T42 to PS Converter

Export Type 42 fonts as standalone PostScript files online for free

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Print-Ready Output

The resulting PS file is immediately usable by PostScript printers and RIPs — a direct path from T42 font data to printed output.

Server Powered

All PostScript generation happens on our servers. Your machine does none of the heavy lifting — just upload and download.

Automatic Cleanup

Uploaded T42 files are deleted right after processing. PS outputs are purged within 24 hours to keep your font data private.

How to convert T42 to PS

1

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

2

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

3

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

About formats

T42 (Type 42) is a PostScript font format developed by Adobe Systems that wraps a TrueType font inside a PostScript font dictionary, enabling PostScript printers equipped with a TrueType rasterizer to print TrueType fonts natively. The name reportedly references Douglas Adams' "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy," where 42 is the answer to the ultimate question. Type 42 was introduced with PostScript interpreter version 2013 in the mid-1990s, with Adobe publishing the formal specification as Technical Note #5012 in July 1998. The format embeds the complete TrueType font data — outlines, hinting instructions, and tables — as a binary string within the PostScript sfnts dictionary entry, while wrapping it in standard PostScript font structure including CharStrings, Encoding, and FontInfo dictionaries. One advantage is preserved TrueType hinting: because the original quadratic spline outlines and grid-fitting instructions are passed directly to the TrueType rasterizer, the printed output matches the screen rendering quality that TrueType hinting was designed to deliver. This is superior to the alternative approach of converting TrueType outlines to Type 1 cubics, which discards hinting. Type 42 also enables PostScript workflows to incorporate the vast library of TrueType fonts bundled with Windows and macOS without manual font conversion. PDF generators commonly use Type 42 embedding when including TrueType fonts in PostScript-based output pipelines. The format bridges two major font technologies that evolved separately, ensuring interoperability across the PostScript and TrueType ecosystems.
Developer: Adobe Systems
Initial release: 1995
PS is the standard extension for files written in PostScript, the page description language created by Adobe Systems and first shipped in 1984 with the Apple LaserWriter. A PostScript file is a complete program that describes the precise appearance of a page — text, vector graphics, curves, fills, and even embedded raster images — using a stack-based interpreted language with full programming constructs. When sent to a PostScript-compatible printer or interpreter (such as Ghostscript), the program executes and produces rendered output. PostScript introduced cubic Bezier curves as the standard representation for smooth outlines, a mathematical model that became the foundation for virtually all subsequent vector graphics and font technology including PDF, SVG, and OpenType. The language also serves as a font format: Type 1 PostScript fonts encode glyph outlines as PostScript programs with hinting instructions for sharp rendering at low resolutions, while Type 3 fonts use the full language to define arbitrarily complex glyphs. One advantage is device independence — a PostScript file produces identical output whether rendered on a 300 dpi desktop printer, a high-resolution imagesetter, or a software rasterizer, because it describes shapes mathematically rather than as pixel grids. The human-readable text format provides another practical strength: PS files can be inspected, debugged, and modified with any text editor, and they can be generated programmatically by any software without requiring specialized libraries. PostScript files are widely handled by Ghostscript, Adobe Acrobat, preview applications, and numerous publishing and graphics tools.
Developer: Adobe Systems
Initial release: 1984

Frequently Asked Questions

Why convert T42 to PS?

A standalone PS file embeds the font data in a way that PostScript printers and document processors can consume directly — useful for archiving or print workflows.

How do I open a PS file?

Ghostscript, Adobe Acrobat Distiller, and macOS Preview all handle PS files. Most modern PDF viewers can also render PostScript after conversion.

Does the conversion alter font quality?

No — the TrueType glyph data from the T42 wrapper is placed into the PS file with full fidelity. No outlines are redrawn or simplified.

Is batch processing supported?

Yes. Upload multiple T42 files at once, and Convertio will produce a separate PS output for each one.

Is this free?

Absolutely. Convertio provides T42 to PS conversion at no charge — fully browser-based with no account required.