Everyone loves to hate Comic Sans. The child-like handwriting font is so infamous, there is a movement to try to ban it. Mention its name to the commo

Why You Hate Comic Sans - Design for Hackers

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2021-06-11 05:30:05

Everyone loves to hate Comic Sans. The child-like handwriting font is so infamous, there is a movement to try to ban it. Mention its name to the common layman (aside from a preschool teacher), and you will likely get a chuckle, mention it to a trained designer, and you’ll get a look of disgust. In my free design course, I teach you how to battle font anxiety, but I can tell you right now Comic Sans is usually not a good choice. What exactly makes Comic Sans so horrible?

I recently gave a talk at IgniteChicago – with less detail than what follows – about just why it is that Comic Sans is so hated:

To illustrate the poor fundamentals of Comic Sans, I will compare it to Helvetica, which is such a beloved font, that there’s a movie – about typography – named Helvetica.

First of all, I should acknowledge that comparing these fonts is a bit apples to oranges (which are both fruits, mind you), in that they both convey completely different moods: Helvetica looks strong and serious, and Comic Sans is usually used in situations where one wants to look playful and casual.