French Grotesque

Name: French Grotesque
Author: Jonathan Paterson

French Grotesque delivers clean, contemporary letterforms optimized for digital interfaces and modern design systems.

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Sans Serifby Jonathan Paterson72% Accessible

Characters456

Glyphs547

Typography Tools

Best Ways to Use French Grotesque

Best Font Pairings for French Grotesque

TypeSmith curates 3 expert font pairings for French Grotesque, including combinations with Jerseyclub Grunge, Kupika and Sichel.

Each pairing includes accessibility ratings, expert reasoning, and usage recommendations for web and print design.

Explore 3 Pairings for French Grotesque

Test French Grotesque Font Pairings Live

TypeSmith's interactive testing tool lets you preview French Grotesque with any font combination in real-time, optimized for sans serif characteristics.

Adjust font sizes, weights, and see live typography specimens including editorial layouts, code editors, and UI components.

Test French Grotesque Pairings Live

In Context

French Grotesque Specimen Gallery

EditorialUI ComponentsPosterWordmark

French Grotesque Editorial Specimen

French Grotesque in Editorial Context

French Grotesque is a sans serif typeface by Jonathan Paterson suited for editorial layouts and long-form reading.

Jonathan Paterson

Typeface Designer • Sans Serif

French Grotesque demonstrates editorial readability through balanced proportions and consistent stroke weight. As a sans serif typeface, it delivers clear letterforms that sustain reader engagement across extended passages of text.

The weight range of French Grotesque supports typographic hierarchy within editorial layouts. Headline weights establish visual anchors while lighter weights maintain comfortable reading rhythm in body text columns.

Designed by Jonathan Paterson, French Grotesque balances personality with function — providing enough character to establish visual identity without compromising the legibility that editorial contexts demand.

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French Grotesque Typography

A sans serif typeface for UI components.

Active2 weights available

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French Grotesque Specimen

French Grotesque

French Grotesque is a sans serif typeface by Jonathan Paterson built for display contexts.

2 WeightsSans Serif Typeface

Available on TypeSmith

Wordmark Explorations

French Grotesque

FRENCH GROTESQUE

FRENCH GROTESQUETYPE

Tagline Pairings

French Grotesque— sans serif typeface

French GrotesqueBy Jonathan Paterson

French GrotesqueTYPE

Editorial

Magazine-style headline and body text layout

Character Set

French Grotesque Glyphs & Characters

Size48

Showing 62 of 187 charactersDouble-click to copy • Click for details

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 0123456789

Heading Examples

Body Text Table

Body Copy

French Grotesque for Paragraphs

TypeSmith provides optimized body text specifications for French Grotesque, including recommended sizes, line heights, and letter spacing for long-form content. These settings ensure maximum readability across devices and screen sizes.

French Grotesque demonstrates exceptional body text performance with balanced proportions and consistent stroke widths that enhance readability across paragraph lengths.

When setting French Grotesque for body copy, TypeSmith recommends these optimized specifications. The carefully tuned metrics ensure comfortable reading at extended lengths while maintaining the typeface's distinctive character.

French Grotesque small text sizes retain legibility through well-defined letterforms. Caption and footnote applications benefit from the font's clear x-height and open counters.

Element	Weight	Size	Line Height	Tracking	Preview
Body Text	Regular	16px	24px	0.5px	French Grotesque delivers excellent readability for body copy
Italicized	Regular Italic	16px	24px	0.5px	French Grotesque italic provides elegant emphasis
Bold	Bold	16px	24px	0.5px	French Grotesque bold creates strong visual hierarchy
Small Caps	Regular	16px	24px	0.5px	French Grotesque typography specimen
Secondary Text	Medium	14px	20px	0.5px	French Grotesque typography specimen

.your-class { font-family: 'French Grotesque'; }

Quick Start

French Grotesque Implementation Guide

HTML Link Tag

Add to your <head> section

<link href="https://fonts.bunny.net/css?family=French+Grotesque:400,700&display=swap" rel="stylesheet">

CSS @import

Add at top of your stylesheet

@import url('https://fonts.bunny.net/css?family=French+Grotesque:400,700&display=swap');

CSS @font-face

Self-host the font files

@font-face {
  font-family: 'French Grotesque';
  src: url('https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=French+Grotesque:wght@400;700&display=swap');
  font-display: swap;
}

Implementation

CSS Code Examples

Standard CSS

css

Apply directly to any CSS class or selector.

 1.my-text {
 2  font-family: 'French Grotesque', sans-serif;
 3  font-weight: 400;
 4}

SCSS Variable

scss

Define once, use throughout your stylesheet.

 1$font-primary: 'French Grotesque', sans-serif;
 2
 3.my-text {
 4  font-family: $font-primary;
 5}

Tailwind CSS

config

Configure once, apply with utility classes.

 1// tailwind.config.js
 2module.exports = {
 3  theme: {
 4    extend: {
 5      fontFamily: {
 6        'french-grotesque': ['French Grotesque', 'sans-serif'],
 7      },
 8    },
 9  },
10}
11
12// Usage in HTML
13<p class="font-french-grotesque">Your text here</p>

About

French Grotesque Background & Features

Jonathan Paterson

Sans Serif

Open Source

French Grotesque font is a playful vintage typeface by Jonathan Paterson that channels early 20th century French poster art. This fancy display face brings whimsical charm to artisanal brands, specialty food packaging, and retro-themed design. French Grotesque's period character creates distinctive headlines with nostalgic appeal. Particularly effective for bakeries, wine labels, and boutique retail. The playful vintage styling works for brands embracing heritage and craft. Best used at display sizes. Pairs with period-appropriate serifs or clean modern text fonts for contrast.

French Grotesque was designed by Jonathan Paterson. The typeface demonstrates a commitment to typographic detail, visible in its letterform construction and optical balance.

As a Sans Serif typeface in the Vox-ATypI Lineal classification, French Grotesque features no serif extensions on stroke terminals and stroke contrast ranging from monolinear to subtly modulated. These optical characteristics make it well-suited for wayfinding, signage, and information design.

French Grotesque is available in a single weight, offering focused typographic consistency spanning screen and print contexts, with 3 font pairings curated. Standard Latin character coverage serves the majority of Western typographic workflows.

French Grotesque

French Grotesque

Best Ways to Use French Grotesque

Best Font Pairings for French Grotesque

Test French Grotesque Font Pairings Live

In Context

French Grotesque Typography

French Grotesque

Character Set

Type Scale

French Grotesque for Paragraphs

Quick Start

HTML Link Tag

CSS @import

CSS @font-face

Implementation

Standard CSS

SCSS Variable

Tailwind CSS

About

Typography Judgment

Classification

Accessibility

Design Heritage

Overview

Categories

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Inclusive Design

Accessibility Features of French Grotesque

Legibility Analysis: French Grotesque

French Grotesque's Readability

Eye Strain Considerations for French Grotesque

French Grotesque Accessibility Recommendations

French Grotesque Usage Guidelines

Get the Font

Available Weights

Weight Reference

Internationalization

Western European

Nordic

Central European

Baltic

Legal

What you can do

Restrictions