Working with default fonts can be a limiting decision when creating eye-catching designs. That is why it is common to download other typefaces from different websites when none of them convinces you. But what happens when you still choose fonts that suit your taste and want to customize them even more in After Effects?

If you are writing text in your compositions, then the Character panel is the perfect place to continue adapting them. Read on if you're interested in learning how to change the height and width of fonts in After Effects and further stylize it.

Modifying vertical and horizontal scales in the Character Panel

To start changing the shape of the characters in your fonts, open the Character panel by clicking Ctrl + 6 or Cmd + 6 if you are working on macOS. This panel is the one that will let you customize any text.

Once available in your workspace, activate the Text tool by hitting Ctrl + T or Cmd + T and type whatever you want on the canvas. After that:

• Select all the text you typed and locate the fourth compartment of the Character panel.
  
• Go to the Vertically Scale option. You will recognize it because its icon has a capital T and a vertical two-way arrow next to it.
  
• Move the value highlighted in blue to the left to shrink the characters in your text, or scroll to the right to lengthen it.

• Return to the value 100 % to restore the original shape of your text.

To change the width of the characters of your text:

• Select all the text you typed and go to the Character panel.
  
• Go to the Horizontally Scale option that you will find right next to the tool we just mentioned in the previous steps. You will recognize it because its icon is a capital T on a two-way horizontal arrow.
  
• Move the blue highlighted percentage value to the left to narrow your characters, or scroll to the right to make them wider.

• To restore the original width of the characters of your text, set the value to 100%.

Remember to select your text before applying any changes to your characters. Otherwise, you will not see them reflected in your project.