You Bought the Font. Great. Do You Have the License?

Or are you one email away from a legal headache

Let’s talk about fonts. You find the perfect one. It is bold. It is modern. It is giving exactly the vibe your brand was missing. You pop it into your website, sprinkle it across your social graphics, and maybe even build your whole logo around it.

But here is the question that gets skipped way too often.

Do you actually have the license? And more importantly, Can you prove it?

Because here is the not-so-fun truth. Fonts are not free-for-all design candy. They are licensed software. That means they come with rules, restrictions, and yes, consequences if you ignore them.

Fonts are not just letters. They are property.

When you download a font, you are downloading someone’s intellectual property. You are also agreeing to their licensing terms, whether you read them or not.

Some fonts are free for personal use only. Some are free for commercial use but not for logos. Some require a license if you want to use them in digital ads. Others come with a web license, but not a desktop license. Some require attribution. Some expire when your subscription ends.

It is not fun. But it is real.

If you pulled a font from a random website or used one from your Canva account, you may not actually have the right to use it in your brand.

Subscription does not mean ownership

Platforms like Canva, Creative Market, and Envato Elements are amazing for discovering fonts. But just because you found it there does not mean you own it.

Most of these services give you the right to use the font only while your subscription is active. Once you cancel, the license usually expires. That means any logos, templates, or graphics made with that font could technically be out of bounds.

This is why saving your license files is a must. The PDF that came with your font download? Keep it. Back it up. Add it to your brand folder. Your future self will thank you.

The legal stuff is not just hypothetical

We have seen it happen.

A client receives a letter from a font foundry demanding proof of license. The designer who picked the font is long gone. No one knows where the files are. The site has to be updated. The logo has to be changed. The campaign has to be pulled.

All because someone used a font they found in a free download folder and no one asked questions.

This is not about fear. It is about being a professional. If you are running a business, your brand deserves to be legally protected. That includes your fonts.

What you should do right now

Take five minutes and do a little digging.

• Make a list of all the fonts your business is using

• Ask your designer or brand team where they came from

• Track down license files and save them in a shared folder

• If something looks sketchy or too good to be true, replace it with a properly licensed option

If you do not know whether a font is safe to use, assume it is not until you verify it.

Your brand is worth protecting

You would not use a stolen photo in an ad. You would not rip someone else’s logo. Fonts deserve the same respect. They are part of your business identity. And if you are ever asked to prove you have the rights to them, a screenshot of your Canva homepage will not cut it.

At Fat Bird, we help clients stay creative and stay covered. That means making sure the fonts in your logo, website, templates, and brand kit are not just cute. They are legal.

If you are not sure what you are using or where it came from, now is the time to clean it up.

No stress. No shame. Just smart business.

Need a font audit or a license rescue? 

Crayons sharpened. Coffee hot. Chaos welcome.

Fonts You Love and the Paperwork You Forgot

A quick checklist for making sure your brand isn’t accidentally illegal

Step One: Make a Font Inventory

Write down every font used in your brand.That includes:

• Website headings and body text

• Logo

• Social media templates

• Email graphics

• Print materials (business cards, brochures, signage)

• Any templates from Canva or Creative Market

Step Two: Ask These Questions for Each Font

1. Where did the font come from?Did you download it from a reputable source, use a subscription service, or get it from a designer?

2. Is it free for commercial use?Some fonts are only free for personal projects. If it is not licensed for business use, it

should not be in your brand.

3. Do you have the license file?This might be a PDF, a receipt, or a zip folder with terms. If you do not have it, go get it now.

4. Does your subscription still cover it?If you used Envato, Creative Market, or Canva Pro, your license might expire when your subscription ends.

5. Can you prove permission to use it in a logo or commercial material?Some licenses specifically prohibit logo use unless you buy a separate license.

Step Three: Create a Font Folder

Inside your shared brand assets folder, create one called "Font Licenses" Drop in:

• License PDFs or screenshots

• Purchase receipts or confirmation emails

• Notes on where each font is used

• The font files themselves, if allowed by license

Step Four: Fix the Red Flags

Fonts to remove or replace immediately:

• Anything downloaded from a random site without clear license terms

• Fonts labeled “free for personal use” that are being used on your business site

• Fonts from past designers with no paper trail

• Fonts you cannot verify or explain

Bonus Tip: Keep a Backup

Store your license folder in the cloud. Link it to your brand kit. Make sure someone on your team knows where it lives. Your future designer or web team will thank you.

Want us to check your brand fonts for you? We do this all the time. Crayons sharpened. Coffee hot. Fonts legal.