How to Rebuild the Font Cache in Windows 11 to Fix Corrupted and Glitched Text

Windows 11 maintains a dedicated system cache to index installed typefaces and accelerate the rendering of text across the desktop shell, Settings, Microsoft Office, and third-party applications. When this cache becomes corrupted—often following a failed update, abrupt power loss, or conflicting third-party font installations—users may encounter bizarre visual glitches. Common symptoms include scrambled characters, missing letters in dialogue boxes, garbled symbols, or entire interface labels rendering as hollow squares.

Rather than reinstalling your operating system, rebuilding the Windows 11 font cache forces the operating system to regenerate its font database from scratch upon your next reboot.

Step 1: Stop Font Cache Services via Services Manager

Windows locks font cache files in memory while its background caching services are running. You must temporarily halt these services before purging the files:

1. Press Windows + R to open the Run dialogue box.
2. Type services.msc and press Enter.
3. In the Services window, scroll down through the list to locate Windows Font Cache Service.
4. Right-click Windows Font Cache Service and select Stop.
5. Next, find Windows Presentation Foundation Font Cache 3.0.0.0 (if present). Right-click it and select Stop.

Leave the Services window open or minimize it, as you will restart the system once the cache files have been cleared.

Step 2: Delete Corrupted Font Cache Files

With the caching services halted, you can now remove the corrupted cache databases from both system and user directories:

1. Press Windows + E to open File Explorer.
2. In the address bar, paste the following directory path and press Enter:

C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local

3. If prompted with a dialogue stating you don’t currently have permission to access the folder, click Continue to grant administrative access.
4. Locate all files beginning with FontCache (such as FontCache-System.dat and other .dat variants).
5. Select these files and press Delete.
6. Next, navigate to:

C:\Windows\System32

7. Locate the file named FNTCACHE.DAT.
8. Right-click FNTCACHE.DAT and select Delete.

Step 3: Rebuild the Font Cache via PowerShell or Command Prompt

Alternatively, you can automate stopping the service, removing the cache files, and restarting the service in one swift terminal sequence using administrative PowerShell:

1. Right-click the Start button and select Terminal (Admin) or PowerShell (Admin).
2. Execute the following command block:

Stop-Service -Name FontCache -Force
Remove-Item -Path "C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\FontCache*.dat" -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
Remove-Item -Path "C:\Windows\System32\FNTCACHE.DAT" -Force -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue
Start-Service -Name FontCache

Step 4: Restart Your Computer

Once the files are purged and the service is refreshed, restart your computer:

1. Click the Start menu, select the Power icon, and click Restart.
2. During startup, Windows 11 will automatically scan the C:\Windows\Fonts directory and generate brand-new, uncorrupted cache binaries.

All previously scrambled typography, missing desktop labels, and square glyph symbols should now display cleanly across all applications.