See your tattoo lettering at the size it will really be
Type a name, a date or a line. Every font below redraws as you type. Pick one, set the width in inches or centimetres, check it on your skin tone, flip it for a stencil and download a print-ready PNG or SVG for your artist.
All 42 fonts
Is the on-screen size accurate? Calibrate your screen
Hold a bank card against the dashed outline and move the slider until they match. The preview and the ruler then show true size on this screen. Printing and the downloaded files are always exact and do not need this.
Choosing a tattoo font
Lettering is the most common tattoo there is, and the most common regret. The font that looks right at 40 pixels on a phone often does not survive at 1.5 cm on a wrist, so this page does two things most font pages skip: it shows every style at once so you can compare rather than scroll, and it shows your word at the physical size you will actually get.
The four families behave very differently on skin. Script and cursive fonts (Pinyon Script, Great Vibes, Allura) read as elegant and personal and suit names, dates and short phrases; their thin hairlines are the first thing to blur, so they want a bit more size. Old English and blackletter (UnifrakturMaguntia, Pirata One, Metal Mania) are dense and heavy and hold up for decades, but a whole sentence in them is hard to read; they are best for single words, initials and chest or back pieces. Traditional and sign-painter styles (Rye, Ewert, Cinzel Decorative) come from American flash and circus lettering and pair well with classic imagery. Handwritten styles (Caveat, Homemade Apple, Rock Salt) look casual and are often used to copy a loved one's handwriting; if that is what you want, bring the real handwriting to your artist instead and use these only to test size and placement. The lettering styles guide goes through each family with placement ideas.
How big to make it
Ink spreads a little under the skin over the years, so lines get thicker and gaps close up. Two rules keep lettering legible for life: lowercase letters in a script font should be at least 1 cm (0.4 in) tall, and no two lines in the design should be closer than about 2 mm. If your artist says a design is too small, that is what they mean. Typical widths by placement:
| Placement | Usual width | Suits |
|---|---|---|
| Finger, behind the ear | 1 to 2.5 cm (0.4 to 1 in) | Initials, one short word, bold simple fonts |
| Wrist, ankle | 3 to 6 cm (1.2 to 2.4 in) | A name or date in script |
| Inner forearm, bicep | 6 to 15 cm (2.4 to 6 in) | A word or short phrase in any style |
| Collarbone | 8 to 15 cm (3 to 6 in) | Script that follows the bone |
| Ribs, spine | 15 to 35 cm (6 to 14 in) | Quotes and lines of text, one line tall |
| Chest, upper back | 15 to 40 cm (6 to 16 in) | Blackletter words, arched lettering |
Set the finished width above and the preview resizes. If you want it exact on screen, open the calibration panel and match a bank card once; the setting is remembered on this device.
From file to stencil
Artists work from a stencil: the design printed in reverse on thermal transfer paper, pressed onto the skin, and traced. You do not need to make that yourself, but a good file makes the consultation faster. The PNG is exported at 300 dots per inch at your chosen width, with a transparent background, so when it is printed at 100% it comes out at exactly the size you set. The SVG is true vector: the letters are converted to outlines and the file carries its size in millimetres, so it opens at the right size in Illustrator, Inkscape, Procreate and most stencil printers, and can be scaled without losing sharpness. Print at actual size sends only the lettering to your printer with a one-inch reference bar so you can check the scale with a ruler; tick the mirror box first if you want it reversed like a real stencil.
Licences
All 42 fonts are open-licence typefaces from the Google Fonts library, released under the SIL Open Font License or the Apache License 2.0. Both allow you to use the lettering for anything, including a tattoo and including commercial work by your artist, at no cost. The licence text for each font is in the licences folder and the font name is shown with every download so your artist can find the same file.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use these fonts for an actual tattoo?
Yes. Every font here is under the SIL Open Font License or the Apache License, which allow use for any purpose including tattoos and commercial work. Your artist can also download the same font for free.
How do I get the lettering to my tattoo artist?
Download the PNG at the size you want, or the SVG if your artist uses Procreate, Illustrator or a stencil printer, and bring it to the consultation. The file name includes the font and the width so nothing gets lost.
Why is the text flipped?
You have the mirror box ticked. A thermal stencil is printed reversed and then pressed onto the skin, which turns it the right way round. Untick it for a normal preview.
Can I curve the text or add a symbol?
Not here yet. Arched and curved lettering depends on the exact spot on the body, and artists almost always draw it by hand. Pick the font and size here and ask your artist to curve it on the stencil.
Does the generator work for other languages?
All fonts cover English and most Western European languages with accents. A few of the decorative fonts have limited character sets; if a letter shows as a plain fallback shape in the preview, that font does not include it.
Is anything I type stored or uploaded?
No. Everything happens in your browser. The only saved value is your screen calibration, which stays on your device.