Best Fonts and Sizes for Books: A Complete Guide

• Nov 29, 2024
• 7 min read

• Tags: Fiction, Formatting, Nonfiction, Novel

Want to enhance your book’s readability by selecting the best fonts? Explore our guide and learn everything about the best fonts for books. Whether you’re searching for a book title font or the best font for book covers, we’ve included everything. 

For readers wondering what font size books are written in, we’ve explained all you need to know. Dive in to explore the best font sizes and book fonts for nonfiction and fiction! 

Why do fonts matter in books? 

Fonts set the tone and mood of your book, helping readers immerse themselves in the story

Choosing the best fonts for books can: 

• • • Make your book easier to read
    • Give your book a unique look
    • Attract the right readers based on your book’s genre
    • Make your book look professional 

Let’s begin by understanding the popular fonts for print books. 

Best fonts for print books

Serif fonts are a popular choice for print books that are heavy on text and aim to create a formal, coherent, and lucid impression. Some of the best serif fonts for books are:

• Garamond
• Times New Roman
• Century
• Georgia
• Palantino
• Merriweather

On the other hand, sans-serif fonts feature a simplified, clean, and easy-to-decipher outlook.  Some of the best fonts for print books are:

• Helvetica
• Arial
• Futura
• Roboto
• Myriad

Additionally, some of the best fonts for book covers include Garamond, Baskerville, and Bodoni.

Wondering what is the font size for a book that goes into print? Large text blocks in traditional printing use a novel font size of 10–12 points.

The font size for headlines strikes an essential balance between the standard practice of maintaining headlines to one or two lines and the desire for large text. The margin between subheadings and body text should be roughly 10 points.

For print book title fonts, you can usually use three-point sizes like 48 and above.

Best font and font sizes for eBooks

You need to adhere to standard fonts when choosing the best font for eBooks. Follow these seamless steps to choose the ideal font for your eBooks:

1. Selecting the ideal font for eBooks

The best fonts for eBooks are mostly the standard fonts that enhance readability across all devices. Some standard fonts that ensure maximum readability across a variety of eReaders and screen sizes are:

• Arial- It belongs to a highly versatile group of typefaces that is lucid and fits well into an easy-to-read design.
• Times New Roman- Its clear, uncomplicated structure facilitates reading the letters.
• Courier- Courier is a monospaced font with horizontal space occupied by each character. It exhibits a uniform and well-organized look.

Although fancy serif fonts can have an amazing visual appeal, they frequently convert into cluttered characters and symbols. This may directly mar the comprehensive quality of the text. 

2. Pay attention to font attributes

Check out the format font menu or the toolbar buttons to add additional elements, such as bold, italics, or underlining.

When using characters that aren’t available on the keyboard, remember to select them from the menu that has the identical name as your font. Avoid using wingdings, symbols, or special characters instead.

3. Best font size for eBooks 

While choosing the best fonts for eBooks, you need to keep in mind the book is drafted in a way that ascertains seamless conversion. Best font sizes for eBooks in the case of chapter titles should be between 14–18 points, while body text should use 12 points.

However, the reader ultimately selects the font they’d like to read your eBook in after the file is converted to EPUB format. This happens irrespective of what font you select while drafting your eBook manuscript.

Best font and font sizes for children’s books

Typically, picture book manuscripts for children have a word count of 500 words or less and are organized into 32 pages. You will have roughly 14 double-page spreads for the story plus the final page 32, along with a title page, half-title page, copyright page, and dedication page.

You can usually use a font size of 18 points or greater if you adhere to that standard format. Every page should have the same font size unless you intend for it to become an integral part of the artwork.

Setting a font at a certain point size can be confusing, and it frequently is. However, following are some useful recommendations: 

• Books for younger readers: typeset in 24-point
• Ages seven to twelve: Font size 14–24 points
• 12-point font for those over 12

In a children’s picture book, both serif and non-serif font styles are appropriate, but non-serif fonts might be more appropriate if the text is extremely brief. While no two books are precisely alike, the following suggestions for  best fonts for children’s books are a useful place to start:

Serif fonts

• Myriad Pro
• Georgia
• Plantin Infants
• Alegreya
• Garamond Pro
• Crimson
• Baskerville Old Face
• Century Schoolbook.
  

Sans Serif fonts

• Andika (free Google font)
• Helvetica
• Gill Sans
• Quicksand
• Century Gothic
• Avenir Next
• Lato

Best fonts and font sizes for nonfiction books

The standard book font size is typically 12 points, but most nonfiction novels range between 10 and 14 points. The word spacing is ideal for comprehension at this size, and your book will look consistent with other works in the same genre.

Some of the most recommended and best fonts for nonfiction books

• Garamond
• Baskerville
• Minion 

Best font and font sizes for poetry books 

The best fonts for poetry vary depending on the book’s size and genre. In general, sans-serif fonts with point sizes of 10 to 12 work best for most books. Poetry books look more adept with a moderately bigger font size of 12 to 14, as they have less writing on each page.

You can use any typeface that you think best captures the essence of your poem, but the following fonts are frequently found in books and poems that you might want to check out for size:

• Baskerville
• Garamond
• Palatino
• Janson
• Verdana
• Optima
• Helvetica

You can also refer to The Font Book by Jack Font to learn about fonts in detail. After understanding what font are books written in, let’s see how to buy fonts for your book. 

Best fonts for mystery books and thrillers 

Serif fonts can be used for the main text, while bold and dramatic fonts are well-suited for chapter titles. The best fonts for mystery books for body text are: 

• • • Minion Pro 
    • Sabon 
    • Caslon 

All the above are serif fonts. The font size used for body text is usually 10-12 pts. 

For headings and chapter titles, the best fonts are: 

• • • • Trajan 
      • Albertus 
      • Friz Quadrata 

The recommended font size for headings and chapter titles is 18-24 pts. 

For special elements like pull quotes or short snippets from the text, the best fonts for mystery novels are: 

• • • • Courier 
      • Special Elite 
      • Crimson Text 

The suggested font size for these elements is 14-16 pts. 

Best font and font size for romance novels 

For romance books, choose fonts that create a warm, inviting, and dreamy atmosphere. Some of the best romance novel fonts for body text are: 

• • • • Book Antiqua 
      • Garamond 
      • Baskerville

These serif fonts have a soft, elegant appearance that complements the romantic tone of your story. The suggested font size for body text is 10-12 pts. 

For headings and chapter titles, you can use fonts that look like fancy handwriting. Some of the best fonts for books you can use are: 

• • • • Allura
      • Chopin Script
      • Parfumerie Script 

These fonts have a handwritten, flowing style that evokes feelings of love and affection. You can use a larger font size for headings and chapter titles, between 18 and 24 points. This makes the headings and chapter titles stand out. 

Some other best fonts for books about romance are Petit Formal Script and Sunshine Flower. These decorative fonts have an ornate, delicate appearance that adds a touch of elegance to your book. However, it’s important to use them sparingly. 

Best fonts and font sizes for science fiction books 

You can use san-serif fonts that have a clean, modern look for science fiction books. The best san-serif fonts you can use for body text are: 

• • • • Montserrat 
      • Roboto
      • Proxima Nova

The suggested font size for the body text is 10-12 pts. 

For headings and chapter titles, you can choose fonts that create a futuristic vibe. Some of the best fonts for books you can experiment with are: 

• • • • Orbitron 
      • Exo 

The suggested font size for the headings and chapter titles is 18-24 pts. 

Best font and font sizes for fantasy books 

For fantasy books, serif fonts are a good choice for body text. This is because they have a classic, timeless appearance that complements the genre’s magical and historical elements. 

Some of the best fonts for fantasy books are: 

• • • • Garamond
      • Palatino
      • Droid Serif 

These fonts have a slightly ornate look that fits well with the epic tales and mythical creatures often found in fantasy stories. The recommended font size for body text is 10-12 pts. 

For chapter titles and headings, a good practice is to use descriptive fonts. Some examples of descriptive fonts you can use are: 

• • • • Cinzel
      • Trajan
      • Uncial Antiqua 

These fonts often feature intricate letterforms and flourishes that make the text visually attractive. You can use a larger font size, between 18 and 24 points, for headings and chapter titles to make them stand out.

Serif vs. San serif: Which is better for your book? 

To decide which font type is better for your book, it’s important to know the difference between them. While serif fonts have small lines or strokes at the ends of the letters, sans-serif fonts don’t have these extra strokes. 

Serif fonts are often described as having a more traditional, classic, or elegant look. They’re commonly used in printed books, especially for the main text, because the small lines can help guide the reader’s eyes from one letter to the next. This makes reading easier and more comfortable. 

On the other hand, sans-serif fonts have a clean, modern, and straightforward appearance. They’re often used for digital screens, like websites or eBooks. This is because they are easier to read when displayed in smaller sizes on screens. 

So depending on whether you’re printing your book or publishing online, you can decide which type of font to use. 

After understanding what font are books written in, let’s see how to buy fonts for your book.

How to purchase fonts for your book?

You can seamlessly buy fonts by initiating access to licenses. This can be free for personal use or chargeable instances of commercial use. However, you can consider the following factors when choosing to purchase the best fonts for book covers or utilize a typeface to ascertain the perfect match for your textual requirements:

The number of variations (bold, regular, and matching italic versions)

• • • The accessibility of tiny caps
    • OpenType fonts
    • Ligatures
    • Variations on a single glyph
    • Accents

You can directly buy book fonts from some of the popular companies that design and curate them. Some of the key players in the industry are:

1. MyFonts

One of the most extensive font resources available online is MyFonts. This website offers a wide selection of typefaces, from constructed foundries to promising designers. 

2. FontShop

FontShop blends expertise in design requirements with high quality. It’s a forum where type designers can peruse instructional guides and tools rather than just a market.

3. Adobe Fonts

Adobe Fonts provides unparalleled workflow compatibility with your design process and is available as a subscription service through Adobe Creative Cloud. With an extensive library at your disposal, you can explore and refine your ideas without worrying about the price of individual fonts.

Tips on how to pair fonts effectively 

A simple tip is to choose one font for the main body text (usually a serif for readability) and a different font for headings and subheadings (this can be a sans-serif for contrast or a different style of serif).

Some other tips to pair fonts effectively are:

1. You can pair a bold font with a light or regular font of the same font family to create visual interest. With this, you can experiment with the sizes of your font pairings  For example, try pairing a tall, condensed font with a wide, expanded font for an eye-catching contrast.

2. Use decorative fonts sparingly for special elements like chapter titles or pull quotes (short excerpts of a longer text). 

3. For cookbooks, you can use clean, modern fonts like Avenir or Futura for body text. You can pair these with a rustic, handwritten font like Buttermilk or Amatic SC for headings and recipe titles. 

4. For nonfiction books, you can use professional serif fonts like Baskerville or Times New Roman for body text. You can pair these with a modern sans-serif font like Myriad or Calibri for headings. 

Now that you know what font are books written in, you can start your typesetting journey! At PaperTrue, we help you choose the best fonts and select the best font for books (depending on the genre and requirement). We streamline requisite typesetting for your book, enhancing your book’s readability and visual appeal. Our self-publishing services also comprise editing, securing an ISBN, curating a copyright page, and designing a book cover.

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Priya

Priya has a talent for academic research and enjoys simplifying complex topics. When she's not helping students improve their writing, she can be seen reading poetry, playing the harmonium, or learning classical dance.