Looking for a stylish font to take your design project up a notch? Perhaps you need to convince a client of a concept at pitch level; maybe the final execution needs a touch of typographic magic to communicate your message more effectively
Whatever stage of the creative process you're at, if you're looking for a stylish font – and Helvetica just isn't cutting it – look no further. We've already got the 100 best free fonts (opens in new tab) for designers, now here are the 10 most stylish fonts to download right now…
01. Pluto (opens in new tab)
Type designer Hannes von Döhren (opens in new tab) created Pluto, a friendly, informal family consisting of 32 stylish fonts. Perfect for display settings, Pluto also works well at small sizes thanks to its large x-height.
Pluto is also suitable for complex typographic use. The OpenType fonts have an extended character set to support Central and Eastern European as well as Western European languages.
You can download Pluto – and its straight companion Pluto Sans (opens in new tab) – from HVD Fonts for £25.99/font.
02. Tungsten (opens in new tab)
Compact and sporty, Tungsten is a flat-sided sans serif that oozes with confidence, without being pushy.
The modular letters give a nod to to sign painting, making Tungsten particularly popular with poster designers. The normal version is relatively condensed, while three additional weights take the font into even more compact territory.
The family is available through the Hoefler&Co (opens in new tab) website.
03. Calluna (opens in new tab)
Famously a by-product of the design process leading to the release of Museo (opens in new tab), Jos Buivenga (opens in new tab)'s stylish serif text font Calluna is a robust, clean and contemporary face that works equally well at large and small point sizes.
Packed with personally – thanks to Buivenga's concept of "slab-serifs with a direction" – Calluna is as stylish as they come. Eight styles of Calluna are available on Font Spring from $21.95, or one font for free.
04. Idler (opens in new tab)
Starting from $9.99, Idler is an arresting all-caps, modular display typeface that comes in six weights – Idler Detail and Idler Plain are the main ones.
Designed by Lamesville (opens in new tab), aka Mark Butchko, Idler featured throughout Computer Arts Presents' six-part series of design manuals – get yours here (opens in new tab).
05. Akkurat (opens in new tab)
Grotesque sans-serif typeface Akkurat was designed by Swiss designer Laurenz Brunner and released in 2004 through the Lineto type foundry.
Available in three weights – light, regular and bold – each with matching italics, Akkurat works especially well in editorial design when you need a stylish, classic feel, and is increasingly be used online.
06. Labyrinthus (opens in new tab)
Looking for a stylish font for a logo or identity work? Labyrinthus is a decorative font that's perfect for vectors and 3D compositions - so it's also perfect for posters.
Created n 2011 by Italian designer Antonio Cerri (opens in new tab), it's available on HypeForType for £17 – or you can get both Regular and Inline fonts for £23.
07. Greyton Script (opens in new tab)
If you're after script letting, try South African designer Gerhard Schwekendiek's bold, ribbon-like face, Greyton Script.
At £23, it's a stylish choice for eye-catching headlines, and available from HypeForType.
08. Kondolar (opens in new tab)
Bangkok-based designer Ekaluck Peanpanawate (opens in new tab) created Kondolar, a stylish take on the increasingly popular genre of slab serif text-and-display fonts.
A versatile font, Kondolar works equally effective as a text and display typeface in print or as a web font. It'll set you back £16.99/font.
09. Gotham (opens in new tab)
Gotham is a hard-working family of geometric san-serif typefaces. Designed by American type designer Tobias Frere-Jones (opens in new tab) in 2000, it was originally commissioned by GQ magazine and balances a reasonably high x-height with wide apertures.
Gotham boasts four widths, eight weights, and separate designs for screen display. You can chose from a range of purchasing options available on the Hoefler&Co website.
10. Enyo (opens in new tab)
Buenos Aires-based graphic designer Julia Martinez Diana created Enyo, a decorative display typeface with an informal, handwritten feel.
Free for personal use, it's an incredibly stlyish font. If you'd like it for commercial purposes you can pick up individual fonts for £13 from HypeForType, or all six for £71.
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