Designer’s Favourite Fonts & Why

Published on Tuesday, June 23, 2009 – 12:00 am

Twitter Fonts

I sent out a tweet (follow me) asking my followers (and Facebook Friends) what their favourite font was and why - these were some of their replies… what about you?

For the record, at present, my favourite is Gill Sans as I find it so versatile, especially when working with other fonts.

Times

Times. Simple, but not boring, and timeless.

Via @Carmabella

Franklin Gothic

Franklin Gothic Medium and Verdana. Both are just so easy to read even at small sizes.

Via Adrian Lujan (Facebook)

Franklin Gothic Book Regular. Easy to read.

Via Dylan Lee Hodges (Facebook)

I really love the clean lines of Franklin Gothic family mixed up with classic letter forms of Adobe Caslon.

Via @BridieMacdonald

Gill Sans Light

Gill Sans Light because is delicate.

Via Barbara Culinas (Facebook)

Gotham

Other than Helvetica, it’s Gotham , because it’s clear, it stands out and modern… Applicable on small sizes too.

Via animate_me

Totally into GOTHAM right now. Clean, great bold-face, solid.

Chris Skinner (Facebook)

Gotham, purely because I’m Batman in disguise.

Via David Airey (Facebook)

DIN

Not THE - but A favourite: FF DIN - for clarity, the weights, more attitude but not to much character, reads in small sizes

Via @simikken

Philosopher

I would say Philosopher. It’s a stylish, modern font that is similar to common fonts so that it’s functional and elegant.

Via @bixtin

Mutlu

My favourite font is called “mutlu” because my finance has our daughter’s name tattooed across his chest in it…

Via @artbyjaz

Futura

Don’t know… for paragraphs I like Futura Lt BT, I guess because it looks clean and helps me fit all the text.

Via @edMaga

Futura, Neutraface, Garamond, Rockwell

Marcos Luis Hernández (via Facebook)

Big fan of Futura, it’s clean but has personality. I like its curves.

Sasha Endoh (via Facebook)

Futura, Verdana, and Myriad Pro I use the most.

Stan Perl (via Facebook)

Metroscript

Actually fond of Metroscript cause I’m on a big vintage graphic period!! Montreal is also a good sans serif one.

Via @MonsieurH

Americana

Americana is my favourite sans-serif, and Charcoal is currently my fave serif.

Lisa Du Plessis (via Facebook)

Jenson

Adobe Jenson Pro.

TJ Governanti (via Facebook)

Trajan

Trajan Pro, classy and elegant and I love the Q in it.

Tareq Alsamman(via Facebook)

Swiss 721

SWISS 721 family….looks classy and elegant.

Mohamed Shinaz Saeed (via Facebook)

Sketch Block

I’m torn, it’s either Papyrus or Comic Sans. Actually, my two favorites are Sketch Block and Geo Sans Light. I find it reads so well, and looks very clean and minimal.

Via Will Higgins (via Facebook)

Nobel Light

Nobel-Light

Christine LeBlanc Payne (via Facebook)

Trebuchet

Comic sans! Haha, no, seriously, I think is Trebuchet and Futura .

Diane Hernandez (via Facebook)

Trebuchet… because who doesn’t like saying “Tray-boo-shay”, and it has a sturdy, even thickness to its stroke which lends itself nicely to big bold headers for websites

Jayson Akers (via Facebook)

Frutiger

Helvetica, Frutiger, timeless.

Sanja Karic (via Facebook)

Bleeding Cowboys

OK someone has to say it…Bleeding Cowboys !

Brian Nelson (via Facebook)

Boberia

Myriad Pro (boring I know) & Boberia

Andrea Guevara Higham (via Facebook)

Century Gothic

I like Century Gothic, its an easy to work with font.

Maikel Beckers (via Facebook)

Garamond

Garamond - totally unfazed by time, style, and trend.

Shakun Harris (via Facebook)

Helvetica

Helvetica, and 2nd would have to be Helvetica, just pipping Helvetica. In all seriousness though, my vote goes to Helvetica.

Via @burdzelkrai

Helvetica - swiss design at its best.

Via @loveannon

Helvetica Neue for it’s incredible versatility-Letter spacing, size and the font variations can get you thousands of new fonts.

Via @baffleinc

Helvetica - classic and contemporary, timely and timeless, all rolled into one.

Via Rafael Armstrong

The Helvetica Neue family, it just gives so much choice in one family and looks clean and sharp on screen

Via @keanrichmond

Helvetica Neue. A more refined font compared to Helvetica, versatile & simply elegant

Via @zilch

Helvetica. Since it was the cleanest and most common beautiful font i’ve ever seen.. No font is close..

Via @thematrixuum

Got to be Helvetica family - so much range in a single font in terms of variety in weight and styles and so timeless!

Via @threemenoneshed

Comic Sans

I like comic sans for fun & verdana for an elegant look ;)

Via @beiruta

Comic sans, it makes everything patronising

Via Jon Hassall (Facebook)

No font list could be complete with out someone mentioning Comic Sans. On that note check out this short documentary on the typeface, it’s worth a watch. I loved the quote from the Comic Sans designer, Vincent Connare:

“If you love it, you don’t know much about typography, but if you hate it, you really don’t know much about typography either and you should get another hobby.”

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82 Responses to “Designer’s Favourite Fonts & Why”

  1. Elsa Lee on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Nice collection of fonts. I saw this on my twitter feed but was undecided, though I’m really liking Gill Sans at the moment too.

    Did a short article on the pros and cons of Comic Sans, so I think I’m in that medium state regarding it. I do still dislike it when I get e-mails from the higher ups in Comic Sans though.

  2. Kim Smith on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    I think my all time most-used font is Futura. It has several weights so it is very versatile. I went through a Gill Sans phase as well, it’s very nice. I love using a lot of clean sans serif faces.

  3. Jon Liebold on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Helvetica, Garamond, and Celtic Garamond the 2nd are my favs. But as favorites I try to limit using them so I do not become too dependent on them.

  4. Nathan Beck on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    A nice selection of fonts, it’s nice to see mostly classics cropping up in an age of endless free web fonts.

    Helvetica always has it’s place, my favourite family member probably being Helvetica Neue Condensed Black with uppercase lettering.. mmm!

    When it comes to sans I’m also a lover of Century Gothic and Avenir (http://www.linotype.com/72/avenir-family.html). For serifs on the web I’d have to opt for Georgia over Times. Classic.

  5. Alex Mitchell on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Helvetica and Century Gothic are favourites of mine. Just great fonts to work with. Sketched Rockwell I’ve used in a few personal projects, as well as Bleeding Cowboys. They are some fun fonts to play with.

    I also loved the final ‘Comic sans’ comment! ;P

    Thanks for a great article and keep up the fantastic work!

    Alex | @ZenElements

  6. Leon Zerleg on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Gill Sans, Futura & Century Gothic:
    Their clean looks makes them look soft and beautiful.

    Trajan:
    For it stylish sharp look.

  7. Teddy on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Helvetica will always find its way into the list :) I like it that it’s a very neutral font, and appears to be quite readable at smaller font sizes too. I applaud the inclusion of Futura and Gotham - they’re my favourite typefaces as well!

    Isn’t Trajan the ‘movie poster’ font? Teehee. Actually it looks quite good by itself, and that’s probably the reason why every single movie poster designer abused it.

  8. Kim Randall on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    I absolutely love Enviro D

  9. Jen Rochester on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Definitely Geo Sans Light :)

  10. Daniel George on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Trebuchet all the way. Great list.

  11. Ricky Henderson on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    There are some great fonts on this list. I also like Univers and Trade Gothic.

    Bleeding Cowboys however, should be removed from the list. It is hideous and played out.

  12. Briana on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Fun list! I like Americana too, it’s often a finalist when I’m choosing a font for a project. I wouldn’t call it a sans though, it’s definitely a hybrid, or maybe even a serif.

    Gill Sans is a very good font, but I feel like I’ve been seeing it everywhere lately.

  13. Andrew Kelsall on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Great list Jacob, my favourite at the moment is “Delicious”, although a free font, I like it, and used it in my logo :)

  14. Aaron on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Eh, some of these are true but maybe there should be a Fonts Designers HATE section, b/c Comic Sans / Bleeding Cowboys could go on that.

  15. Tareq on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Im in love with Philosopher now to behounst first time i see it, its too bad that Comic is in the list, im sure other fonts feel shame :)

  16. Pewee on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    I can’t believe no one mentioned the Avant Garde Family (http://www.faces.co.uk/topfonts/avant_garde.cfm) I love that font.

    And I agree with previous posts about bleeding cowboy, can something be classed as a Typographic font if it does not include the majority of characters?

  17. Michelle on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Love Helvetica for it’s all around clean and modern feel - can be used at any size and mostly any instance.

    Trajan is beautiful for display type and has such a ageless appeal.

    Lots of great fonts on here but feel that Times, Bleeding Cowboys and Comic Sans are overused by EVERYONE who claims they are a designer - I consciously will not use any of these.

  18. David Leggett on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Cool choices, and fun reading some of the reasons :)

    I’m surprised no one mentioned the Museo family, it’s really grown popular recently. I myself really like Archer and Placebo.

  19. Stephen Tiano on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Um, Americana’s the serif and Charcoal is the sans.

  20. Mandy on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Another great post. There are so many wonderful fonts, DIN, Bliss, Gotham, Hoefler & Helvetica Neue are just a few of my favorites. Choosing the a good font and employing a strong use of typography can really enhance your design create a professional look and feel.

  21. Joffrey on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    Helvetica HTC. :)

  22. Joffrey on Jun 23, 2009 said:

    “HTC” ? I said “FTW”. :>

  23. Mantiuxa on Jun 24, 2009 said:

    How about asenine?

  24. Devin on Jun 24, 2009 said:

    Well you know I was going to groan about someone mentioning Verdana (Why?!) but I’m just happy that someone said Trebuchet. It’s like going to the park and discovering a beautiful butterfly: “Why hello there pretty little font! What are you doing here?”

  25. yla on Jun 24, 2009 said:

    a optima é optima!

  26. Luis Eduardo on Jun 24, 2009 said:

    Helvetica: the best font for me, it looks great in all ways and with eny kind of color and is easy to read and to use with others fonts.

  27. Rachel on Jun 24, 2009 said:

    I’ve always loved Caxton with it’s curvy serifs, although I never actually used it.
    Don’t get much opportunity to look at fonts in my current work role as our branding is strict Arial.

  28. Carina on Jun 24, 2009 said:

    Last year I loved Poor Richard, now I think I might dump him for the Philosopher …

  29. Derek Kimball on Jun 24, 2009 said:

    I just love the font “Aviano”. While it isn’t really a versatile font choice, it sure is a looker.

  30. Erika on Jun 25, 2009 said:

    Fun post. I’m a big fan of Century Gothic. It’s clean and generally works well with other fonts.

  31. daphne on Jun 25, 2009 said:

    I like Century Gothic myself, but my font nut lecturer says it’s a copy of another type. He hates Helvetica like anything though :)

  32. Adam on Jun 25, 2009 said:

    A few fonts I like: Cheltenham, Adobe Caslon, Binary, Meta. I don’t know why, but I just can’t bring myself to like Helvetica.

  33. Joshua Davis on Jun 26, 2009 said:

    Franklin Gothic because its strong and versatile. Great list!

  34. designed2shine on Jun 26, 2009 said:

    I like Hypatia Sans Pro, although I’m not sure it classes as my favorite. It’s a nice mix of serif and sans serif, or if you prefer you can use it without any serifs. I’ve found it versatile, and it’s just…nice!

    I found your comments about Comic Sans very interesting. The video clip is great as well. Thanks for sharing!

  35. Amanda Vlahakis on Jun 27, 2009 said:

    Yep, several of my favourites in there.

    I’ve probably used Century Gothic the most, it’s so versatile I think.

    Bleeding Cowboys - completely desperate to use it in a project, but nothing has come up yet that warrants it!

    I like Trajan and Swiss721 also.

    Also like Times Roman, but feel a strange reluctance to use it because it’s used so much in general content/web copy etc. Shame, think its got some really nice lines, hence why it’s a classic.

    I’m not actually that keen on Helvetica, I don’t think I’ve ever used it.

  36. Amanda Vlahakis on Jun 27, 2009 said:

    Sorry I keep constantly messing up my Twitter ID!

  37. Charlie on Jun 27, 2009 said:

    I’d say Helvetica and Century Gothic bold. I used both extensively in my own site design and have grown to love them.

    For some reason I’ve never liked Trajan when it’s on white. It reminds me of gimicky-exotic fonts like Papyrus (The Crocodile Hunter font) thats just a bit over-the-top. On posters it looks pretty good, though.

  38. Liane YoungBlogger on Jun 27, 2009 said:

    Wow. Font fest! I love collecting fonts! SOmetimes though it gives me a headache in selecting a good one among the hundreds. I have so many favorites!

  39. KENLENVIL on Jun 28, 2009 said:

    I LOVE DIDOT! SIMPLY BECAUSE IT’S WHAT MOST FASHION MAGAZINES USES IN THEIR COVERS. & I LIKE FASHION. BUT FOR NORMAL USE I TEND TO GO FOR HELVETICA & CENTURY GOTHIC.

  40. Seabass on Jun 28, 2009 said:

    Berthold Akzidenz Grotesk

    yea…. its the shmoodest and its NOT Helvetica!

  41. Dainis Graveris on Jun 29, 2009 said:

    Mine would be Century Gothic or Geo Sans because it looks always elegant and stylish in graphic design works.

    I like explanations done after each font mention, interesting article!

  42. Mahallo Media on Jun 29, 2009 said:

    Every designer has a different favorite font :)

  43. Changzhi Lee on Jun 30, 2009 said:

    Oh my God I love Mrs. Eaves! Just that everyone complains they can’t read it unless it’s in Pt14 or above haha.

  44. Oli T on Jun 30, 2009 said:

    I’m loving Gotham at the moment- use it a lot! Also Meta is another favorite! Some good typefaces there which will stand the test of time. Unsure about Times however, overused, tired and dated!

  45. Ovi Dogar on Jun 30, 2009 said:

    A very nice collection of fonts…

    As Mahallo Media said, I agree that every designer has a different favorite font

    Ovi Dogar
    AbsoluteCovers.com

  46. Lucy George on Jun 30, 2009 said:

    You’re joking … Comic Sans? WTF?!

  47. AlessandroM on Jul 1, 2009 said:

    Can’t believe no one mentioned Soho :-\
    and, by the way, Times is not abused, at least not as much as helvetica/futura/times new roman/trajan…
    don’t forget that most of the time being overused means “quality”

  48. Mark on Jul 1, 2009 said:

    Typo: I think finance should be fiancé

  49. Chris Robinson on Jul 3, 2009 said:

    Gotham FTW!

  50. Tyler on Jul 3, 2009 said:

    I was reading the list, quite enjoying the fonts picked, and came across bleeding cowboys. I died a little inside all while dying laughing on the outside.

  51. Subash Aryal on Jul 3, 2009 said:

    excellent guide on font selection for web designers :-)

  52. Sam Dunn on Jul 4, 2009 said:

    Huge fan of Triplex (Used in the logo of Corkd) and Archer fonts. Good compilation.

  53. Pro Blogger on Jul 4, 2009 said:

    Very nice compilation of fonts, Beautiful post.

  54. replica on Jul 4, 2009 said:

    useyfwehf;oeisy rer

  55. replica on Jul 4, 2009 said:

    dfskjf teqwr

  56. Tom on Jul 10, 2009 said:

    I really hate how much attention Helvetica gets! It’s not the only great sans-serif. I kind of like serif fonts better, I find there often times easier to read.

    My favourite font is Palatino Linotype and I can’t believe that it hasn’t been mentioned yet!

  57. greenapple88 on Jul 15, 2009 said:

    I love “Century Gothic” font. It’s simply, easy to read and beautiful.

    and I like “Sketch Block” font because i like handwriter style.

  58. Ashely Adams : Sticker Printing on Jul 16, 2009 said:

    Being in sticker design industry myself, I use different types of fonts. My all time favorites are Helvetica, Americana, and Times. They help me to keep it simple. I also use comic sans at times. But have never tried Metroscript as I am not that fond of vintage graphic. Thanks for the post I’ll definitely bookmark it.:)

  59. Rob Johnson on Jul 21, 2009 said:

    Great selection of fonts, Americana is def. a serif and Charcoal is a sans-serif (I think those got mixed up) I LOVE Americana! That is on my list of to-buy’s. Great post thank you!

  60. Juan on Jul 22, 2009 said:

    It´s very difficult to decide which one you like most. Especially when you work more than 10 hours per day with the fonts. There are many wonderful fonts, but my favorites are the most useful: Helvetica, Frutiger and Futura.

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