Skip to main content
L
losmadden
Participant
January 24, 2020
Answered

Figure out where a specific font is used in a PDF

  • January 24, 2020
  • 3 replies
  • 10888 views

Hello! I know how to see which fonts are used in a PDF document (File > Properties > Font tab), but what I don't know how to do (and need to do) is figure out where a specific font is used in a document. For instance, I see within my fonts list "Helvetica," which I know is not supposed to be in my document anywhere. I'm looking at a 200-page book. How can I find the place(s) where Helvetica is incorrectly used, so I can change the font in those places?

 

(Note: if all the other fonts were very un-Helvetica-like, I could simply see the wrong font, but because there are similar fonts used, and there are weird formats, I cannot eyeball this.)

 

Thank you!

    Correct answer JR Boulay

    You must use the Preflight tool, into the Print Production tools as shown below:

    You can also "Create Report" and use the Options menu to "Browse Internal PDF Structure" or to "Browse Internal Font Structure".

     

     

     

     

    3 replies

    JR Boulay
    Community Expert
    JR BoulayCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    January 25, 2020

    The report:

     

    Acrobate du PDF, InDesigner et Photoshopographe
      JR Boulay
      Community Expert
      JR BoulayCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
      Community Expert
      January 25, 2020

      You must use the Preflight tool, into the Print Production tools as shown below:

      You can also "Create Report" and use the Options menu to "Browse Internal PDF Structure" or to "Browse Internal Font Structure".

       

       

       

       

      Acrobate du PDF, InDesigner et Photoshopographe
        Luke Jennings
        Luke Jennings
        Inspiring
        January 24, 2020

        There is no font search feature in Acrobat that I know of, however, you may try opening your PDF in Illustrator, which does have a find font tool. It won't find type that has been outlined* or rasterized.

        *Acrobat has an OCR tool to recognize and convert outlined type back to live type, which can then be searched in Illustrator.

        Here is a link to a related discussion:

        https://community.adobe.com/t5/acrobat/is-there-a-way-i-can-find-the-location-of-certain-fonts-in-pdf/m-p/10831570

        Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement
        Using the community Terms of use Privacy Cookie preferences Do not sell or share my personal information ad choicesAdChoices