Where the lettering comes from
In 2018 Comicbook.com covered a set of Dragon Ball Z logo drafts by Akira Toriyama that had been shared by the official Dragon Ball website. Each draft has a huge Z with a mark cutting through it and blocky lettering for the title. The report says Toei Animation streamlined the design for the final logo and made it closer to the Dragon Ball logo, but kept the edgy letters Toriyama drew. The Z was set apart in red.
Evidence for this attribution ↓No paid font selected
Free alternatives
Compare the actual letterforms with the same text. These are editorial alternatives, not fonts attributed to Dragon Ball.
Free alternative
Bangers
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Regular · Latin specimen
Comic-book capitals with a forward slant and lively, uneven energy, close to the logo's mood. Its letters are narrower and more even than Toriyama's, and it has no outline of its own.
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Lilita One
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Regular · Latin specimen
A chunky, rounded display face that matches the weight and friendly bulk of the letters. It is upright and regular, so tilt a few letters and add a black outline to get nearer the logo.
View fontToriyama and the later logos
Kanzenshuu, a Dragon Ball fan research site that cites its printed sources, says Toriyama coined the title Dragon Ball Z, based on the anime guide Son Goku Densetsu. It also says he drew a rough design for the Dragon Ball GT logo, which is shown on page 82 of the GT Perfect File Vol. 2. It does not say who finished that logo.
Evidence for this attribution ↓The series behind the logo
Dragon Ball began as a manga by Akira Toriyama in Weekly Shōnen Jump in 1984. Toei Animation adapted it into two anime series: Dragon Ball, first shown on Fuji TV in February 1986, and Dragon Ball Z, which took over its time slot in April 1989 and ran until January 1996. The first series ran for 153 episodes, and Dragon Ball Z adapted the final 325 chapters of the manga.
Evidence for this attribution ↓How to get the look
Set your word in heavy, uneven capitals and let a few letters tilt or sit off the line. Fill the first word in yellow and the second in red, then add a thick black outline around every letter. A big red letter at the end, cut by a diagonal stripe, gives the Z effect. Bangers or Lilita One are good free starting points; add the outline in your design tool.
Common questions
Is the Dragon Ball font free?
There is no official Dragon Ball font. The logo is drawn artwork, and fan-made fonts are unofficial. For your own designs, Bangers and Lilita One are free under the SIL Open Font License.
Who designed the Dragon Ball Z logo?
Akira Toriyama drew the early drafts, and Toei Animation produced the final version, according to Comicbook.com. Toei kept Toriyama's lettering and made the logo closer to the original Dragon Ball one.
Did Toriyama design the Dragon Ball GT logo too?
Kanzenshuu says he drew a rough design for the GT logo, printed in the GT Perfect File Vol. 2. We found no source naming who finished it.
Sources & evidence
Editorial review completed November 10, 2026.
- Comicbook.com — Dragon Ball Z reveals original logos by Akira Toriyama
News
- Kanzenshuu — Toriyama's contributions to the anime
Fan research archive
- Wikipedia — Dragon Ball
Encyclopedia