Cozette is a bitmap programming font optimized for coziness and glyph coverage in terminal environments.
The project addresses the need for a small, sharp bitmap font that works well at higher DPI settings while providing comprehensive coverage of special characters used in CLI tools. It builds on the Dina font, which itself derives from Proggy, and draws inspiration from Creep. The font uses a 6x13 pixel bounding box with an average character width of 5 pixels. Cozette is distributed in multiple formats including bitmap variants in OTB, BDF, PSF, and FNT formats at normal and 2x upscaled resolutions, as well as a vector TTF version for compatibility. The bitmap formats are designed to look sharp and pixel-perfect at specific point sizes, while the vector version serves as a fallback despite inherent rendering limitations on most operating systems.
Developers should choose Cozette if they want a small bitmap font with strong terminal glyph support and are willing to use bitmap formats rather than vectors for optimal appearance. The tool suits those working on higher-DPI screens who find other small bitmap fonts like Creep slightly undersized, or those seeking a bitmap alternative to Nerd Fonts. The README explicitly notes that vector rendering of bitmap-like fonts is problematic across operating systems and recommends using the OTB bitmap format when possible. The project acknowledges that bitmap fonts scale poorly but deliver pixel-perfect sharpness at their intended sizes, whereas vector fonts scale well but may suffer from antialiasing artifacts at smaller sizes.
The project maintains an active issue tracker where users can request missing glyphs, treating glyph coverage as an important ongoing goal. Development includes support for multiple platforms with specific guidance for Linux, Mac, Windows, and particular applications like Dmenu, VSCode, and Kitty. The codebase is written in Python and includes a build system for generating the font in its various formats from a single source.
