Fonts. We see them every day. We use them for work. We see them in advertisements. Like anything we use regularly, fonts get boring. There are thousands of different fonts on the net, many of them free to use, but society seems stubborn of finding new fonts. This unwillingness to change leaves us to look at the same fonts over and over again. Here are five of the worst fonts…

One of the most popular fonts in the world. It’s in every word processor waiting to bore us all. Arial is most commonly used in flyers and in headings, hoping to grab some attention. Arial Black brings me back to elementary school days when projects were in the form of posters and “everything has to be readable from 5 feet away” my teacher used to say.

Arguably the most popular and most used font in the world. Helvetica has been around forever; there are dozens of books and even a movie about it. Helvetica has been used for almost everything, but it’s been mainly used for posters and advertisements on a larger scale. Helvetica’s clean look and round curves are appealing, but there are so many alternatives to choose from.

Marker Felt might be new to windows users, but for mac users you’ll know the pain Marker Felt has brought you. Marker Felt is intended for casual note writing, but I’ve found that it’s being used in local business directories, company newsletters, and even school yearbooks. Show a little discretion when you get that new mac.

Yawn. Hands down the most boring font I’ve ever seen. Times New Roman is in every publication and every school paper. It’s been accepted as the standard for writing any large amount of text. I’m all for something new.

This font isn’t just boring, it’s absolutely TERRIBLE. If I see another spa or fancy restaurant using Papyrus my eyes will bleed. Papus does not equal luxury, it may have twenty years ago, but not anymore. This font should never be used. Delete it from your font selection now (unless you’re making a list of the worst fonts ever created).

Thanks to Espen Ottersen in the comments for reminding me of Comic Sans, which is just as bad as Papyrus (the worst offender). Comic Sans is similar to Marker felt, but more well known. You’ve probably seen it a lot in forums, family emails, and anything associated with children.

Filed under: uncategorized, advertisement, design, font, old, typography