How to change your fonts in Mac OS X

There are no built-in options to easily change the system fonts used by Mac OS X for menus, toolbars, titles and other text at the time of writing this guide. To change the system fonts, you'll need to use third-party software.

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Change your fonts using third-party software

There are third-party software solutions for changing the fonts in Mac OS X, but these may require you to change system settings at a programming level and are aimed mainly at administrators and experienced users.

However, the freeware programme TinkerTool is aimed at regular users. It allows you to activate personal preference features that Apple has hidden in the Mac OS X operating system, including the ability to change the system fonts, as shown in Fig 1. Further information is available on the website of the software's producer Marcel Bresink Software-Systeme.

Fig 1TinkerTool 'Fonts' window

Other programmes that allow you to change the system settings may also be available. Consult the Apple Downloads - System/Disk Utilities page for a list of available free and paid-for software.

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