How to Choose a Font for UI or App Design? Typefaces for Functional Text

What should you pay attention to when choosing a font for your user interface or app? This video covers exactly that. I also pick on Helvetica (sorry, Hell-vetica) so you won’t pick it as a typeface for your functional text.

TL;DW: For your UI or app pick a typeface with clean distinctive characters (Il1 test), open shapes, little contrast, and set it legible, so it works in tiny sizes.

💌 Pimp my Type Newsletter with weekly font recommendations:
https://pimpmytype.com/newsletter

☑️ Submit your web design or app design for typographic review:
https://pimpmytype.com/review

📰 Corresponding article with images:
https://bit.ly/2XsFNXO

The term functional text summarizes everything that’s not display or body text. It’s short text that serves a specific purpose and might be mostly applied in a user interface or app design. You might find it in labels, navigational elements, captions, and so on.

When choosing a typeface for it:
👉 Make the Il1 test to see if the characters are really legible,
👉 Go for open shapes (open apertures),
👉 Be sure that the typeface works in sizes as small as 10 or 11 px, and
👉 Look for a font with an even stroke and liittle contrast.

Credits:
Intro music by Florian Kmet: http://kmet.klingt.org

0:00​ Intro
0:26 What is functional text?
1:30​ 1. Go for clarity
2:27​ 2. Look for open shapes
3:37​ 3. Make it legible
4:27​ Summary
5:02 Outro