Font selection
Changing the default font can make your print or electronic document more readable for everyone. Font choices are subjective; use what you think looks best but ask someone else to weigh in on your choices.
Sans-serif fonts like Open Sans, Roboto, and Arial are much easier to read as body text, especially with longer digital documents, as compared to serif fonts.
Serif fonts like Times New Roman, Frank Ruhl Libre, or Playfair Display can be a good choice for titles and headings. Serif fonts are preferred for longer printed documents.
Avoid overly decorative fonts like Comic Neue, Abril Fatface, Yellowtail, or Rubik Glitch. They can be used sparingly for logos or special text but should be accompanied by a more readable version.
On disfluency and retention
- Diemand-Yauman C, Oppenheimer DM, Vaughan EB. Fortune favors the bold (and the Italicized): effects of disfluency on educational outcomes. Cognition. 2011 Jan;118(1):111-5. doi: 10.1016/j.cognition.2010.09.012. Epub 2010 Oct 30. PMID: 21040910. Retrieved 2024 Apr 19.
Text size and formatting
Generally, the base document font should be size 12-14pt for body text and 18-20pt for headings. Experiment with your font’s weight (light, regular, bold), kerning (the amount of space between letters), word spacing, and line spacing to find something practical that communicates your message.
- Text should be left-aligned or justified if possible so that it can be scanned easily.
- For best readability, limit your use of italics.
What is a 12pt font, anyway? In typography, “pt” stands for “point”. It is a unit of measure used to specify font size. One point is equal to approximately 1/72 of an inch or 0.351 millimeters. Using the point system provides a standardized way to specify and compare font sizes accurately across different fonts, mediums, and resolutions. It allows designers and developers to have precise control over the appearance and legibility of text. When you see “12pt font”, it means the font size being referred to is 12 points (or 1/6 of an inch) tall. This is a relatively small font size often used for body text in print publications or on the web.