What is a Serif Font? | Envato Tuts+

Today we are going to explore the world of serif fonts and answer your most pressing questions: What are serif fonts? How many types of serif fonts are there?

Then we will share a great resource for a wide range of serif typefaces and fonts: Envato Elements.

What Is Serif Typeface & What Is a Serif Font?

A serif typeface is a style of typeface with a small line or stroke—a serif—attached to the end of the main vertical and horizontal strokes of some letters.

Now that you know what a serif typeface is, let's ask a related question: what is a serif font? A serif font is just one of many styles that make up a serif typeface. For example, Times New Roman is a serif typeface made up of four serif fonts: regular, bold, bold italic, and italic. You can think of a typeface as a family and fonts as each member of the family.

Typefaces and fonts without serifs are called sans serifs. If you want to learn more about the difference between serifs and sans serifs, check out the video below:

Different Types of Serif Fonts

What is a good serif font? Well, that depends on how you want to use your font. Let's check out some examples of serif fonts in different styles to see what's available. For a quick overview of different types of serif fonts, check out the article below.

The Different Types of Serif Fonts With Serif Font Examples

Daisy Ein

26 Aug 2021

Slab Serif Typefaces

Slab serif typefaces are characterised by thick, block-like serifs. They are a great choice when you're looking for a display font that will stand out on larger projects. Check out these cool examples of slab serif typefaces from Envato Elements.

Pamuci: Modern Slab Serif Typeface (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Pamuci is an excellent choice when you need a bold and powerful font to command attention. The typeface comes in four different font styles: thin, regular, bold, and black. This gives you plenty of options to suit a range of projects.

Enwicken Modern Slab-Serif Typeface (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

How cool is Enwicken? Very, I'd say. Use this awesome slab serif when you need to create posters, headlines, signage, etc. The typeface offers seven font styles and contains both lower and uppercase characters, numerals, and extended punctuation.

Crabs Slab (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Not only does it have a great ring to it, but Crabs Slab is also quite eye-catching. This wonderful slab serif offers nine font styles, so you have loads of choice when it comes to creating a terrific project.

Austral Slab (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Check out Austral Slab, a hand-drawn typeface with unique textures that'll give your work a distinctive look. This typeface comes in three weights: regular, light, and thin. Use them on their own or combine them to create unforgettable text.

Empirez Slab Serif (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

When you need a bold and beautiful font for a large project, you can't go wrong with Empirez, a strong slab serif typeface that contains four different font styles.

Didone Serif Typefaces

Didone serif typefaces are a genre of serif typeface that emerged in the late 18th century and became the standard typeface used for general purposes throughout the 19th century. What makes this typeface distinct is its hairline serif that has a nearly constant width throughout its length. Let's take a look at some Didone serif typefaces available at Envato Elements.

Brioche: Light & Bold (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Brioche is a wonderful Didone serif that offers two font styles: light and bold. It also includes several alternates for each character, allowing you to create your own unique text.

Quiche Font Family (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

When you choose Quiche, you get a Didone serif typeface that contains a whopping 52 fonts divided into four categories—display, stencil, fine, and text—and with weights ranging from thin to black and matching italics. This makes Quiche extremely versatile for any number of projects.

Stigsa Display (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Stigsa Display is a high-contrast typeface featuring thin and sharp serifs that contrast wonderfully with the main strokes of the typeface. Stigsa Display offers 35 fonts and contains both upper and lowercase characters, numbers, and punctuation.

SF Kingston (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

When you need a stylish display font, SF Kingston is the one to choose. Notice the heavy strokes combined with the delicate serifs, which give the font its dramatic look. SF Kingston contains six fonts: extra light, light, regular, medium, bold, and black.

Brioche Regular & Extra Bold (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Brioche Regular & Extra Bold is another wonderful Didone serif that offers a wonderful contrast between the main strokes and the serifs. The typeface offers two fonts—regular and extra bold—and it also includes several alternates for each character that will help you create even more dramatic and eye-catching effects.

Old-Style Serif Typefaces

Old-style serif typefaces, also known as humanist typefaces, mimic the strokes of a pen and draw inspiration from the Italian Humanists, who developed a style that enabled them to copy manuscripts more quickly than they could before, with more elaborate penmanship. Here are some terrific old-style serif typefaces from Envato Elements.

Roxborough CF | Calligraphic Serif (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

True to the characteristics of old-style serif typefaces, Roxborough is influenced by calligraphy and hand lettering. It's a great choice for branding, identity design, packaging design, etc. Roxborough offers eight different font styles, as well as a great collection of alternates and ligatures.

Whitefield Handcrafted Serif (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

How about Whitefield for your next project? It contains both upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and punctuation, and it comes in two font styles: regular and italic.

Ringift: A Modern Serif (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

How awesome is Ringift? This wonderful old-style serif includes 21 ligatures, alternates, and swashes, which will help you to create one-of-a-kind text for your important projects.

Breadley Serif (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Breadley Serif is a great font for branding and logotypes. It contains five font styles, so you have plenty of weights to experiment with in order to find the combination that works for your project.

Mofista Typeface (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Looking for a font that exudes a special kind of retro glamour? How about Mofista? This terrific old-style serif typeface contains both upper and lowercase characters, numerals, and punctuation, as well as alternative characters that'll help you create that special look.

Transitional Serif Typefaces

Transitional serif typefaces feature sharp serifs and a high level of contrast between the thick and thin strokes of the letters. These features create a wonderfully dynamic feel. Let's look at the transitional serif typefaces available at Envato Elements.

Deluce Luxury Serif (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Deluce Luxury Serif is a clean and elegant font which is great for use in high-end products, books, and magazine titles. The font offers upper-case characters, numbers, and punctuation.

Nandia Modern Serif (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Inspired by transitional serif typefaces, Nandia offers the sharp serifs associated with this type. The font contains upper and lowercase characters, numbers, and punctuation, and it's a great choice for a variety of graphic or editorial projects.

Shallot (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

When you need a stylish serif, consider Shallot. This distinct typeface offers four fonts from regular to extra bold, each with matching italics.

Giveny Classy Serif (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Giveny takes its inspiration from the key features of transitional serifs. Use this distinct typeface when you are looking for a strong and classy font for branding projects, titles, headers, and more.

Gunterhaus Transitional Serif (OTF, TTF, WOFF)

Gunterhaus - Modern & Transitional Serif

Gunterhaus features two fonts: regular and italic. Each font contains the full complement of upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and punctuation.

Mixed Serif Typefaces

Some serifs defy categorisation. Check out this mixed bag of stunning typefaces from Envato Elements.

The Crow (TTF)

The Crow is one of those distinct serifs that don't fall neatly into any category. But really it doesn't matter because the most important thing about this typeface is that wherever you use it, it will command attention.

Gatsby Art Deco Font (TTF, OTF)

This Art Deco inspired typeface offers five fonts: regular, grunge, inline, inline grunge, and outline. Gatsby will not suit every project, but in the right project, it will shine.

Zenzero Grotesk Typeface (TTF)

This fresh and eccentric typeface offers mixes of the features of sans serif and slab serif to create a unique look. The typeface offers two fonts: regular and round. Each contains a large number of ligatures and stylistic alternates so that you can create a fresh style for each project.

Alitide Typeface (TTF, OTF)

Alitide is another showstopper that's a great choice for those special projects that demand something different. This display typeface is inspired by a western style but goes beyond its initial inspiration to create something truly unique.

Osgard Pro

Well, Osgard Pro will definitely not fit just any project, that's for sure. This Blackletter-inspired typeface is both bold and soft, and with over 1,000 swashes included, you can create something truly special for your next project.

Choose Your Favourite Serif Font

Now that you've got a serif font definition and you know all about the types of serif fonts that are available at Envato Elements, head on over to the site and select your favourites today.

If you want even more information on fonts, check out these really helpful articles from Envato Tuts+: