Why Merriweather is the Best Serif Font for Digital Screens
Whether it’s a mobile app or a news website, you’ve probably noticed this lovely serif in some form or another. Created to particularly be appealing for digital audiences, Merriweather can be seen in all kinds of online works across various industries – from editorials, artist portfolios, to social media branding, and retail websites.
Where Merriweather Began
Designed by Eben Sorkin, founder of Sorkin Type foundry, the free typeface was created to be easily readable on screens. Thanks to its very large x height, mild diagonal stress, slightly condensed letterforms, and sturdy serifs, it’s a hardworking typeface you can count on for your digital endeavours.
It includes Light, Regular, Regular Italic, Bold, and Heavy styles. Expect multilingual support with matching italics. Nothing too fancy, but always sensible and easy to use.
How To Use Merriweather
Just because it’s more suited for the Web doesn’t mean you can’t apply Merriweather for print. Try them on business cards, invitations, brochures, album covers, or posters.
As a pretty serif, you can pair it with common sans types such as Roboto, Source Sans Pro, Proxima Nova, Montserrat, or Franklin Gothic. But it can also look just as good with a serif, provided that you strike the right balance (try Domaine Display or Adelle). Experiment by using bold characters, or use Merriweather as a header or title instead of body copy.
Old-Style Merriweather Font
Merriweather is an open-source serif that’s readily available at Google Fonts. You can also find it at Font Squirrel and Adobe Fonts. Feel free to use it for your personal or commercial works; just don’t sell the fonts on their own!
Complete your collection by getting your hands on the Merriweather Sans, too! As a low-contrast semi-condensed sans, it pairs perfectly well with Merriweather. For the italic version, visit Sorkin Type and see other attractive fonts along the way.
Want to contribute? Check out the project at Github.