The Best Free Google Fonts for 2026
Google Fonts has over 1,500 families. Most of them are unusable. Here are the 22 that actually belong in a professional project - with live previews so you can test them with your own text before committing.
Every year, the same question: which Google Fonts are actually worth using? Not the ones that show up first in the catalog. Not the ones your client's nephew picked. The ones that designers and developers actually reach for when building real products.
This list is opinionated. It skips the classics everyone already knows (Roboto, Open Sans, Lato) and focuses on fonts that are either newer, underappreciated, or simply the best in their category right now. Every font loads live below so you can type your own text, change the size and weight, and see exactly how it renders before you add it to your project.
Once you have picked your fonts, try the Font Pairing Tool to test combinations and find the right heading + body match.
Sans-Serif
The workhorses. Clean, readable, and versatile.
Inter
Rasmus AnderssonThe default for modern UI. Clean, highly legible, with a tall x-height built for screens. If you have no idea what to pick, start here.
Inter - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Manrope
Mikhail SharandaGeometric with warmth. Works for both headings and body. A strong alternative to Inter when you want a little more personality.
Manrope - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Space Grotesk
Florian KarstenThe proportional sibling of Space Mono. Technical and geometric with just enough character for creative projects.
Space Grotesk - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Plus Jakarta Sans
Gumpita RahayuClean and contemporary with softer curves than Inter. Becoming a go-to for product design and startup landing pages.
Plus Jakarta Sans - Aa Bb Cc 0123
DM Sans
Colophon FoundryGeometric with optical sizing built in. Crisp and neutral at any size. The kind of font that never looks wrong.
DM Sans - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Outfit
Smartsheet IncA versatile geometric sans that transitions smoothly from large display to small body text. Underrated.
Outfit - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Sora
Jonathan BarnbrookBuilt for the Sora blockchain but useful everywhere. Modern geometric with subtly rounded terminals.
Sora - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Bricolage Grotesque
Mathieu TriayVariable font with expressive optical sizes. At large sizes it gets playful, at small sizes it stays readable. A designer favorite.
Bricolage Grotesque - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Instrument Sans
Rodrigo FuenzalidaSharp, refined, and new. A fresh addition to the sans-serif canon that feels both classic and current.
Instrument Sans - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Darker Grotesque
Gabriel LamTall, narrow, and distinctive. When you want your headlines to stand out from the Inter-Manrope-DM Sans crowd.
Darker Grotesque - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Geist
VercelBuilt by Vercel for the developer ecosystem. Clean and functional with a great monospace companion (Geist Mono).
Geist - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Work Sans
Wei HuangOptimized for on-screen body text. Slightly condensed proportions give you more words per line without sacrificing readability.
Work Sans - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Monospace
For code, data, and that raw technical aesthetic.
Space Mono
Colophon FoundryMonospace with personality. The go-to for code snippets, technical interfaces, and projects that need a raw, utilitarian feel.
Space Mono - Aa Bb Cc 0123
JetBrains Mono
JetBrainsPurpose-built for reading code. Increased letter height and carefully designed code ligatures. The best coding font, period.
JetBrains Mono - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Fira Code
Nikita ProkopovThe original coding font with programming ligatures. Still holds up and still widely used in editors worldwide.
Fira Code - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Serif
For editorial, luxury, and long-form reading.
Playfair Display
Claus Eggers SorensenHigh-contrast transitional serif. The default choice for editorial headlines and luxury branding. Pairs with almost any sans-serif.
Playfair Display - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Fraunces
Undercase TypeA "wonky" old-style serif with tons of personality. Variable axes let you dial up or down the quirkiness. Nothing else looks like it.
Fraunces - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Lora
CyrealA well-balanced contemporary serif that reads beautifully in long-form content. One of the best body text serifs on Google Fonts.
Lora - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Source Serif 4
Frank GriesshammerAdobe's open-source serif. Professional, refined, and designed to pair with Source Sans. A safe but excellent choice.
Source Serif 4 - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Cormorant Garamond
Christian ThalmannA display Garamond with extreme contrast. Stunning at large sizes for headlines. Feels expensive without costing anything.
Cormorant Garamond - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Display
Big, bold, and meant for hero sections.
Unbounded
GoogleBold, rounded, and unapologetic. A display font that commands attention for hero sections and event branding.
Unbounded - Aa Bb Cc 0123
Anybody
Tyler FinckUltra-variable display font. From compressed to extended, thin to black. One font that covers dozens of use cases.
Anybody - Aa Bb Cc 0123
How to Choose
Start with what you need most: body text or headings. If you are picking a body font, readability at 14-18px is everything - Inter, DM Sans, and Lora are safe bets. If you are picking a heading font, look for character and contrast - Playfair Display, Bricolage Grotesque, and Unbounded all command attention.
Pair a sans-serif with a serif for natural contrast. Or pair two sans-serifs with different personalities - one geometric (DM Sans) and one humanist (Manrope). Avoid pairing fonts that are too similar. The whole point is hierarchy.
Every font on this list is free, hosted on Google Fonts CDN, and production-ready. Load them with a single link tag and you are set. No licenses, no fees, no restrictions.
Try the Font Pairing tool to experiment with combinations.
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