Maybe you are the type to create inspiration boards of the whimsical fonts you fall in love with on the Internet. And maybe you’re a committed Times New Roman user, and the idea of introducing new styles into your writing makes you want to hide under your desk.
Whether you love ‘em or hate ‘em, fonts are an essential component of excellent website design. Which is why our designers have created this font pairing guide just for you. Whether you’re looking for new ideas, or aren’t sure where to start when it comes to deciding your signature online handwriting, stay tuned to discover the ten most amazing font pairings you can use when creating your website.
Why is font choice important?
After all the time you’ve spent focusing all of your energy on your site’s content, transitioning to thoughts about your typeface can feel super trivial. Does anyone really care if your ‘As’ slant one way versus another? Designers excluded, the answer is probably no when it comes to geometric minutiae like this. But there are more obvious font characteristics that actually do matter and make choosing the right font for your website a very important determining factor for your website’s success. Let us explain why.
We’ll start with what fonts can communicate. Selecting a group of fonts that go together for your website is a bit like picking out what you’re going to wear in the morning. When you’re contemplating your closet, your goals are usually to assemble an outfit that represents who you are, and that doesn’t feature mismatched items. Your choices should frame your personality rather than take it over.
Same goes with fonts. The best web typography examples will feature font combinations that are consistent with your business’ branding, don’t clash horribly with each other, and don’t distract from the content that you’ve worked hard to produce. In other words, font pairings can simultaneously both express a message of their own, and also work in your favor to make sure other elements of your site can get their fair share of attention, too. For example, that’s why it could be a good idea to use a whimsical cursive font for a travel blog’s title, yet a more cleanly defined lettering for the menu options.
If you've read up about typography, you'll know that readability is one of the most important factors here. This is because visitors to your site won’t hang around if they have to decipher your words or if a combination of too many fonts has them rubbing their eyes. What’s more, search engines like Google take note of short browsing sessions on your site, or almost immediate clicks on the ‘Back’ button, which will affect your display ranking on results pages.
To avoid that fate, here are some pro tips we’ve compiled for you to keep in mind as you design your website. Or you can use them to seriously impress your friends with your extensive fun facts about fonts. You do you.
Keep it simple: Remember the number three. That’s the maximum number of fonts you will want to use on your site, total.
Arrange a hierarchy: Identify your title, subtitle, and paragraph fonts. Visually distinguishing these categories from each other will help site visitors instantaneously organize and comprehend the information you’re presenting to them. For example, using the most personality-infused, bold font for your headlines is a good practice because it’s an instant cue that those words contain the most essential information. Subtitles provide additional signage for your viewers, alerting them to menu options or calls to action. And paragraph text should of course be the easiest to read of all three.
Stay consistent: Beyond sticking to your font plan from above, this also means not switching things up mid-sentence. If you need to add emphasis in your writing, opt to italicize or bold your text rather than changing the font.
Now you’re all ready to start directing the fontscape of your dreams. Start browsing these font pairing suggestions to find the one that makes the statement that you want to share with the world. Each one lists the title, subtitle, and paragraph font recommendation, from left to right.
01. Georgia, Avenir and Avenir Light
Meet Georgia, a Serif web-safe font that is both elegant and serious, like a tux. It does well accompanied by the Avenir family, a classic sans serif font that boasts easy readability and matches Georgia’s graceful simplicity.
Good for: Business, portfolios, CVs, and publications.
Check out this Wix template featuring these fonts: Wedding videographers website template.
02. Oswald Medium and Roboto Bold
Oswald Medium communicates strength with its bold weight and clean lines. With a title font that strong, balance your page out with Roboto Bold. The neo-grotesque sans serif typeface was developed by Google as the system font for its mobile operating system, Android, to be “modern and approachable.”
Good for: Business, fitness, and technology. Check out this Wix template featuring these fonts: Karate school website template.
03. Reklame Script, Poppins Semi Bold and Poppins Extra Light
Reklame Script belongs to a family of fonts that are influenced by the hand lettering of 1940s and 1950s printed advertisements. This inspiration is reflected in the font’s friendly warmth, good for communicating your fun and personal approach. The clean and geometric look of Poppins SemiBold and Poppins Extra Light make these fonts your go-tos for your subtitles and paragraph text, respectively.
Good for: Family and kids-oriented businesses, online stores, DIY, and blogs. Check out this Wix template featuring these fonts: Comic convention website template.
04. Monoton, Lulo Clean and Futura
Get funky with the retro feel of Monton. This artistic font is definitely one best reserved for large headlines only. Counter its strong statement by keeping your subtitles simple and friendly with the all caps Lulo Clean. Tie it all together with a serving of elegance by using Futura for your paragraph text.
Good for: Music, entertainment, and retro themes. Check out this Wix template featuring these fonts: Hair braids salon website template.
05. DIN Neuzeit Grotesk and Avenir Light
Keep your site approachable and readable with the classic geometry of DIN Neuzeit Grotesk titles. Continue the trend with the classic sans serif Avenir Light, whose simple elegance goes easy on readers’ eyes.
Good for: Business, online stores, portfolios, and photography. Check out this Wix template featuring these fonts: Plant boutique website template.
06. Raleway and Helvetica
Raleway is the font equivalent of adding a statement piece to a black dress, or having your funky socks poke out of the bottom of tailored suit pants. Bold yet modern. Simple with a twist. It does well with Helvetica, a sans serif font which keeps the contemporary theme and clean appearance going.
Good for: Business, online stores, portfolios, and photography. Check out this Wix template featuring these fonts: Music artist website template.
07. Belinda, Libre Baskerville and Brandon Grotesque
The vintage brush script of Belinda can be used to evoke an inviting, personal atmosphere. Pair it with subtitles written in Libre Baskerville, whose serif lettering is modeled after an old font to give it a more traditional look. Finish things off with Brandon Grotesque in your paragraphs. The geometric sans serif font adds a touch of modernity to the more nostalgic touches of the previous two selections.
Good for: Business, fashion, DIY, blogs, and food. Check out this Wix template featuring these fonts: Beauty salon website template.
08. Playfair Display and Snell Roundhand
This combination takes elegance to the max. The modern serif font Playfair Display drips classic design. Together with the vintage Snell Roundhand in your subtitles, your site will show you know what it means to get fancy.
Good for: Weddings, invitations, jewelry, and online stores. Check out this Wix template featuring these fonts: Poster shop website template.
09. Sarina, Playfair Display and Proxima Nova
Sarina’s brush style letterforms projects that casual artsiness of the cool kids you know who went to design school. Its stylistic form is balanced well with Playfair Display subtitles, a modern serif that keeps things elegant and classic, and the simple Proxima Nova in your paragraphs.
Good for: Lifestyle, beauty, and online stores. Check out this Wix template featuring these fonts: Natural beauty store website template.
10. Clarendon LT, Lulo Clean and Georgia
The bold structure of this slab serif font makes Clarendon LT pop off the page. Tone things down in the rest of your text with the all caps (but still friendly!) Lulo Clean in your subtitles, and the gracefully professional Georgia in your paragraphs.
Good for: Business and publications. Check out this Wix template featuring these fonts: Designer store website template.
10 best font pairings cheat sheet
