Use of Typography in UX/UI Design

In terms of typography itself, it is a very broad subject but let’s try to summarize its’ importance in terms of using it in UX/UI design or graphic design. Typography is the art to optimize any content by using different sort of techniques by arranging type. Through typography we can communicate and share whatever information we are trying to deliver to the audience. Some factors that we look at when thinking of typography is how legible or appealing it is and what typefaces, point sizes, line lengths, letter-spacing and kerning is available to use.

As a UX/UI designer or graphic designer, we need to understand the audience first because it helps to convey message easily. If we use technical typography for an audience which doesn’t understand that kind of typography, then the message we were trying to reach to the audience is missed and it means that there is a gap in between the audience and the designer. To fill this gap we need to spend more money and resource to then make the message more clear to the audience.

While learning about UX/UI or graphic designing, I came across something called the “Golden Ratio” which helps to create a good hierarchy in between heading, sub heading and body copy. Here is an example of the golden ratio:

Golden Ratio

As you can see, this really helps differentiate the different parts of any context and helps putting focus on the most important ideas. Designers are able to do this by messing around with different typefaces, styles, sizes, and colors to create emphasis and to break up the page so it’s easier to read and skim through. Another important factor that really helps out when creating an interface is to choose a font family that looks good in any size or shape. The reason for this is because nowadays the audience can access the app or website from any device such as a tablet, phone or laptop. So, it’s important that no matter which device the user is using they should be able to get the same feel and look from it that the designer intends to get through to the user.

Typography is very powerful tool which convert text into life by giving font style, appearance, structure etc. It’s not about choosing beautiful fonts but arranging them in a way that communicates the actual message to the audience because user interface design is a vital component because it gives a graphic balance to any project.

Umair Jeelani

UX/UI Designer