One of the most important decisions to make during the design of a website is selecting a font, as it communicates things by itself, even without people realizing it. For years the media and advertising companies have established partnerships between fonts and emotions, so you should be aware about the mental associations that occur with typography in order to convey your message correctly.
1. Serif or Sans-Serif?
This is probably the first decision you should make, because it will greatly narrow down your options. The difference between the two is pretty simple; sans-serif fonts don’t have those extra tails at the end of each letter, while serif fonts do. You should also know what each type says:
- Serif: classic, elegant, traditional.
- Sans-Serif: modern, cleaner.
2. Look through a font directory
For those of you hoping to keep design costs down, Google Fonts is your directory. It’s free, easy to use, and has a good variety of fonts to choose from. If you’re looking for a bigger pool to choose from, Typekit is another great option. It does require a subscription if you want access to everything, but there’s also a free trial option that lets you use a smaller portion of their selection.
3. How many fonts should you use?
It is rare to find a site with just a font. The ideal would be to choose two fonts, one for headings and another for text. Our recommendation is to not use more than three and be careful that all fonts are different from each other but complementary in style.
4. Contrast is good
Don’t feel hesitant about mixing contrasting fonts. If chosen wisely, you can end up with a fantastic pair!
5. Overview
When looking for your font, you should have an idea of the mood you want your font to give off. If you’re going for an energetic and fun look, you might choose a big swirly font that adds some life to your page. But if you’re going for a professional look, you’ll probably want to stick to something simple and linear.
Remeber to be consistent with the fonts across all your website and do not use other combination of letters in another subpage.
