Nov

21

What typeface is good for the web?

Filed Under Graphics

One of the most important things to keep in mind when dealing with your website is typeface selection. On the web, your type choice is limited to the font that is available on your audience’s computer.

For this reason, you should always limit your choice to the typeface that is most readily available on computers today.

Here are the basic font faces available on most machines:

  1. Arial
  2. Arial Black
  3. Comic Sans MS
  4. Courier, Courier New
  5. Georgia
  6. Helvetica
  7. Impact
  8. Times, Times New Roman
  9. Trebuchet MS
  10. Verdana

Legibility is key! Some tips for making the best type choice for your website.

  1. Sans serifs are best for online viewing
  2. You can use serif fonts for headlines and subheads
  3. Vary the sizes and weights of fonts to create contrast
  4. Limit your use of centered text. It reduces legibility greatly.
  5. Never use body type or any other small type in color as it makes it harder to read
  6. Rarely use underlining (if you do, use it on black type, never color) as this may look like links
  7. Many websites make use of graphics for creating headlines and even subheads to create more appealing layouts*
  8. If you have testimonials or interesting quotes, you can create an appealing graphic for that*

* If you are using graphics to replace text, include a description in “ALT” tags for search engine optimization. The type found in graphics is not read.

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