Trending Typefaces and Fonts for 2020

With so many fonts to choose from, what are the top fonts out there right now? You are probably already familiar with fonts such as Times New Roman, Arial, and Roboto but did you know these fonts are classified under two different typefaces? These two typefaces are known as Serif and Sans Serif.

Is serif trendier than a sans-serif? Let’s start with the difference between the two. Serif fonts have lines added to a basic character (such as Times New Roman) and sans serif is a typeface that does not have those small serif lines at the ends of the characters.

Serifs are known to be classic and traditional. The following are a few of the top trending serif typefaces out right now. Previous trending serif fonts included Saonara, Coachella, and Libertinus. Now let’s take a look at the “it” fonts of 2020, shown with examples below.

​New York

Noe Display

​ITC Clearface

Sans Serif is associated with being modern and contemporary. Previous sans serif fonts included Avenir, Helvetica, and Roboto. Popular fonts of 2020 include the following:

San Francisco

​Avenir Next Pro

​Helvetica Now

Pairing the two typefaces together are also very common. When doing so, the rule of thumb is to use a sans serif for your header font and a serif font for your body. Keep contrasting font weights in mind to help distinguish hierarchy for users. A great resource for font pairing is FontPair and Fontjoy where you can view how fonts would appear paired together before implementing into your design. With that in mind, ensure that you have defined the purpose and mood of your design and then select fonts from there. For example, you wouldn’t want to use a curvy Comic Sans for an email to your client.

Now that you are aware of what fonts are trending right now, how does one stay up to date you might ask. Google Fonts is a great way to discover great typography. With their extensive catalog of web fonts, you will definitely be inspired and discover new fonts to use for any design project. Another great resource for typography inspiration is Pinterest. Creating a board dedicated to typography and following Pinterest users who contribute to the Pinterest community is a great way to see how others use font pairing as well and what is trending. 

Now that you’re up to date and possess font pairing knowledge, you are ready to design with stunning typography!

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- Jackie Chan is a UX/UI Designer at Perpetual