Everyone knows good typography is important. It makes copy readable, brand voice audible, and the overall design look professional. That’s the assumption, anyway.
And none of that is wrong. But it’s incomplete.
The hard truth is that great typography isn’t just about picking a nice font. It’s about meticulous execution, day in and day out. It’s about building a process that catches errors before they ever reach the client. It’s about QA.
1. The Absolute Basics: Are We Even Using the Right Files?
Before we get into kerning and leading, let’s talk about the foundation: font files themselves. This sounds obvious, but you’d be shocked how often it’s overlooked.
Font Licensing
Are you legally allowed to use this font for this project? For this client? On this medium? Font licenses are complex and vary wildly. Using a desktop license for web or app use is a common, expensive mistake.
Font Formats
Are you using the correct font formats for the intended output? For web, you’ll need WOFF2 and WOFF at a minimum. For print, TrueType (.ttf) or OpenType (.otf) are standard. Using the wrong format can lead to rendering issues or outright failure.
Font Versions
Is this the latest version of the font? Foundries update fonts to fix bugs, add characters, or expand language support. Using an outdated version can cause unexpected layout shifts or missing glyphs down the line.
2. Readability and Legibility: Can People Actually Read This?
This is where most designers stop thinking about typography. But readability and legibility are more than just picking a font size. They’re about context and audience.
Font Size and X-Height
Is the font size appropriate for the viewing distance and medium? Body copy on a website needs to be larger than body copy in a magazine. Consider the x-height of the typeface too; fonts with larger x-heights often appear larger and more legible at smaller sizes.
Line Height (Leading)
This is critical for comfortable reading. Too tight, and lines blur together. Too loose, and the reader loses their place. A good starting point is 120-150% of the font size, but this varies greatly by typeface and line length.
Line Length (Measure)
Long lines of text are tiring to read. Short lines can feel choppy. Aim for roughly 45-75 characters per line for most body copy. This is a guideline, not a hard rule, but straying too far will impact readability.
Contrast
Is there sufficient contrast between the text color and the background color? This is crucial for accessibility (WCAG standards) and general legibility, especially in varied lighting conditions.
3. Hierarchy and Flow: Guiding the Reader's Eye
Typography isn't just about individual characters; it's about how they work together to create a visual hierarchy and guide the user through the content. This is where design meets psychology.
Weight and Style
Are different weights (light, regular, bold) and styles (italic) used consistently and appropriately to differentiate headlines, subheadings, body copy, and call-to-actions? Overuse of bold or italics can confuse the hierarchy.
Spacing (Tracking and Kerning)
Tracking is the overall letter-spacing in a word or block of text. Kerning is the adjustment of space between specific pairs of letters. Poor tracking can make text feel cramped or spread out. Bad kerning creates unsightly gaps or overlaps, especially in headlines.
This is often automated, but automated kerning isn't always perfect. Manual kerning is essential for display type and headlines.
Alignment
Is the text aligned consistently? Left-aligned is generally the most readable for body copy. Centered text can work for short headlines or specific design styles but can be difficult for long passages. Justified text requires careful hyphenation and spacing to avoid rivers of white space.
4. Consistency Across Touchpoints: The Brand Experience
A brand’s typography should be consistent everywhere. This builds recognition and trust. Inconsistent typography screams amateur.
Style Guides
Does the project adhere to the established brand style guide for typography? This includes font families, weights, sizes, colors, and spacing rules for different elements (headlines, body, captions, etc.).
Digital vs. Print
Are typographic treatments adapted appropriately for different media? Web fonts render differently than print fonts. Pixel density, screen resolution, and viewing distance all play a role. A font that looks great in print might need size or weight adjustments for a website.
Responsive Design
How does the typography adapt across different screen sizes? Font sizes, line heights, and line lengths need to adjust to maintain readability and hierarchy on mobile, tablet, and desktop.
5. The Nitty-Gritty: Glitches and Gaps
These are the small details that, when missed, can derail an otherwise perfect design. They’re often the hardest to spot.
Hanging Punctuation
Does punctuation (periods, commas, quotation marks) align with the text, or does it hang outside the main text block? Proper optical alignment makes text appear cleaner.
Widows and Orphans
Widows are single words or short lines at the end of a paragraph that fall at the beginning of a new column or page. Orphans are single words or short lines at the end of a paragraph that fall at the beginning of a new column or page. (Yes, the definitions are often used interchangeably, which is a testament to how annoying they are.) Both disrupt the flow and should be eliminated.
Hyphenation and Justification
If text is justified, is hyphenation turned on and set appropriately? Are there awkward hyphenations or excessive gaps between words? Poor justification creates visual noise.
Ligatures
Are standard ligatures (like ‘fi’, ‘fl’, ‘ff’) used correctly? Most modern fonts include them. Discretion is key; sometimes, especially in headlines or with certain typefaces, ligatures can look clunky.
Special Characters and Glyphs
Are all special characters, symbols, and accented letters rendering correctly? Missing glyphs can be a problem, especially with less common languages or specific symbols.
Case Consistency
Are all-caps, title case, and sentence case used consistently according to the brand guidelines or design intent? Mixed-case headlines can look sloppy.
Where Revue Fits In
Managing typography QA, like any complex creative process, demands clarity and control. It’s easy for these details to slip through the cracks when feedback is scattered across emails, Slack messages, and random document comments.
Revue provides a centralized platform to manage all client feedback directly on the creative assets. This means QA teams and designers can see exactly what feedback pertains to which element, and track revisions systematically.
With clear version control and approval workflows, you ensure that typographic standards are not just set, but consistently met and approved. No more hunting for that one email about the kerning on the logo lockup.
Final Thought
Typography is the silent voice of your design. It speaks volumes before anyone reads a single word. Are you listening closely enough to what your typography is saying?
Frequently asked questions
What is the most common typography mistake designers make?
Ignoring line height (leading) and line length (measure) are very common. These significantly impact readability, yet are often set to defaults or not adjusted for context.
How do I ensure typography is accessible?
Focus on sufficient color contrast between text and background (aim for WCAG AA or AAA standards) and ensure font sizes are legible for the intended audience and viewing distance.
What's the difference between tracking and kerning?
Tracking refers to the overall spacing between characters in a word or block of text, while kerning is the specific adjustment of space between pairs of letters to improve visual appeal and readability, especially in headlines.
How important is font licensing for QA?
Extremely important. Using fonts without proper licensing can lead to legal issues and significant financial penalties for your agency or client. Always verify licenses for the intended use (web, print, app, etc.).