Win32 Font Lister: print a sample of every font you own
You have hundreds of fonts, and you can't remember which one looks right for a headline. Scrolling through a dropdown one name at a time doesn't help. Win32 Font Lister generates a printable report that shows a sample of each font, so you can compare them side by side.
Quick facts
- Platform: Windows desktop app, written in Delphi
- Price: free, released as open source under the GPL-3.0 license
- Author: David M. Williams
- Distribution: the latest build is the listfonts.exe file in the project's repository
Key features
Samples of fonts you haven't installed
Point the app at a folder or a whole directory tree on the Paths tab and click Apply. It tells you how many uninstalled fonts it found and adds them to the main list. You can preview and print them like any installed font.
Your own sample text in every font
On the font listing properties tab, type a message to show in each font. Put %f in the message to insert the font's name, or %F for the name in upper case. Long messages word-wrap, and you can use as many lines as you like. You can also switch the page to landscape for more room.
Wizard mode or advanced mode
The wizard mode gets a report out quickly. The advanced mode gives you control over the details of the final report.
Export a font sample as an image
In advanced mode, right-click a font name to export a sample as a bitmap or JPEG. This is handy for a quick web headline.
Character sets and quick selection
Right-click a font to view its complete character set. You can resize that window and copy characters into other documents. A right-click menu on the font list selects all, selects none, or toggles the selection. The report preview has zoom and fit-to-screen options, and you can page through it with PgUp and PgDown.
Who it's for
It suits designers, writers and office users who want a printed font catalog. It also suits anyone sorting through a folder of downloaded fonts before installing them.
Pros and cons
- Pro: previews uninstalled fonts without installing them.
- Pro: free, with source code available.
- Pro: custom sample text, with the font name inserted automatically.
- Con: the app is old. The author says he wrote it in the late 1990s and last updated it a long time ago.
- Con: the code depended on reporting components that no longer ship with newer Delphi versions. Rebuilding it yourself can be a problem.
- Con: you get a ready-made exe, not a packaged installer.
FAQs
Can it show fonts that aren't installed?
Yes. Add the folder that holds them on the Paths tab in advanced mode.
Can I put the font's name in the sample text?
Yes. Use %f in your message, or %F for upper case.
Can I save a single font sample as a picture?
Yes. In advanced mode, right-click the font name and export it as a bitmap or JPEG.
Does it cost anything?
No. The project is published under the GPL-3.0 license.
System requirements
It is a 32-bit Windows application. The author named it "Win32" because it was a 32-bit program.