With new Macs out and the software upgrades, one of the cool things is that you can in fact install new fonts from Apple or third-party sources to enhance the user interface to befit your own taste but if you’re wondering how to go about this, then this short guide will help you out.
But before going further, a little on Mac Fonts. First of all, the Font Book is located right under The Application menu on the computer and the list includes system fonts which have been downloaded and can be installed if you want.
Because fonts are listed out based on Computers or Users, the ones you manually installed from third-party sources might not be listed on this page.
Going further, the fonts are arranged by collections which includes Fun, Modern, PDF and Traditional. Then you can add new collections to the Font Book but do note that this does not affect how the font works across macOS and in apps. The ability to add new collections is for organization use only.
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How to install and validate fonts on Mac
The first thing is to install and then validate your Font through the Font Book and after this, the next validation process will be automatic. In case of problems, there should be a message letting you know what the problem is. And one common problem could be the fact that you installed the same app more than once which would require Apple’s prompt letting you know you should remove the duplicate in order to proceed to the validation.
With so many font libraries all over the internet some of which works quite well on Mac, other do not always work as planned and this can be annoying. But as stated, ensure to understand the problem when prompted via the Font Book in order to understand ways by which you can deal with whatever error being prompted.
Font Installation process on Mac
To install new fonts on your Mac, do any of the following:
- Double-click on the Font Book in the Applications folder, then click the Add button, locate and select the font, then choose Open.
- Drag the font file to the Font Book app icon in the Dock.
- Double-click the font file in the Finder, then click Install Font in the dialog that appears.
To download and install system fonts:
- Double-click on the Font Book in the Applications folder and highlight one or more of the list’s dimmed fonts. Click Download to install and validate. Confirm Download in the pop-up box. The image below explains this further.

How to validate fonts
After the installation process, you may notice that the document isn’t well displayed but this error could be as a result of a corrupt font file. In order to fix this issue, you can either attempt to validate it or just delete it. So if you want to validate an invalidated font, follow this short guide.
- In the Font Book, select the font. Choose File > Validate Font. Follow the directions on the screen, then click the Font Validation window. A green icon indicates the font passed, a yellow icon shows a warning, while a red icon indicates it failed. Select the checkbox next to a failed font, then click Remove Checked.
To find warnings or errors in a long list of fonts, click the pop-up menu at the top of the Font Validation window, then choose Warnings and Errors.

How to resolve duplicated fonts
The Font Book offers a simple way to identify and remove duplicate fonts on Mac. To do this:
- In the Font Book, choose Edit > Look for Enabled Duplicates. To resolve duplicates, you can choose:
- Resolve Automatically: Font Book disables or moves duplicates to the Trash, as set in Font Book preferences.
- Resolve Manually: Continue to the next step to review and handle duplicates yourself.
How to remove, disable, and enable fonts
With installed fonts, you can remove, disable, and enable fonts at any time:
- Remove: Select one or more fonts in the Font Book. Press the Delete key, then click Remove.
- Disable: Select one or more fonts in the Font Book. Click the Disable button in the toolbar above the list of fonts, then click Disable to confirm. Disabled fonts aren’t deleted. Rather, they become dimmed and labeled Off in the list of fonts.
- Enable: Select one or more fonts in the Font Book. Click the Enable button in the toolbar above the list of fonts, then click to confirm.
How to find third-party fonts
While there are innumerable fonts all over the internet not many of them work with MacOS which is why you might need to visit some ideal Font services and get the ideal font that works with your Mac computer.
- Fonts.com: The site offers lots of high-quality fonts at a price.
- FontSpace: Great for finding free fonts.
- Font Squirrel: More freebies here.
How to restore default fonts
Just in case you somehow got tired of the third-party font you can simply restore the font that came by default with your computer.
- In Font Book, select File > Restore Standard Fonts. Restore Fonts that aren’t automatically installed.
Fonts come in different styles and provide a simple way to enhance creativity in your work. In macOS, the Font Book provides all the tools you need to download, install, and validate new fonts, which you can use across your computer’s apps.
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