T11 to PFB Converter

Convert CID Type 2 fonts to binary PostScript Type 1 format online

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Compact Output

PFB binary encoding produces smaller files than ASCII alternatives, making your converted T11 font data efficient for storage and deployment.

No Installation

Run the entire T11 to PFB conversion from your web browser. No PostScript tools, font editors, or plugins needed on your machine.

Privacy First

Your uploaded T11 files are deleted right after processing, and PFB results are removed within 24 hours to protect your font assets.

How to convert T11 to PFB

1

Select files from Computer, Google Drive, Dropbox, URL or by dragging it on the page.

2

Choose pfb or any other format you need as a result (more than 200 formats supported)

3

Let the file convert and you can download your pfb file right afterwards

About formats

T11 (Type 11) is a PostScript font type defined by Adobe Systems as part of the CID-keyed font architecture, combining CID glyph addressing with TrueType outline data wrapped in a Type 42 PostScript shell. In Adobe's font type numbering, Types 9, 10, and 11 are CID-keyed counterparts to Types 1, 3, and 42 respectively — so Type 11 is essentially a CID-keyed Type 42, designed for TrueType fonts that contain very large glyph sets, particularly CJK (Chinese, Japanese, Korean) character collections. The format allows PostScript interpreters with TrueType rasterizer support to render CJK TrueType fonts while using CID numeric indexing instead of glyph names, which is critical for character sets numbering in the tens of thousands. Glyph outlines remain in native TrueType quadratic spline format, preserving the original hinting instructions, while the CID layer provides efficient glyph access and subsetting through CMap resources. One advantage is direct TrueType rendering quality — unlike converting TrueType outlines to PostScript cubics, Type 11 passes the original outlines to the rasterizer intact, preserving hand-tuned grid-fitting instructions. The CID indexing provides another benefit by supporting multiple encoding schemes (Unicode, national standards) mapped to the same glyph collection without data duplication. Type 11 fonts appear primarily in professional CJK print production and PDF document workflows where large TrueType-based character sets must be embedded in PostScript-derived output.
Developer: Adobe Systems
Initial release: 1993
PFB (Printer Font Binary) is the compact binary representation of Adobe's PostScript Type 1 font format, introduced alongside PFA in 1984. Where PFA stores the entire font program as hex-encoded ASCII text, PFB wraps the same data in a lightweight binary container that uses segment headers to mark regions as ASCII or binary. The encrypted glyph outline section (eexec) is stored as raw bytes rather than hex characters, cutting the file size roughly in half compared to PFA. Each segment begins with a marker byte and a 32-bit length field, making the format simple to parse while still significantly more compact. PFB became the dominant Type 1 distribution format on Windows and DOS platforms, used in combination with PFM (Printer Font Metrics) or AFM files that supply the character width and kerning data needed for text layout. One advantage is storage and transfer efficiency — the binary encoding means a typical text font occupies 30-50 KB rather than the 60-100 KB its PFA equivalent would require. The segmented structure also allows PostScript interpreters to stream font data efficiently, processing ASCII and binary portions with their respective handlers. Adobe Type Manager (ATM) on Windows relied on PFB files to render smooth Type 1 text on screen, a capability that transformed desktop publishing on the PC platform. While OpenType fonts have largely replaced Type 1 for new work, PFB files persist in established print workflows, archival font libraries, and systems that depend on PostScript output.
Developer: Adobe Systems
Initial release: 1984

Frequently Asked Questions

Why convert T11 to PFB?

PFB is the binary PostScript Type 1 format — more compact than PFA and widely supported by Windows font systems, print spoolers, and legacy design applications.

How do I open a PFB file?

Windows recognizes PFB fonts natively when paired with a PFM or AFM metrics file. Font editors such as FontForge and Type 1 utilities also read PFB directly.

Is PFB smaller than PFA?

Yes — PFB uses binary encoding, making it roughly half the file size of the ASCII-encoded PFA equivalent, which is beneficial for storage and distribution.

Does the conversion preserve all glyphs?

PostScript Type 1 is limited to 256 glyphs per font. Large T11 CJK character sets may require restructuring to fit within Type 1 encoding constraints.

Is T11 to PFB free?

Yes, Convertio offers free T11 to PFB conversion handled entirely in the cloud — no downloads or account creation necessary.