Chinese Font Subsetting Guide
Learn how to reduce Chinese font files from 16MB to under 500KB. This guide covers everything you need to know about CJK font optimization.
Why Chinese Fonts Are So Large
Chinese fonts are much larger than English fonts. This is because Chinese writing uses thousands of unique characters. English only needs 26 letters plus some punctuation. Chinese needs over 20,000 characters for daily use.
A typical Chinese font file can be 15-20 megabytes. Compare this to an English font at 50-200 kilobytes. Loading such a large file would make your website very slow. Users might leave before the page even loads.
The solution is font subsetting. This means keeping only the characters you actually need. Most Chinese websites use only 2,000-3,000 characters. By removing the rest, you can shrink your font by 95% or more.
Real Size Reduction Examples
Here are some real examples of what you can achieve with subsetting:
Even a 95% reduction makes a huge difference. Your pages will load much faster. Your users will have a better experience. And you will save money on bandwidth costs.
Understanding Chinese Character Sets
Not all Chinese characters are used equally. Some appear in almost every text. Others are rare and used only in specific contexts. Understanding this helps you choose the right subset.
Common Character Sets
| Set Name | Characters | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| GB2312 | 6,763 | Covers 99.9% of daily Chinese text |
| Common 2500 | 2,500 | Covers 97% of daily Chinese text |
| Common 1000 | 1,000 | Covers 90% of daily Chinese text |
| Custom | Varies | Exact characters from your content |
Simplified vs Traditional
Chinese has two writing systems. Simplified Chinese is used in mainland China and Singapore. Traditional Chinese is used in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau. Make sure you choose the right one for your audience.
Our subsetter has separate presets for both. You can also combine them if your site serves both audiences.
Step-by-Step: Subset Chinese Fonts with Our Tool
Follow these steps to reduce your Chinese font size using our free online subsetter:
Open the Font Subsetter
Go to our Font Subsetter Tool. You will see an upload area at the top of the page.
Upload Your Chinese Font
Drag and drop your font file into the upload area. You can also click to browse your files. We support TTF, OTF, WOFF, and WOFF2 formats.
Popular Chinese fonts include Noto Sans SC, Source Han Sans, and Microsoft YaHei. Make sure you have the rights to use and modify the font.
Analyze Your Font (Optional)
Click the purple "Analyze Font" button. This shows you what characters your font contains. It also recommends the best presets based on coverage.
This step is optional but helpful. It helps you understand what you are working with.
Select Chinese Simplified or Traditional
In the Quick Presets section, click on "Chinese Simplified" or "Chinese Traditional". A checkmark will appear showing it is selected.
You can select multiple presets. For example, add "Basic Latin" if your site has English content too.
Add Extra Characters (Optional)
Need specific characters? Use the "From Text" box. Paste your website content there. The tool will extract all unique characters automatically.
You can also add character categories like numbers and punctuation. Or specify exact Unicode ranges if you know them.
Generate Your Subset
Click the orange "Subset Font" button. The tool will process your font. This usually takes a few seconds.
When done, your browser will download the subsetted font. You will also see the size reduction stats. Check that you achieved a good reduction.
Unicode Ranges for Chinese
If you need more control, you can specify exact Unicode ranges. Here are the main ranges for Chinese characters:
/* Main Chinese Characters (CJK Unified) */ U+4E00-9FFF /* Chinese Punctuation */ U+3000-303F /* Fullwidth Forms (numbers, letters) */ U+FF00-FFEF /* Bopomofo (pronunciation marks) */ U+3100-312F
For most websites, the main CJK range (U+4E00-9FFF) is enough. Add punctuation if your text uses Chinese quotation marks and other symbols.
Best Practices for Chinese Web Fonts
Convert to WOFF2 After Subsetting
WOFF2 gives you an extra 20-30% size reduction. Use our Font Converter to convert your subsetted font.
Include Chinese Punctuation
Chinese uses different punctuation than English. Characters like 。（）【】 need to be included. The Chinese presets include these automatically.
Test Your Subsetted Font
After subsetting, test your website thoroughly. Make sure all text displays correctly. Missing characters will show as boxes or question marks.
Keep the Original Font
Always keep a backup of your original font file. You might need to create a different subset later if your content changes.
Ready to Convert Your Fonts?
8 formats and 56 conversion paths available
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Written by
Sarah Mitchell
With help & verified by language expert