How to choose fonts for a website

Simple rules for choosing website fonts: one for headings, one for reading, real contrast between them, and the pairings that reliably work.

The short answer

Use two fonts at most: one with personality for headings and one that is easy to read for body text. Make them clearly different (a serif with a sans-serif works reliably), set headings far larger than body text, and check both on a phone.

01Two jobs, two fonts

Headings set the voice; body text carries the reading. A display serif such as Playfair Display or Instrument Serif gives headlines character, while a sans-serif such as Inter or DM Sans keeps paragraphs easy on the eye.

02Rules that hold up

Two families maximum. A third almost always looks like a mistake.
Contrast, not conflict: different structure, similar mood.
Body text at 16 to 18 pixels on screens, with comfortable line height.
Headings at least two to three times the body size.

Where Orlume fits

Orlume picks the type pairing and scale for your brief automatically. To explore pairings yourself, the free font pairing tool previews any two fonts live.

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Written by the Orlume team · Updated October 2026

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Questions

Questions, answered.

The things people ask before they start building.

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How many fonts should a website use?

Two at most: one for headings and one for body text.

What is a good font pairing for a website?

A serif headline with a sans-serif body is the most reliable, for example Playfair Display with Lato or Instrument Serif with Inter.

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