Open Sans
The web's former body-text king
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
A text face engineered for humans reading screens. Drawn by Steve Matteson, released by Google: a neutral humanist sans with huge apertures, low contrast and unambiguous shapes - l/I and O/0 disambiguated - making it among the least tiring open-source faces for long reading. Ten weights plus italics, variable build, wide language coverage, and a former years-long #1 on Google Fonts. Not for loud headlines; it is the insurance policy for docs, help centers, forms and any page where users must read a lot.
Lesser-known: Open Sans had a 'generation change' - the 2020 variable rebuild by Google differs slightly from the 2011 statics in spacing and apertures. Legacy pixel-perfect projects should pin the static version; new work should use the variable build with its axis documentation.
Where it works best
Ideal for docs and help centers, forms and email templates, news body, learning platforms. Picks: 400 text, 600 UI, 700 heads at 1.6 leading. When headline and body need separation, pair it with a high-character face like Playfair Display or Space Grotesk above.
| Weights | 10 |
|---|---|
| First release | 2011 |
| Designed by | Steve Matteson |
| Rights holder | Steve Matteson, for Google |
| Scripts | Latin |
| 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: free commercial, embeddable, modifiable (derivatives renamed, OFL-preserved), no standalone sale.
Hard restrictions
- Rename derivatives.
- No standalone sales.
Official channels
- Go to official download → https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Open+Sans
- Official alternative download → https://github.com/googlefonts/opensans
- Read the original licence → https://github.com/googlefonts/opensans/blob/main/OFL.txt
Last verified：2026-09-07
This site is an index of publicly available information. It does not host, mirror or distribute any font file and does not warrant any licence. Rights holders may change terms, split free and paid editions, or withdraw a permission at any time. Before commercial use, verify the licence on the official page and keep a dated screenshot as evidence. For trademarks, overseas publication and large-scale embedding, consult an IP professional.