Ming typefaces. References 1920s–30s carved woodblock printing tradition and a Qing dynasty literary collection. Aims to balance modern digital clarity with the emotional expressiveness of classical letterforms.
• 蘭陽黑體 New (Lanyang Hei) Sans-serif (Gothic) counterpart to the Lanyang Ming series, updated with refined stroke definitions and expanded character support.
• 激燃體 (Burn Font) Bold, high-impact display typeface designed for loud, attention-grabbing use. Constructed entirely from angular strokes with no curves, conveying a hard-edged, forward-leaning energy. Used widely in political campaigns, YouTube thumbnails, e-commerce, and convenience store packaging.
• 凝書體 (Cream Font) Minimalist, elegant serif typeface inspired by the principle of 'simple is beautiful.' Emphasizes generous whitespace and clean composition. Popular in book covers, advertising, and product packaging.
• 淚體 (Tears Font) Teardrop-shaped stroke typeface with emotional, hand-drawn character. Crowdfunded successfully and completed in 2024.
• 臺灣道路體 (Taiwan Road Font) Typeface inspired by the visual style of Taiwanese road signs and municipal signage. Crowdfunded and completed in 2023.
• 日花 (Lithue) Display typeface described as poetic and elegant, with handwritten brush characteristics. Developed through the jf 字友社 designer mentoring program.
• 柑仔蜜 (Kamabit) Taiwanese-style display typeface drawing inspiration from retro Taiwanese hand-painted shop sign art (美術字). Captures the handmade texture, rich flavor, and imperfection beauty of vintage signage. Incorporates traditional writing conventions. Launching 2025.
• jf 7000 當務字集 Freely available open-source character set (CC BY-SA 4.0) released by justfont in 2023, designed for Taiwanese use cases. Features a ~7,000-character basic package as the core, supplemented by extension packages for Taiwanese naming, indigenous languages, Cantonese, Japanese, and symbols — allowing independent designers to balance character coverage with production effort.
• jf open 粉圓 (Huninn) Free open-source rounded typeface released by justfont in 2019/2020, based on Japanese Kosugi Maru and modified for Traditional Chinese conventions. Supports Taiwanese, Hakka, and indigenous language characters and romanization. Distributed under an open-source license for commercial use.
• 精靈文字體 (Elf Font) Free open-source bopomofo (注音) typeface created in collaboration with calligrapher 製作的Daphne. Reimagines Taiwanese zhuyin characters with a fantasy Blackletter and Italic aesthetic. Released October 2024.
• 讓靈附體 (AllPunType) Free open-source novelty typeface (SIL OFL 1.1) that substitutes Chinese characters with homophonic zodiac animal characters. Released April 2024 by justfont, based on Genryu Mincho. Seven weights available.
• 嘉市體 (Chiayi City Font) Taiwan's first city-specific typeface, commissioned for Chiayi City. Received the Golden Pin Design Award in 2022.
• justfont 網頁字型 (Web Font) 服務 Subscription-based web font embedding service (cloud/CDN-delivered). The first and largest Chinese web font service globally, launched in 2012. Allows websites to embed justfont's typeface catalog for on-screen display without requiring users to install fonts locally. Operates on a subscription/membership model.
• jf 通用授權 (Universal License) justfont's proprietary font licensing framework. One-time purchase (perpetual license), installable on up to 2 devices. Permits personal and commercial use, embedding in PDFs, use on products/packaging, in videos, and for commercial print. Does not permit web font embedding, app embedding, or trademark registration without additional licensing.
• jf plus 品牌顧問服務 Brand consulting services offered by justfont, leveraging their expertise in typography and visual identity for corporate clients.
• 字體研修所 (字體課) Professional typeface design courses taught by justfont's expert type designers, ranging from beginner to advanced levels. Available in-person and via the Hahow online platform ('伸縮自如的字體課'). Covers typeface recognition, design theory, and professional workflows.

Quantifiable outcome

• 金萱 crowdfunding raised NT$25+ million from ~10,000 backers, setting world record
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• 下筆 App (Fonting)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2024Mobile app partnership enabling subscription-based font usage on Instagram stories. Users can subscribe (NT$60/month per typeface) through the app to use 金萱, 玫怡手寫體 and other fonts on Instagram. justfont's first mobile-first distribution channel targeting content creators and social media marketers.
• 柯志杰 (But Ko)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEditor committee member for jf 7000 當務字集 project. Author of '字型散步' (Typeface Walk) book and creator of multiple open-source typefaces (芫荽, 源 series). Key knowledge partner contributing industry expertise and character set standards.
• 陳建中coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTaiwanese Hokkien language consultant for multiple justfont typefaces. Editor committee member for jf 7000 當務字集 project, contributing expertise in local language character standards.
• 應永會minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChinese designer collaboration on 汲古書体 typeface project. justfont distributes and supports this traditional-style typeface designed by the independent designer.
• Hahow 好好學平台minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor'伸缩自如的字體课' (Flexible Typography Course) offered on Hahow online education platform, making typeface education accessible to broader audience beyond physical workshops.
• 嘖嘖 (zeczec) Crowdfunding PlatformcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary crowdfunding platform for typeface launches. Multiple successful campaigns including 凝書體, 激燃體, 淚體 each raising over NT$10 million. Key GTM channel for new typeface products.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves14 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Google Fonts: Google's free, open-source web font library including extensive CJK Noto families. Direct competitor to justfont's web font service for any website embedding CJK fonts; threatens monetization of premium Chinese web fonts by offering high-quality free alternatives.
• Monotype: Global leader in typeface design, licensing, and technology (owns Linotype, ITC, etc.). Provides the dominant global platform for font distribution and licensing — broader incumbent competing across all segments justfont targets, but without Taiwan-specific Traditional Chinese specialization.
• Adobe Fonts (formerly Typekit): Adobe's subscription-based font service integrated with Creative Cloud. Major web font platform competitor, comparable to justfont Web Font Service in delivery model but bundled within Adobe's broader creative software ecosystem.

Emerging players

• LXGW WenKai (霞鹜文楷): Open-source Chinese typeface project popular among developers, supporting Traditional Chinese variants. Comparable as a community/open-source Chinese font offering competing for the same developer/designer audience justfont serves with its web font service and open-source releases.

Direct peers

• Founder Type (方正字庫): China's largest Chinese typeface company, affiliated with Peking University Founder Group. Directly comparable as a Chinese font foundry with extensive catalog, but operates at much larger scale and serves enterprise/government clients primarily.
• Fontworks: Japanese professional typeface foundry producing original Japanese and Latin typefaces with strong designer identity. Comparable to justfont as a designer-driven, original-content font foundry in the East Asian typography market, though focused on Japanese.
• Morisawa (TypeSquare): Major Japanese type foundry with TypeSquare web font subscription service. Direct competitor in the East Asian web font service category; the Japanese analog to justfont's web font leadership position.
• Hanyi Fonts (漢儀字庫): Major mainland China Chinese typeface foundry with a large proprietary catalog and strong designer community. Comparable to justfont in producing contemporary Chinese typefaces via designer-driven collaborations, but operating at much greater scale in mainland China.
• Arphic Technology (文鼎科技): Major Taiwan-based Chinese typeface foundry with a long history and broad commercial font catalog. Directly comparable to justfont as a fellow Taiwanese Chinese font studio, though larger and more established with broader Traditional Chinese character coverage.
• DynaFont (華康字型): Taiwan's largest traditional Chinese font foundry, founded in 1987, with deep enterprise/government licensing. Direct competitor in Taiwan's commercial Chinese typeface market, though with a more legacy catalog and different GTM focus (B2B/embedded fonts).

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/justfont
• Instagraminstagram.com/justfont

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Justfont