Best Fonts for UI Design (2023 Edition)

Jason_design
13 min readJun 9, 2023

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When it comes to headers, articles, and application user interfaces (UIs), selecting the right font is crucial. The font choice can greatly impact the overall aesthetics, readability, and user experience. In this blog, we will explore some of the best fonts specifically tailored for headers, articles, and application UIs. By understanding their unique characteristics and suitability, you can elevate your designs and create engaging and visually appealing content.

Headline

The headline or title holds immense significance in any design, often serving as the focal point. That’s why it’s crucial to invest additional time in carefully selecting the optimal title font for your upcoming project. The typeface you employ for your headline has the power to captivate and engage your audience.

Fortunately, there’s no need for you to expend valuable time searching for the perfect headline or title font, as we have already undertaken the task for you. We have curated a comprehensive list of the finest title fonts that are suitable for a wide range of applications, including posters, flyers, websites, social media posts, and various other design formats.

Furthermore, we are delighted to share some valuable tips to assist you in choosing a title font that will steer you in the right direction. With our guidance, you can save time and confidently select the ideal font for your project.

  1. Proxima Nova

Proxima Nova Font, a timeless and clean sans-serif typeface widely recognized as one of the best web fonts. Designed by Mark Simonson, this font family offers 16 fonts and 7 weights, including italics, making it versatile and easy to use for print media designs. Proxima Nova pairs well with Calibri and Nunito fonts, and it is favored for its simplicity and readability. Perfect for a range of applications, this font is a popular choice for mugs, t-shirt designs, and various digital projects.

2. Freight Sans

Freight Sans is a refreshingly clean and well-designed typeface that effortlessly combines readability with a touch of elegance. This versatile font is perfect for various applications, whether it’s captivating headlines, flowing text, or clear signage. From web designs to print materials and even apps, Freight Sans excels in every project it graces. When a reliable sans serif is called for, look no further than the remarkable versatility of Freight Sans.

3. Futura

Futura is a forward-looking and efficient typeface. Designed by Renner, it breaks away from traditional sans-serif fonts and embraces geometric simplicity. With near-perfect circles, triangles, and squares, Futura’s strokes maintain even weight and low contrast. Its lowercase features tall ascenders and circular “a” and “g” shapes. The uppercase characters resemble classical Roman capitals. Futura has seen various adaptations and digitizations over the years.

4. Harmonia Sans

Harmonia Sans is a modern and exceptionally clean font family known for its geometric sans-serif style. Designed by Jim Wasco in 2010 and released by Monotype Corporation on March 19, 2012, it has quickly become a sought-after typeface in the design industry.

This remarkable font offers excellent legibility and precise features, placing it among the most refined typefaces available. With five weights to choose from, including condensed and monospaced versions, Harmonia Sans caters to a wide range of design needs. Its impeccable design and remarkable clarity make it a perfect choice for various design projects.

5. Graphik

Graphik Font, a versatile vintage sans-serif typeface designed by Christian Schwartz in 2009. Inspired by the Kollektif font, Graphik is perfect for branding, ads, and signs. With 20 styles and 8 weights, including Regular, Bold, Italic, Light, Medium, Ultra, Heavy, and Thin, it offers flexibility for various design projects. It supports CSS embedding, has extensive language support, OpenType features, and excellent pairing capabilities. The Regular weights alone feature over 250 captivating characters. A free online font generator tool is available for quick design work.

6. FF Meta Serif

FF Meta Serif serves as the complementary serif typeface to Erik Spiekermann’s influential FF Meta. Developed in collaboration with type designers Christian Schwartz and Kris Sowersby, FF Meta Serif was released by FontFont in 2007 after three years of meticulous crafting. While the sans-serif version of FF Meta may have fallen out of favor to some extent, the serif counterpart remains widely utilized across the web. The typeface offers six weights — light, book, medium, bold, extrabold, and black — each accompanied by their respective italics.

7. Roboto

Roboto embodies a unique duality. Its design features a mechanical skeleton with predominantly geometric forms, yet it retains an inviting and friendly appearance through its open curves. Unlike certain grotesque typefaces that distort letterforms to enforce a strict rhythm, Roboto maintains the natural width of letters, resulting in a more harmonious and effortless reading experience. This characteristic aligns it with the rhythmic flow often associated with humanist and serif typefaces.

8. Jubilat

Jubilat, designed by Joshua Darden and released through Darden Studio in 2008, is a slab serif typeface that deserves more recognition on the web. While it may not be as widely used as other slab serifs like Adelle, it is a remarkable typeface with great potential. Notably, Jubilat gained visibility through its prominent use in Bernie Sanders’ 2016 presidential campaign, suggesting a growing popularity. With an extensive family of 11 weights, each accompanied by matching italics, Jubilat stands as one of the most versatile slab serifs available.

9. Interstate

Interstate is a digital typeface created by Tobias Frere-Jones in the 1990s. It was inspired by the signage alphabet designed by Dr. Theodore W. Forbes for the US Federal Highway Administration in 1949. Initially intended for signage use, Interstate has been refined for print and on-screen applications. Its wide spacing makes it suitable for display purposes in print. Frere-Jones later designed Whitney, a related typeface that is more versatile for general print usage.

10. Neue Plak

Plak, designed by Paul Renner in 1928, is a lesser-known typeface overshadowed by Futura. However, Monotype designers Linda Hintz and Toshi Omagari have revived it as Neue Plak. With 60 weights, Neue Plak stays true to Renner’s original intent, combining quirky details with German stiffness. It offers distinctive features like open counters and hairline widths, making it versatile for editorial, packaging, logos, and both print and digital environments.

11. Adelle

Adelle is a remarkable web font designed by Veronika Burian and José Scaglione. With an extensive selection of 28 typefaces, it provides exceptional versatility. Supporting 82 languages and offering 26 OpenType features, Adelle is perfect for extensive editorial use in newspapers and magazines. The font boasts nearly 900 characters per weight, including small caps, fractions, and different number styles. It even supports over 40 languages using the Latin extended alphabet.

Articles

When it comes to choosing fonts for articles, prioritizing readability is key. After all, the success of any written content relies heavily on how easily it can be consumed by the readers. The selected fonts should not only provide optimal readability, but also ensure a comfortable reading experience for the audience, regardless of the medium through which the articles are being presented.

  1. Freight Text

Freight Text, designed by Joshua Darden and published by GarageFonts in 2005, is a versatile serif typeface that offers a wide range of options for various typographic needs. As part of the Freight superfamily, which includes Freight Sans, Freight Neo, Freight Display, and Freight Big, Freight Text provides a comprehensive set of styles to tackle diverse typographic challenges.

With five weights — light, book, medium, bold, and black — each accompanied by matching italics and small caps styles, Freight Text offers flexibility and richness in design. Whether you’re aiming for a delicate and elegant look or a bold and impactful presence, this typeface provides the tools to achieve your desired aesthetic.

2. Source Sans

Source Sans, previously known as Source Sans Pro, is a sans-serif typeface designed by Paul D. Hunt and released by Adobe in 2012. It is Adobe’s first open-source font family, distributed under the SIL Open Font License. Inspired by gothic typefaces from American Type Founders, Source Sans features a larger x-height, wider characters, and humanist-influenced italic forms. It offers six weights in upright and italic styles, as well as a variable font option. With extensive language support and improved readability, Source Sans is a versatile choice for various design projects.

3. Open Sans

Open Sans is a versatile and contemporary sans-serif typeface commissioned by Google. It offers excellent legibility across various mediums, including print, web, and mobile. With its clean and modern design, Open Sans is highly readable in both small and large sizes. Best of all, it’s a free font! Use it in your next design project to make your content easily readable and visually appealing.

4. Merriwheather

Merriweather is a free and open-source serif typeface offered on Google Fonts. It prioritizes readability on screens, making it an excellent choice for digital content. Unlike many other serifs available, Merriweather provides a complete range of weights and styles, including light, normal, bold, and ultra-bold, each accompanied by matching italics. This versatile typeface offers a variety of options to enhance the visual appeal of your text.

5. Proxima Nova

As stated in the Headline Fonts Proxima nova is a collection of 16 fonts and 7 weights, including italics, it offers versatility for both print and digital designs. Proxima Nova Font complements well with Calibri and Nunito fonts, and is praised for its simplicity and readability.

6. Franklin Gothic

Franklin Gothic Font is a famous sans-serif typeface designed by Morris Fuller Benton and released by American Type Founders. It is widely used in Microsoft Windows software and is popular for media applications, such as advertisements and newspaper headlines. The font offers different weights and is available for free download.

7. Camphor

Camphor Font is a modern sans-serif typeface inspired by Edward Johnston’s London Underground type and Eric Gill’s Gill Sans. Designed by Nick Job, it combines classical proportions with a clean and cool aesthetic, making it suitable for various applications including branding, wayfinding, advertising, and editorial design. With six weights, companion italics, small caps, alternates, and broad language support, Camphor is a versatile and legible typeface with a distinctive English style.

Application UI

When it comes to crafting application user interfaces (UIs), the importance of selecting the right fonts cannot be overstated. The choice of fonts significantly impacts the visual appeal and overall user experience of an application. To assist you in your font selection process, here is an extensive list of some of the best fonts to consider for application UIs:

  1. Proxima Nova

As stated in the previous Headings Proxima Nova is a great font to use in Headline Articles and Application UIs .Proxima Nova combines the characteristics of both geometric and humanist sans-serif typefaces, resulting in a contemporary and functional design.

2. Inter UI

Inter UI, a highly acclaimed and versatile font, has garnered significant recognition among designers for its exceptional suitability in application UIs and digital design projects. Created by Rasmus Andersson, Inter UI is meticulously crafted with a strong emphasis on readability and readability across a broad range of screen sizes and resolutions.

3. Roboto

Roboto is a widely acclaimed and immensely popular sans-serif font, meticulously developed by Google to cater to the ever-evolving digital landscape. Renowned for its exceptional versatility, it has seamlessly integrated itself into countless applications and user interfaces, solidifying its position as a go-to choice for designers and developers alike.

4. Graphik

Graphik, created by the talented designer Christian Schwartz, is a contemporary and stylish sans-serif font that has garnered widespread acclaim and popularity within diverse design contexts, remarkably shining in application user interfaces. Its allure lies in its ability to effortlessly marry a clean and modern aesthetic with a subtle touch of sophistication, making it a coveted choice among designers seeking a versatile and visually captivating typeface.

5. Source Sans

Source Sans, an open-source sans-serif font meticulously crafted by Adobe, stands as a testament to the power of collaborative design and the beauty of accessibility. Developed with a specific focus on user interfaces, Source Sans has gained widespread recognition for its unparalleled readability and remarkable versatility, making it a cherished asset in the realm of typography.

6.Lato

Lato, the brainchild of the talented designer Łukasz Dziedzic, has risen to prominence as a beloved and remarkably versatile sans-serif font. Renowned for its clean and modern aesthetic, Lato has captured the hearts of designers and developers alike, solidifying its place as a top choice for an array of design projects, particularly application user interfaces.

7.Avenir Next

Avenir Next, a font hailing from the esteemed Avenir typeface family, stands tall as a highly esteemed and extensively used typographic gem. Meticulously crafted by legendary designer Adrian Frutiger, Avenir Next has garnered immense recognition for its clean, contemporary, and visually appealing appearance.

8. Open Sans

Open Sans, masterfully crafted by the renowned designer Steve Matteson, has emerged as an esteemed and incredibly adaptable sans-serif font. Its widespread usage and popularity can be attributed to its pristine and easily readable design, rendering it a favored selection for an extensive array of design projects, notably including application user interfaces.

9. Aktiv Grotesk

Dalton Maag’s Aktiv Grotesk stands as a contemporary and widely embraced sans-serif font, celebrated for its impeccable craftsmanship and an aura of modernity. Known for its clean lines, geometric precision, and remarkable versatility, Aktiv Grotesk has firmly established itself as a go-to choice for designers seeking a font that effortlessly blends timeless elegance with a fresh and forward-thinking aesthetic.

10.Benton Sans

Benton Sans, an iconic and widely acclaimed sans-serif font, emerges as a masterpiece of typographic design, conceived by the talented Cyrus Highsmith and published by the esteemed Font Bureau. Revered for its timeless appeal, Benton Sans has solidified its reputation as a font of choice among designers seeking a harmonious blend of versatility and readability, particularly in the realm of application user interfaces.

11. Soleil

TypeTogether’s Soleil, a contemporary and remarkably versatile sans-serif font, emerges as a typographic masterpiece that effortlessly combines functionality with an exquisite aesthetic. Renowned for its clean lines and modern appeal, Soleil has garnered widespread recognition and solidified its position as a sought-after choice for application user interfaces, where clarity and visual impact are paramount.

12. Camphor

Studio Kmzero’s Camphor stands as a testament to the seamless fusion of versatility and elegance within the realm of sans-serif fonts. With its unique blend of modernity and classic design elements, Camphor captivates the creative minds of designers and emerges as a go-to choice for various design projects, including the captivating realm of application user interfaces.

13. Neue Plak Text

Designed by the acclaimed Jonathan Barnbrook, Neue Plak Text stands as a highly regarded and incredibly versatile font that emerges as a refined variation of the beloved Neue Plak font. While sharing the same roots, Neue Plak Text has been thoughtfully tailored and meticulously crafted to cater specifically to the demands of text usage, solidifying its place as a typographic powerhouse.

14. Effra

Effra, the brainchild of the talented designer Jonas Schudel, is a versatile and contemporary sans-serif font that effortlessly captures attention and delivers a visually striking impact. Renowned for its clean lines and modern aesthetic, Effra has emerged as a beloved choice for a wide range of design projects, including the ever-evolving realm of application user interfaces.

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Jason_design

An experienced UX designer, who wants to help aspiring to-be-UX designers who don’t know where to start.