At a glance. This Trajan font generator makes Roman-capitals text three ways. Copy and paste gives 8 Unicode looks that go into a bio, caption or name. Real fonts is a picture studio. It draws your text in the Trajan your device has, or in one of 12 free alternatives such as Cinzel, with 14 style presets, effects, shadows, borders and backgrounds, and saves PNG, JPG, WebP, SVG or PDF. Inscription turns a year into Roman numerals and gives 10 Latin phrases. Trajan itself is a commercial Adobe font and is not included, and copied text cannot carry a font.
How to use the Trajan font generator
Your text and the options sit at the top, with a quick result under the text. Below, Copy and paste lists every look, Real fonts is the picture studio, Inscription handles Roman numerals and Latin phrases, CSS gives the code, and Checks tests your device and the length.
Type your text
A name, a title or a short caption of up to four lines. Trajan has no lowercase, so the Letter case option starts on capitals.
Pick text, picture or inscription
Copy and paste gives 8 Unicode looks for bios, captions and names. Real fonts draws a picture. Inscription turns years into Roman numerals and gives 10 Latin phrases.
Choose a font and weight
Use the Trajan your device has, or one of 12 free alternatives such as Cinzel. Set the weight where the font has more than one, then the size, spacing, colours, glow, shadow, border and background, or start from one of 14 style presets.
Copy or download
Copy a look and paste it, download the picture as PNG, JPG, WebP, SVG or PDF (PNG can be transparent), or copy the CSS. Checks tests your device and the length.
Which output should you pick?
- A bio, caption, comment or name: copy and paste. The result is text, so it can be selected, searched and kept in an edit box.
- A poster, a film-style title card, a certificate or a slide: the picture from Real fonts. It uses a real font, so it looks the same for everyone.
- A date or a plaque: Inscription, for the Roman numeral and the Latin wording, then set it in the picture.
- A website or an app: the CSS. It sets the same font, weight, colour, glow, shadow, border and spacing in your own stylesheet.
For movie-title cards in many genres, see the cinematic font generator (opens in a new tab). This page is about the Roman capitals look in particular.
Is this real Trajan?
Not the copy and paste part, and not the free fonts. Trajan was designed by Carol Twombly for Adobe in 1989, from the inscription at the base of Trajan's Column in Rome (Adobe Fonts (opens in a new tab), Wikipedia (opens in a new tab)). Trajan Pro, the OpenType version, put small capitals in the lowercase slots. Trajan Pro 3, by Robert Slimbach, has six weights and adds Greek and Cyrillic (Adobe's specimen (opens in a new tab)). This site does not host any of them.
A font is a file stored on a device. Text is a string of character codes, and the app that shows it picks a font from what the device has. When you copy text, only the codes travel. So "copy and paste Trajan" has two honest answers: paste look-alike characters that exist in the Unicode standard, or paste a picture. This page offers both, and says which is which.
The one place the real thing can appear is the first font on the Real fonts tab. It draws the Trajan your own device has installed, and if there is none it draws a plain serif. The heading of this page is set in Trajan Pro 3 through this site's own Adobe Fonts web project; your text never is.
The copy and paste looks
Trajan has no lowercase, so five looks use ordinary capitals that survive any site: Capitals, Spaced capitals, Inscription dots, Latin spelling and (from a different block) Small capitals, which use Phonetic Extensions (opens in a new tab) and IPA Extensions (opens in a new tab). X has no small capital, so it stays a plain x. Bold serif and Bold serif, spaced use the Mathematical Alphanumeric Symbols (opens in a new tab), and Fullwidth capitals use the Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms (opens in a new tab) block.
Every look says which Trajan habit it is closest to, whether it has numbers, and whether some sites undo it. For the letter styles on their own, see the small text generator (opens in a new tab).
Roman inscription style: dots, spelling and numerals
Roman stone cutters separated words with a small dot, an interpunct (opens in a new tab). The Inscription dots look copies that. The Roman alphabet also had no J, U or W: I did the work of J, and V of U (Latin alphabet (opens in a new tab)). The Latin spelling look applies those rules, so a Latin phrase looks right on a plaque.
The Inscription tab turns a number from 1 to 3999 into a standard-form Roman numeral (opens in a new tab) (IV, IX, XL, XC, CD and CM are used, not IIII or VIIII), and reads a numeral back as a number. A bigger number needs a bar over the letters, which plain text cannot carry, so the tool says so. It also lists 10 well-known Latin phrases, each in Latin spelling with dots and in plain capitals.
The free alternatives
The 12 open fonts are Cinzel, Cinzel Decorative, Marcellus SC, Forum, Castoro Titling, Aboreto, Cormorant SC, Playfair Display SC, Spectral SC, Italiana, Bellefair, Gilda Display. All are under the SIL Open Font License 1.1 (opens in a new tab), obtained through Fontsource (opens in a new tab) from Google Fonts (opens in a new tab). Cinzel (specimen (opens in a new tab)) is the closest in spirit to Trajan and is a variable font (opens in a new tab) here, so its weight runs from 400 to 900 and a fine slider sets the steps between. The others are served at one weight, so the weight picker is hidden for them. Each file is a Latin subset hosted on this site and loaded with the FontFace API (opens in a new tab) only when you pick it. A Latin subset covers English and most Western European text. Greek and Cyrillic are not promised.
The picture is drawn on a canvas and saved with the browser's own canvas export (opens in a new tab)as a PNG, JPG or WebP. PNG keeps transparency. The SVG is vector markup, and an open font's file is placed inside it so it looks the same anywhere. The device font has no file to place, so its SVG only names the Trajan stack. The PDF holds the finished picture. Many browsers cannot make a canvas of more than about 16.7 million pixels, and the page warns you when your size and resolution go over that.
The studio has seven design tabs. Fonts sets the typeface, weight, size, spacing, tilt and a small line under the main words. Effects adds colour, gradient, outline, glow, scanlines, RGB-split and glitch slices. Shadows and Borders add depth and frames. Backgrounds sets colour, pattern, dark edges, film grain, a repeated background word and the canvas size, including platform sizes. Symbols adds characters such as © and é. Export downloads one picture, a ZIP of several sizes or several texts, copies CSS, HTML or React, and saves your looks as a file. You can keep up to eight looks as My looks on your device.
CSS and the font stack
The CSS tab writes a rule from your studio settings: font, weight, colour or gradient, outline, glow, shadow, border, spacing, case and tilt. Effects CSS cannot draw, such as scanlines, grain and patterns, are listed in comments in the rule. For the Trajan on your device it adds no file. The stack is "Trajan Pro 3", "Trajan Pro", Trajan, Cinzel, "Times New Roman", serif, as a font-family (opens in a new tab) list: the browser uses the first one that is available. Trajan is only available where it is installed, and Cinzel only applies if you load it.
For an open font the rule includes an @font-faceblock and a note on where to get the file. You host the file on your own server, which the open licence allows. To show real Trajan Pro 3 on your own site, use an Adobe Fonts web project, which must load through Adobe's embed code (Adobe's web font licensing (opens in a new tab)), or buy a self-hosting licence from the foundry.
When a look turns back into plain letters
Unicode defines normalisation forms (opens in a new tab). The compatibility form NFKC replaces many look-alike characters with the ordinary ones they are based on. If a site applies it, Bold serif and Fullwidth capitals become plain. Capitals, spaced capitals, dots, Latin spelling and small capitals are not changed. The tool checks that claim for every look in its tests rather than assuming it, and the chip on each row shows the result.
Length and counting
The mathematical letters are outside the Basic Multilingual Plane, so each is two UTF-16 units. Small capitals are one. That is what the length of a JavaScript string (opens in a new tab) counts, and some sites count that way. The tool counts characters or UTF-16 units, and compares the result with a limit you choose. Apps count in different ways and limits change, so confirm in the app.
What to keep as plain text
- Hashtags, usernames, email addresses and links. Styled letters make them a different string.
- Anything people search for. A search for the plain word may not find styled text.
- Anything that must be accessible. Screen readers may skip styled letters or read each by its Unicode name.
- A picture of text. Add the words as alt text or in the caption.
- Your own website. Use real text and a real font, with the CSS tab, not pasted look-alikes.
Checks gives a plain copy to paste next to a styled one.
Licence
Trajan is a commercial typeface from Adobe, and its name belongs to its owners. This site does not distribute it and does not claim to. Adobe Fonts allows its web fonts on a site only through its embed code, and sells self-hosting separately (Adobe font licensing FAQ (opens in a new tab)). The 12 open fonts are under the SIL Open Font License 1.1 (opens in a new tab), which allows use in a logo, a poster or a video, including commercial work, and does not allow selling the font file by itself. Each family keeps its designer's copyright. The Specimen link on the Real fonts tab opens the family on Google Fonts.
Privacy
Everything is worked out in your browser. Your text is not uploaded or saved. Your options and My looks are kept in your browser storage, and nothing leaves your device. The page heading loads a stylesheet from Adobe Fonts, which is why that request goes to Adobe; the tool itself makes no such request.
Frequently asked questions
Is Trajan free to use?
No. Trajan is an Adobe Originals typeface. Adobe Fonts includes it with a subscription, and you can use it in your own designs under that licence. For a website, Adobe requires the font to load through its own embed code, and it does not allow you to host the font files yourself; self-hosting needs a licence bought from the foundry or a reseller. This site does not host Trajan, and pages that offer "Trajan Pro free download" are usually sharing a copy without permission. If you need the look for free, use a Trajan alternative such as Cinzel.
What is the best free font like Trajan?
Cinzel is the usual choice. It is a Roman inscription capitals design under the SIL Open Font License 1.1, so it is free for commercial work, and it comes in weights from 400 to 900 here. Marcellus SC, Forum, Castoro Titling and Aboreto are other Roman capitals, and Cormorant SC, Playfair Display SC and Spectral SC give small capitals. All 12 fonts in the Real fonts tab are free under that licence. None is a copy of Trajan, so compare them at the size you will use.
Can I copy and paste the real Trajan font?
No. A font is a file on a device, and copied text carries only the characters, so no website can paste Trajan into a bio or a comment. What does paste is look-alike Unicode letters, which this tool gives you as 8 looks. Your device draws them in its own font, so the result is not Trajan. For the real typeface, use a licensed copy in a design app, or make a picture with the Real fonts tab.
Why does Trajan have no lowercase letters?
It copies Roman inscription lettering, which was carved in capitals only. In Trajan Pro and Trajan Pro 3, the lowercase keys type slightly smaller capitals instead (Adobe's specimen calls them small capitals), so typing in lowercase still gives capitals. That is why the Letter case option starts on capitals, and why the Small capitals look is here.
Which Unicode look is closest to Trajan?
Capitals is closest to Trajan Regular, because it is plain capitals and your device or app picks the font. Bold serif is the nearest to Trajan Bold, but it is a mathematical letter set drawn in whatever serif your device has, so it is a rough match. Small capitals are the nearest to what Trajan Pro puts in its lowercase slots. None of these is the Trajan typeface.
What does the Latin spelling look do?
It spells your text the way a Roman stone cutter would: J becomes I, U becomes V, W becomes VV, accents are dropped and a dot separates the words. JULIUS becomes IVLIVS. It changes your spelling on purpose, so use it for Latin-style lettering and not for a name or a brand that has to stay as written. Inscription dots does the same dots without changing any letters.
Does it work with Greek or Cyrillic?
Not here. Trajan Pro 3 covers Latin, Greek and Cyrillic, but the copy and paste looks restyle only the letters A to Z and the digits 0 to 9, and the free fonts on the Real fonts tab are Latin subsets. Greek and Cyrillic letters stay as typed, and the canvas draws them in a fallback font from your device, so check the preview before you export.
Why does the Trajan on this device option show a plain serif?
Because Trajan is only on a computer if someone installed it, for example through Adobe Creative Cloud or by turning it on in Adobe Fonts. When it is absent, the picture falls back to Times New Roman or another serif. The Checks tab tells you whether Trajan Pro 3, Trajan Pro or Trajan is installed on the device you are using. Pick Cinzel or another open font for the same result on every device.
Why is the page heading in Trajan Pro 3 when the tool is not?
The heading is set in Trajan Pro 3 through this site's own Adobe Fonts web project, which Adobe's licence allows for a site's own design. The licence does not cover letting visitors type their own text into the font and save it, so nothing you type is drawn in it. The tool uses the open-licence fonts instead.
Can I use the picture on a poster, a logo or a website?
A picture made with an open font can be used in your own work, including commercial work, under the SIL Open Font License. A picture made with the first font, the Trajan on your device, uses a font you may not have the right to use that way, so check the licence that came with it. A logo should be your own artwork in any case.
Does the copy and paste text work on Instagram, TikTok, X or Discord?
Usually, but test it in the app. Capitals, Spaced capitals, Inscription dots, Latin spelling and Small capitals are not changed by Unicode normalisation, so sites that apply it leave them alone. Bold serif and Fullwidth capitals can be turned back into plain letters by sites that normalise text, and the rows say which looks do. Apps change their rules, and we have not tested every one.
Is my text uploaded?
No. Everything is worked out in your browser, including the pictures. Your options and My looks are kept in your browser storage. Your text is not saved.
Sources
- Adobe Fonts, Trajan (opens in a new tab)
- Wikipedia, Trajan (typeface) (opens in a new tab)
- Adobe, Trajan Pro 3 online specimen (opens in a new tab)
- Adobe Fonts, web font licensing (opens in a new tab)
- Adobe Fonts, font licensing FAQ (opens in a new tab)
- Google Fonts, Cinzel (opens in a new tab)
- Wikipedia, Interpunct (opens in a new tab)
- Wikipedia, Latin alphabet (opens in a new tab)
- Wikipedia, Roman numerals (opens in a new tab)
- Unicode chart, Mathematical Alphanumeric Symbols (U+1D400) (opens in a new tab)
- Unicode chart, Halfwidth and Fullwidth Forms (U+FF00) (opens in a new tab)
- Unicode chart, Phonetic Extensions (U+1D00) (opens in a new tab)
- Unicode chart, IPA Extensions (U+0250) (opens in a new tab)
- Unicode Standard Annex #15, Normalization Forms (opens in a new tab)
- MDN, String length (UTF-16 code units) (opens in a new tab)
- MDN, font-family (opens in a new tab)
- MDN, Variable fonts guide (opens in a new tab)
- MDN, FontFace (opens in a new tab)
- MDN, HTMLCanvasElement.toBlob() (opens in a new tab)
- SIL Open Font License 1.1 (opens in a new tab)
- Fontsource, font catalogue and licences (opens in a new tab)
The Some sites undo it and Survives normalising chips are checked against NFKC in our tests. How an app or a device draws a character is not something we can test everywhere, and apps change what they accept. The open fonts are look-alikes, not copies of Trajan.
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