Noto Sans JP
Google's Noto Japanese workhorse
Type specimen
The specimen uses the official Google Fonts subset when available, otherwise a font installed on this device. If neither exists the browser falls back to a system font, so treat the official download page as authoritative.
About this font
Noto means 'no tofu' - Google's vast project to render every script harmoniously on one page. Sans JP is its Japanese pillar: kana and jinmeiyo kanji shaped to Japanese convention, nine variable weights with on-demand web subsetting - the default choice for products entering Japan. Its KR and SC/TC sisters share the same repository; for truly gap-free multilingual interfaces, the Noto set remains the only one-stop open source plan.
Subtle trap: Noto Sans JP follows JIS level-2 glyph standards and differs from the SC cut in dozens of shared characters (骨, 門, 直...) - swapping language tags is instantly spotted by Japanese users. For CN-JP mix, set kana a notch smaller than hanzi to balance colour.
Where it works best
Japanese copy, JP-market commerce, CJK fallback in admin tools. Picks: seamless with Noto Sans Latin; 400 UI, 700 heads.
| Weights | 9 |
|---|---|
| First release | 2014 |
| Designed by | Project Noto |
| Rights holder | Google, with sandbox design |
| Scripts | Chinese / Latin / Multilingual |
| Licence | OFL SIL Open Font License 1.1 |
| Variable font | Supported |
Licence and commercial boundaries
Licence：SIL Open Font License 1.1
The dominant permissive licence for open fonts: free commercial use, modification, embedding and redistribution. Its core duties are that derivatives stay under OFL without the Reserved Font Name, the licence text travels with the files, and the fonts themselves are never sold standalone. Works typeset with them belong wholly to you.
SIL OFL 1.1, same terms as Source Han (the two share glyph sources; reserved names run in parallel).
Hard restrictions
- Drop reserved names in derivatives.
- No standalone sales.
Official channels
- Go to official download → https://fonts.google.com/noto/specimen/Noto+Sans+JP
- Official alternative download → https://github.com/notofonts/noto-cjk
- Read the original licence → https://github.com/notofonts/noto-cjk/blob/main/Sans/LICENSE
Last verified：2026-09-07
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