Troubleshoot fonts

By default, Photoshop will only load the text engine and your installed fonts under these scenarios:

• A document that contains a Type layer has been opened
• The Type Tool is selected
• The Character Panel is visible

Various problems including slow performance, freezes or crashes, may be caused if Photoshop loads problematic or damaged fonts.

For help updating Photoshop to the latest version, see Update Creative Cloud apps.

If Photoshop is crashing on startup or while working with Type, follow these 3 easy steps for troubleshooting fonts.

The Photoshop font cache contains the enumerated list of fonts and font features installed to the system that Photoshop can use. Deleting this font cache file will allow Photoshop to create a new one.

If you have any third-party font managers installed, make sure the latest updates have been installed.

If you're still having issues, disable or remove the font manager prior to performing the following steps.

When installing fonts, Windows and macOS perform a font check and will suggest to proceed with caution if any problematic font is detected. Do not install any fonts that show this warning.

The following fonts are known to cause problems when used in Photoshop; if any of these or other damaged fonts are installed, uninstall or disable them:

• Bustle.ttf
• Courier Condensed Bold.ttf
• CottonWood-SemiBold.ttf
• 21kannmbn_ttf
• Gurakh_s.ttf
• Jh_titles.ttf
• Screen__.ttf
• Sevesbrg.ttf
• SF Tattle Tales Condensed.ttf
• Umbra-thin.ttf
• ZerogebI.ttf
• Zippy.ttf

Generally, it is a good idea to also delete the Photoshop font cache before deleting the system font cache.

Important! Please use caution when using Terminal in macOS.

Best Practice! Ensure you have only one version of each font located in only one of the following font folders: 

•  /Users/[user name]/Library/Fonts
•  /Library/Fonts

For testing, isolate problematic fonts by creating two folders on the desktop, one named "fonttest" and one named "goodfonts".

Look for fonts in these locations for fonts to test. Perform this testing for all of the following folders that contain fonts:

• /Users/[user name]/Library/Fonts
• /Library/Fonts
• /[network drive]/Library/Fonts

To test for a damaged font, put half your fonts in one of the Library/Fonts folders and half in the fonttest folder, and test the condition that caused the problem.

• If the problem recurs, the damaged font is still in the Font folder, and the font is not in the fonttest folder. Move the fonts from the fonttest folder to the goodfonts folder.
• If the problem does not recur, the damaged font is in the fonttest folder. Move the fonts from the official fonts folder into the goodfont folder. Move half the fonts back into the official font folder for the next round of testing.
• Continue to test half the remaining fonts, and continue to move the fonts without the problem into the goodfonts folder. 
• When you've determined the one font that is causing the problem, remove it from the official fonts folder. Move all the fonts from the goodfonts folder back into the appropriate official fonts folder that you are testing. Perform these tests for each official fonts folder that contain fonts. 

Important: If the same problem occurs after you remove a font, one or more fonts have the same or a similar problem. Continue to perform these steps until all damaged fonts are removed.

The FontTest script can help you determine if there are damaged fonts on your system.

Before you start: Read the FontTest Read Me to learn how to install, run, and interpret results from the script.

Use the Get file button below to download the FontTest script for Photoshop. Once downloaded, unzip the file by double-clicking it, and if asked, choose to extract all files.