System Font Eduction
What are system fonts?
System fonts are the default fonts that come pre-installed on your computer. Because everyone has access to and is licensed to use system fonts just by having a computer, they’re the safest choice for font accessibility and consistency across various users.
A few common system fonts available on Windows, macOS, and iOS
(also known as a ‘font stack’):
- Arial
- Courier New
- Georgia
- Impact
- Palatino (Palatino Linotype on Windows)
- Times New Roman
- Trebuchet MS
- Verdana
There are specific fonts compatible with both Windows & Mac operating systems:
When to use system fonts?
Use system fonts for all designs created in Microsoft Office because Word & Powerpoint do not always reliably recognize newly downloaded fonts. Utilizing system fonts allows for easy and dependable access, ensuring all users can properly edit documents created in Microsoft Office. Designers will identify system fonts as fallbacks to all distinct brand fonts.
Brands typically identify system fonts as fallback font options in their brand guidelines, in the case they need to be used in Microsoft Word or PowerPoint. Because system fonts are designed to be simple and highly legible, they don’t usually make strong picks for a splashy or identifiable primary font, but they are an important part of the design ecosystem that supports a brand’s full range of work and deliverables.
Advantages & disadvantages
Advantages
- Keep your design consistent for all users
- When you need various people on various devices to be able to edit a Microsoft Word or PowerPoint document, using system fonts guarantees that they won’t have problems accessing or using that document’s fonts.
- System fonts are free and easily accessible. System fonts do not require a user to download or buy font files, whereas custom fonts can be highly expensive. Especially when multiple users need to edit a designed document, you avoid purchasing various costly custom font licenses, and avoid the headache of getting everyone to download those files.
Disadvantages
- Lack of brand recognition
- Brand fonts are always the first choice for strong design, as system fonts are intentionally simple and indistinct. Using system fonts makes brand recognition more difficult in design. System fonts should only be used in instances where a document needs to be created in programs like Microsoft Word or Powerpoint and edited by various users who would not have access to a brand’s primary font files.
- Potential incompatibility with old operating systems
- Having an out of date operating system running on your device can affect font compatibility, as system font databases get updated along with new versions of operating systems. Users keeping their devices up to date helps eliminate compatibility issues!
References & Resources
*Dev Diary | ‘System Fonts’
*‘The Advantage of System Fonts and How To Use Them in Your Website’ by Sean Ansderson via medium
*Google Fonts | ‘System font, or web-safe font’
*‘An ode to system fonts’ by Felix Hoffmann via medium
*System Fonts: All You Need to Know by Zap Layden