The Best Email Fonts for Improved Readability

What does your handwriting look like? 

Is it tiny or big? Messy or clear? Readable or not readable? 

And why did we replace handwriting with PC fonts? First, to save our time. Second, to make the messages readable and professional. 

However, there are plenty of fonts. Not all of them look professional and not all of them are easy to read. 

Check out our article to learn about typeface categories and how to choose a font that fits your email! 

There are three main groups of text fonts. System fonts, web fonts, and custom fonts. Before we dive deeper into the email font best practices, let's distinguish between those categories.

System fonts are pre-installed and come automatically with any device or software, such as macOS, Linus, Windows, etc. They are designed to load consistently in the recipient's email boxes. However, they don't offer much creativity, as they are balancing compatibility and brand alignment. 

A web font is a typeface designed specifically for the internet. They are not hosted on any device, they are hosted on external servers. They might take longer to load and it may not display to all.

Custom fonts are the third category. You can design your fonts via third-party creators and create a new font from scratch. It will let you align the text with your brand identity. However, there is a risk it may cause trouble, as it is not always compatible with all devices. 

Why should you spend time thinking about which font category to choose and which of the font types is better than another? 

Choosing the right font is more than just a good-looking email. It is a part of email graphics and UX, supporting first impression, professionalism, and readability. It is all related to brand identity and tone of voice.

User-friendly fonts give the impression of a simple, clear, and sophisticated message. It is easy to read even for people with disabilities, it is consistent and gives your brand an identity. You as a sender show credibility and professionalism. On the other hand, the heavy and cram\ped font may seem to be aggressive and unreadable. Giving such a first impression, you don't show professionalism and your chances to build a strong relationship with your customers are getting lower. 

Of course, the choice of font is partly a subjective thing, but it has a big impact on the final delivery of your message and it may also influence the reader's engagement with your email.

Choosing the right font plays quite a big role in email marketing. A recent study compared the readability of various fonts on paper and screen. Based on the result some fonts are easier to read than others, especially for people with some disabilities. According to the study, Arial, Courier, and Helvetica are the easiest fonts to read for people with and without dyslexia. According to statistics, 1 person out of 10 has dyslexia, which makes it plenty of your potential readers.  

Here are the most favorite fonts: 

• Arial

• Calibri

• Courier New

• Futura

• Georgia

• Helvetica

• Lato

• Lucida

• Open Sans

• Oswald

• Palatino

• PT Serif

• Raleway

• Roboto

• Tahoma

• Times New Roman

• Verdana

Fonts are divided into three font “families”, each devoted to a different email goal.

1. Serif Fonts

Serif fonts are often used for professional communication, especially in public media. You can find it in many books and newspapers. How can you recognize it? Serif fonts usually have a decorative line on “their feet” which makes them look polished and formal, but not too extraordinary.  

Examples of serif fonts:

• Book Antiqua 

• Garamond

• Georgia

• Times New Roman 
  
  2. Sans-serif fonts

Sans-serif fonts are typical of their simplicity. They don't have any decorative tails - instead, they are very narrow. Designers use them often in digital materials, as they are easy to read. 

Examples of sans-serif fonts:

• Arial

• Calibri

• Helvetica

• Open Sans
  
  3. Decorative fonts

Decorative fonts offer an additional artistic value, they can be vintage, wavy, or bold. They are good-looking, but they tend to be harder to read. Also, they might not be accessible to everyone. Designers tend to use them in smaller doses - usually in headlines or special text sections.

Examples of decorative fonts:

• Copperplate Gothic 

• Lobster

• Pacifico 

• Zapfino 

  
  The font affects the way the reader perceives your brand. Here are a few tips how what criteria should the safe email font meet. It should be:
  
  

• Easy to read at all sizes. 

• Compatible with major devices and platforms.

• Simple and consistent.

• Appropriate for the tone of your message.

• Fitting to your branding.

  
  Remember you need to consider the goal and type of your email when choosing your font. There are different fonts suitable for different occasions (or platforms). Let's have a look at fonts designed for some email types.

Newsletter, as the word itself indicates, delivers company news. Therefore, it is extremely important to stick to the company branding. Company branding is not only about colors, it is about email fonts as well. Fit the email font to your branding and be consistent. Choose an attractive, but clear font that won't take much space to squeeze all your news in. 

Here are a few recommendations for email newsletter fonts:

• Poppins

• Open Sans

• Roboto

• Oswald

• Lato

Ideal font for email signature gives an impression of professionalism. To give an impression of trust and class, use the following email signature fonts: 

• Ubuntu Poppins

• Arial 

• Helvetica

• Georgia

• Tahoma

One of the key characteristics mentioned above is email font size. How big should the text be? 

Too big letters can give the reader an impression of unprofessionalism, being disarranged. The same effect would have a tiny font that would be hard to read. Of course, there is a different recommended size when it comes to headlines and the email body. For headlines, choose a size around 22-28 px (no larger than 34 points). For an email body, it is around 16-18 px (10-16 points). 

Don't forget to send yourself a testing email to make sure the font type and size look good!

Color psychology has a big effect on the reader. In the email text, especially in newsletters, try to be consistent and align your email with your company branding. In general, it is good to use colors in headings to grab attention, but don't use them in body text, and don't use more than two font colors in one email. To get the best results, it is good to make yourself familiar with the role of colors in email marketing. 

Making the text bold can help you catch the reader's attention. It is good for headlines, subheadlines, or highlighting information in the longer text. However, less is sometimes more. Don't use too much bold text. Don't make the text bold, italic, and underlined at once. By combining all those effects, the message would be chaotic and disarranged. Choose one effect and be consistent.

Adding a link to your email may help to increase the reader's engagement. However, don't underline the links. Make it bold instead. Underlined links are hard to read for disabled people.

Most people don't read your emails. They scan it. By aligning the text of your email to the left side, you will make it easier to scan. If your target audience writes from right to left (such as Arabic), it is the contrary.

When choosing two different fonts, make sure they fit together. Create contrast, and avoid using too similar fonts. However, choose them to deliver the message with the same tone of voice.

Email design is a complex task, and has a significant impact on your email marketing performance. Are you struggling to find time and resources for that? Balance the creativity and efficiency with the Topol platform. Work with pre-selected email fonts and pre-built email templates, or create customized email from scratch, using custom fonts. If you want to learn about how to use templates in the Topol App, check out our video “Get To Know Topol App” or try a free trial and see for yourself!