Source Sans 3

formerly Source Sans Pro

OFL Sans / GrotesqueOFL openFree commercialMulti-weightVariableWeb-font safeUI use

Type specimen

Source Sans 3 - American grotesque

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

Adobe's first native open family - Paul Hunt's American grotesque: more open than European grotesques, tighter than humanists, hinted and spaced for interfaces, the long-time UI face across Creative Cloud and Behance. Version 3 (2023) grew to twelve weight pairs, gained a variable build, refined shapes. Being Adobe-drawn like the Source Han CJK family, pairing Source Sans with Source Han Sans is two ends of one design system - unmatched bilingual consistency.

Sourcing notes: its 200/300 cuts run thinner than Inter's equivalents - good for hairline display contrast - while Black is squarer and more engineered than Montserrat Black. Google Fonts serves the variable build; pair it with Source Serif 4, Source Code Pro and Source Han for a zero-tuning 'Source family' stack.

Where it works best

Adobe-ecosystem templates, enterprise UI, the Latin wing of CJK design systems, anywhere 'Source-ness' is wanted. Picks: Regular text, Semibold UI, Black display; against Source Han Sans, shave Latin 2 % to match optical colour.

Weights12
First release2012
Designed byPaul D. Hunt
Rights holderAdobe
ScriptsLatin
LicenceOFL SIL Open Font License 1.1
Variable fontSupported

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 Sans: all commercial use open, standard embedding and derivative duties.

Hard restrictions

  • Rename derivatives.
  • No standalone sales.
Important disclaimer

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.

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