Free alternatives to Helvetica

Helvetica is the most used typeface in the world, and licensing it for websites and apps isn't cheap. These are the closest free alternatives on FaceTypes, ranked by how closely their letters match: from near-identical clones to free neo-grotesques with the same spirit.

Swansea by Roger White: Roger White's public-domain neo-grotesque. The nearest in look and feel at regular and bold, with no licence terms at all.

Nimbus Sans by URW Type Foundry: URW's Helvetica clone, drawn to the same widths and proportions. As close as free gets: a straight swap in most layouts.

TeX Gyre Heros by GUST e-Foundry (Bogusław Jackowski, Janusz M. Nowacki), based on URW Nimbus Sans: Nimbus Sans extended with a far larger set of accented letters. The pick when you need more languages.

Inter by Rasmus Andersson: Not a clone, but the most practical swap on screen: a huge family of weights and features, designed for interfaces.

Miedinger by Owen Earl: Owen Earl's homage, named after Helvetica's designer. The same tight, closed shapes, set a touch narrower.

Raveo by Jakub Foglar: Helvetica's structure and proportions with a slightly more open, contemporary finish.

AUTHENTIC Sans by AUTHENTIC: A little wider and rounder, with the same flat, horizontal terminals. Helvetica's bones with more personality.

Opening Hours Sans by Opening Hours Studio: Very close in weight and width, with a slightly squarer, more modern rhythm.

Ronzino by Luigi Gorlero, Nunzio Mazzaferro: A clean neo-grotesque from Collletttivo that holds its own against paid Swiss faces.

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About FaceTypes

FaceTypes is a hand-picked library of hundreds of free and open-source typefaces. Every font is previewed, credited and licence-checked for commercial use, with a link straight to its designer or official source.

Why

Good open type is scattered across Google Fonts, independent foundries, design schools and designers' GitHub pages, and mixed in with a lot of fonts that are weak, badly made or not really free. FaceTypes brings the good ones together in one place and leaves the rest out.

How fonts are chosen

Every font here is free for commercial use. Each one is checked for its licence and a full Latin character set before it's added, then judged on quality. Personal-use-only fonts, pay-what-you-want fonts, duplicates and weaker designs are left out. Each page credits the designer and links to the source, never to sites that re-post fonts.

How fonts are sorted

Fonts are sorted the way type designers sort them, not by loose tags. There are six categories: sans serif, serif, slab serif, monospace, display and handwriting. Each is split into sub-styles. Serifs run from Venetian and Old Style through Transitional and Didone to Contemporary. Sans serifs divide into Grotesque, Neo-Grotesque, Geometric, Humanist and more. Display covers everything from poster and stencil faces to script, blackletter and pixel fonts.

Buy type when you can

Typefaces take years to make. If a project has the budget, license one: the Foundries page points to studios worth supporting. When it doesn't, good free type means better design everywhere.

The Identifier

Seen lettering you like? Upload a picture, type the letters, and the Identifier compares them against more than 1,700 font families to suggest the closest free matches in FaceTypes. It runs in your browser: images are never uploaded or stored.

Common questions

Are these fonts really free for commercial use?

Yes. Every font in FaceTypes has a licence that allows commercial use: client work, products, packaging, websites and apps. Most use the SIL Open Font License, and the rest use similar free licences. Each font's page says which. Fonts that are free for personal use only are never included.

What is the SIL Open Font License?

The SIL Open Font License (OFL) is the most common licence for free fonts. It lets you use, embed and share a font, including commercially. The main conditions are that you can't sell the font files on their own, and modified versions must be released under the same licence with a different name.

Can I use these fonts in a logo?

Generally, yes. The OFL and most other licences here cover logos and brand work, including for clients, because they restrict selling the font itself, not what you make with it. A free font isn't exclusive, though, so others can use it too. Always read the licence that comes with the download.

Can I use them on a website or in an app?

Yes. Open licences like the OFL allow fonts to be embedded in websites, apps and PDFs. You can self-host the files from the download, and many are also available from Google Fonts.

Why isn't my favourite free font here?

Either it didn't make the cut, its licence doesn't clearly allow commercial use, or it hasn't been found yet. Suggestions are welcome at [email protected].

The legal bit

Licences

FaceTypes doesn't own or sell any of these typefaces; each belongs to its designer or foundry. Each page states its licence, and the one supplied with the download is the one that applies, so read it before you use a font.

Downloads

Fonts are always downloaded from the designer, foundry or official open-source host. Where a licence allows, previews use files served from this site; otherwise FaceTypes shows a preview image and links to the source.

No warranty

Details are checked carefully but can change. FaceTypes accepts no liability for how fonts are used; if it matters, check the licence at the source.

Links to sources

Some sites give away paid fonts as "free". If a link here ever leads to a font shared without its designer's permission, please email [email protected] and it'll be removed immediately.

Corrections

Designer or foundry and something's wrong, or you'd like a font removed? Email [email protected] and it'll be fixed promptly.

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