Learning Resource:
Text Readability
Factors that Affect Readability
and Legibility of Text
“There is a basic “goodness” test for text readability: when you look at a block of copy do you
see letters, words, or phrases? Phrases are best. Words will do. Never settle for just letters.”
Readability is a relative gauge of how easily words, phrases and blocks of copy can be read.
Many things can affect readability – everything from the number of typefaces used,
to the kind of surface on which the type is imaged. There are a few areas, however,
which require the most attention.
Type Size
This is one of the most subjective decisions you’ll have to make, regarding readability. The question,
“What’s the right size to set type?” is roughly akin to, “How long is a piece of string?” It depends.
The right type size is appropriate to application and to reader. Informative material requiring sustained
reading normally benefits from a larger type image. If your audience has to make an effort to read the copy
– they won’t. Referential information (classifieds, box scores, etc.) can get away with considerably smaller
type. This is because readers are predisposed to obtaining the information.
Key Points
Different Fonts, Different Appearances:
Fonts set at the same point size can look
different. Always test your chosen font sizes
with the specific typefaces you plan to use.
Increment Adjustments: Adjusting font
sizes in smaller increments, such as half or
one-tenth points, can make a significant
difference in readability at smaller scales.
Font Size Guidelines for Print and Web
When selecting font sizes for various text elements in print and web, Hierarchical Font Size
it is essential to ensure readability and visual hierarchy. Here are Guidelines
some recommendations: (Based on 12 Point Body Copy)
Optimal Font Sizes for Body Copy Using 12 point as the base size for
body text, here are the recommended
In Print: sizes for other text elements:
• Body Text: 10–12 point • Main Headers: 30 points
• Recommendation: Though 12 point is commonly used, it may (250% of body copy size)
appear larger than needed. Consider sizes down to 10 point or • Secondary Headers: 21 points
intermediate sizes like 10.5 and 11.5 point for better readability. (175% of body copy size)
• Navigation Elements: 19.8 points
In Web: (165% of body copy size)
• Secondary Navigation or Menus:
• Body Text: 15–25 pixels 16.8 points (140% of body copy size)
These recommendations ensure a
By adhering to these guidelines, you can create well-organized, clear visual hierarchy and enhance
readable, and visually appealing documents and web pages. readability in both print and digital
formats.
Line Length
Contrary to what many think, the eye does
not read individual words, one at a time.
Actually, the eye scans a line pausing
momentarily to record groups of three
or four words. Studies have found that
the eye can make about three or four of
these pauses on a line before it becomes
tedious. Simple math says that somewhere
between 9 and 16 words ought to occupy
a line. Long lines tire the eye and interfere
with referencing the beginning of the line
that follows, while short ones can break up
sentence structure.
Overly long lines, however, are generally
considered worse offenders of readability
than lines that are too short.
Line Spacing
Optimum line space serves as a guideline for
the eye. When there is too much line space,
the eye must make conscious jumps between
lines, slowing down the reading process.
Too little line space creates dark, uninviting
typographic “color” and undefined horizontal
guidelines.
A general rule for achieving good line spacing
is that it should be approximately 20% of
the point size of the type being used. This is,
however, just a rule-of-thumb. Heavy faces,
and those with large lowercase x-heights,
usually require a little more line space to
avoid a dark page. Light typefaces, and those
with long ascenders and descenders, can
get away with less line spacing. And sans
serif typefaces, because they do not have the
benefit of serifs to guide the eye, generally
need a little more line space than serif
designs.
Letter Spacing
Fonts from established providers are usually “industrial There are only a few instances when you would want to
strength” products that have been through rigorous test change the letterspacing as delivered by the font provider.
and edit cycles. Since the space around letters is just
as important as the strokes that describe them, type • Adjusting for very large or very small point sizes
designers and type foundries spend a lot of time making • Correcting for all-cap copy
sure that inter-character spacing is as good as it can be. • Setting reverse copy
Adjusting for Extreme All-capital Copy Reverse Copy
Point Sizes
Capital letters do It’s a good idea to open up letterspacing a little
Most text typefaces are designed not combine as well when setting reverse copy (light type on a dark
to space well within a relatively with each other as do background). This will make the text easier to read.
narrow range of type sizes – lowercase characters.
usually between 8 and 14 point. Because capitals have
At large sizes the letter spacing more diverse character
may appear to be too loose and at shapes, intercharacter
small sizes too tight. If the built- spacing often appears
in spacing is not ideal for the way uneven. If you need to
you use the font, try opening or set words in all capitals,
closing the tracking. This will add adding a little extra
or reduce the overall letter spacing letterspace will often
in a selected block of text. improve things.
Word Spacing
Word spacing is the single most
important factor contributing
to typographic readability. This
seemingly small detail plays
an important role in the color,
texture and readability of graphic
communication. Correct word
spacing is something that isn’t
noticed: page texture is even,
inviting and easy to read.
Open and uneven word spacing is Although assigning appropriate space between words is more of an
usually the culprit when it comes optical determination than an exact science, certain factors have an
to word spacing issues. Excessive influence. The best word spacing will be affected by the proportions of a
word spacing forces the reader to typestyle, letter fit, and point size of the setting.
read individual words rather than
phrases. This dramatically slows • A condensed type design requires less space between words than an
down the reading process – and expanded face.
reduces reader comprehension. • A typeface with tight letter spacing needs less word space than a more
openly fitting design.
• Larger point size settings require slightly less word space than smaller
sizes.
Finally, there is a basic “goodness” test for text readability: when you look
at a block of copy do you see letters, words, or phrases? Phrases are best.
Words will do. Never settle for just letters.
It’s About Legibility
Typographic clarity comes in two flavors: legibility and readability. What’s the
difference? Legibility is a function of typeface design. It’s an informal measure
of how easy it is to distinguish one letter from another in a particular typeface.
Readability, on the other hand, is dependent upon how the typeface is used.
Readability is about typography. It is a gauge of how easily words, phrases and
blocks of copy can be read.
Legibility: A Trait,
Not Always a Goal
First, not all typefaces are–or should be–created with legibility as a primary
design function. Many faces are drawn for the purpose of creating a
typographic statement, or for providing a particular spirit or feeling to graphic
communication. Some typefaces are just designed to stand out from the
crowd. To the degree that a typeface has personality, spirit, or distinction,
however, it almost always suffers proportionally on the legibility scale.
Three Aspects of Legibility
So what makes a typeface legible? A long-standing While virtually any serif typeface can benefit from large
typographic maxim is that the most legible typefaces open counters, “Clarendons” like Nimrod or Scherzo and
are “transparent” to the reader–that is, they don’t contemporary interpretations of “Old Style” designs, such
call undue attention to themselves. Additionally, the as Monotype Bembo and ITC Weidemann, tend to come by
most legible typefaces contain big features and have this trait most naturally.
restrained design characteristics. While this may seem
like a typographic oxymoron, it’s not. “Big features” Individual letter shapes can also affect typeface legibility.
refers to things such as large, open counters, ample For example: the two-story ‘a’ such as the one found in
lowercase x-heights, and character shapes that are Stellar or Exlibris is much more legible than the single-
obvious and easy to recognize. The most legible story ‘a’ found in Futura or Erbar. The lowercase ‘g’ based
typefaces are also restrained. They are not excessively on Roman letter shapes is more legible then the simple ‘g’
light or bold, weight changes within character strokes found in Helvetica or Glypha. In Old Style typefaces such
are subtle, and serifs, if the face has them, do not call as Monotype Plantin, Galena and ITC Berkeley Oldstyle,
attention to themselves. individual characters have more personality than those
in traditional “legibility” faces with virtually no loss in
Counters, the white space within letters such as ‘o,’ character legibility.
‘e,’ ‘c,’ etc., help to define a character. Typographers
believe that large counters are an aid to character While the argument continues to rage about whether sans
recognition. A byproduct of open counters is usually a serifs are easier to read than serif fonts in text copy, sans
large lowercase x-height. As long as the x-height is not serif typefaces, because their letter shapes are simpler,
excessively large, this can also improve legibility in a have been proven to be slightly more legible than their
typeface. Because over 95% of the letters we read are serifed cousins.
lowercase, larger letter proportions usually result in a
more legible typeface.
Little Serifs and Transparent
Light Weights Type
Another potential drawback of serif typefaces is that The metaphor of “transparent type” was coined by
the legibility of individual letters suffers when serifs Beatrice Warde, Monotype Imaging’s famous marketing
have exaggerated shapes. Long serifs, those that are manager of the 1930s and 40s. She once wrote in
exceptionally heavy and those with unusual shapes an article that good type is like “a crystal goblet”
all detract from legibility. Ideal serifs are somewhat which allows content to be more important than the
short and slightly bracketed. They are also heavy container. Warde contended that the best types do not
enough to be obvious yet not conspicuous. get in the way of the communication process: these
Typefaces such as Monotype Sabon and ITC Stone faces are virtually invisible and allow words to make the
have great serifs. statement–not the type. While this is sage advice, if this
principle were followed rigidly, graphic communication
Lighter typefaces are usually more legible than would be about as exciting as a head cold. This does
heavier weights of type. They allow for full, open not mean that legible typefaces can’t be distinctive
counters and unmodified character shapes. in design, or that we should be using Ionic No. 5 for
all typography. Some distinctive typefaces, such as
Truesdell, Agfa Rotis, or Alinea, also make fine legibility
Studies have shown that the best character stroke fonts. The metaphor is, after all, a crystal goblet–not an
thickness for text typefaces is about 18% of the empty jam jar.
x-height. Typefaces with weights similar to that of
Albertina Regular, ITC Oficina Sans Book and Cartier
Book Roman fall into this general category.
Situational Typography
Specific situations or contexts can also affect typeface legibility. For
example, if copy has a lot of numerals, a sans serif face may be the best
choice. The reason? Sans serif numerals are simpler and have more
recognizable character shapes than their roman counterparts.
Then there are times when you have a lot to say–and not much room in
which to say it. In instances like these, faces with condensed proportions
are the best choice. Condensed typefaces of light to medium weight
also work well in cramped typographic quarters because their counters
are not prone to filling in. Sans serif faces are almost always the safest
choice because their individual character shapes tend to be more legible.
A serif typeface such as ITC Garamond Condensed or Galena Condensed
can be effective as small as 8 point or 9 point, but when smaller sizes are
required, a sans serif like Generica Condensed or Abadi Condensed are
better options.
Even though virtually anyone can set type today, there are still many
skills that separate the typographer and graphic designer from the
desktop publisher. Picking the absolute best–and sometimes the most
legible–typeface is one of those skills.
Legibility and readability are not
interchangeable terms.
Even though much of the typographic community treats legibility and readability
as interchangeable terms – they are not. Different typefaces have varying degrees
of legibility; while typography should be readable.
Legibility is about being able to distinguish one letter from another in a particular
typeface design and is ultimately controlled by typeface designers. Readability,
on the other hand, is the degree of ease with which typography can be read.
Generally, the most legible typefaces are
those which offer big features and have
restrained design characteristics. While
these attributes may seem contradictory,
actually they are not. “Big features” refers
to things like large, open counters, ample
lowercase x-heights, and character shapes
that are obvious and easy to recognize.
The most legible typefaces are also
restrained, in that they are not excessively
light or bold; their stroke weight changes
within characters are subtle; and if serifs
are present, they are not overly elongated,
very thin, nor extremely heavy.
Individual letter shapes can also affect
typeface legibility. Ideally, letters should
be distinctive and easy to recognize. For
example: the two-stored “a”, like the one
found in Frutiger® Serif or Helvetica®
Now is much more legible than the single
storied “a” found in Century Gothic™ or
Mosquito™. The lowercase “g” based on
roman letter shapes is more legible than
the simple bowl and descender “g”.
Typefaces that are very bold or
exceptionally light tend to rate low on the
legibility scale. It’s been found that the
optimal stroke thickness for character
is about 18% of the x-height letters.
Typeface weights like the roman designs
of Macklin™ Text and Ysobel™ fall into this
general category. As far as departures from
the norm are concerned, lighter faces tend
to be more legible than heavier weights of
type. Many bold and black designs become
only caricatures of the original design
with very small counters and drastically
modified letter shapes.
In serif typefaces, individual letter
legibility begins to suffer as serifs take on
exaggerated shapes. Very long serifs, or
those which are exceptionally heavy, will
detract from individual letter legibility; as
do those which have unusual or highly
modified shapes.
While not all typefaces should be designed
to be paragons of legibility, those that are
intended to be used for text or lengthy
display composition should be the ones
designers choose. Save the “Partys” and
“ITC Ozwalds” of the typographic palette
for three or four-word headlines.