2 min Applications

Microsoft announces 5 finalists for their next default font family

Microsoft announces 5 finalists for their next default font family

Calibri is apparently going to give way to something better – or at least newer.

Microsoft announced this week that they have commissioned five new custom fonts. “Which should be the next default font?” they ask. Apparently, the tech giant from Redmond wants to hear from users before they decide to make a certain font family famous.

MS introduced the five font families and their designers in a blog post this week, authored by The Microsoft Design Team. “Calibri has been the default font for all things Microsoft since 2007, when it stepped in to replace Times New Roman across Microsoft Office,” they write.

“It has served us all well, but we believe it’s time to evolve. To help us set a new direction, we’ve commissioned five original, custom fonts to eventually replace Calibri as the default. We’re excited to share these brand-new fonts with you today and would love your input.”

Say hello to Tenorite, Bierstadt, Skeena, Seaford, and Grandview

The new fonts under consideration span the various sans-serif styles. They include humanist, geometric, swiss-style, and industrial. The MS Design Team interviewed the designers of each to help bring their nuances and unique personality to life. Here is a short summary of the candidates.

Tenorite has the overall look of a traditional workhorse sans serif (a font without a serif, or a stroke at the ends, like Times New Roman), but with a warmer, more friendly style.

Bierstadt is a precise, contemporary sans serif typeface inspired by mid-20th-century Swiss typography.

Skeena is a “humanist” sans serif based on the shapes of traditional serif text typefaces.

Grandview is a sans serif typeface from classic German road and railway signage. It is highly legible at a distance and under poor conditions.

“We’ll be evaluating these five directions over the next few months,” the Team promise. “But we won’t be doing that alone. All five families are now available via the cloud across your favorite Microsoft 365 apps and experiences.

“Go use the fonts starting today, and show us which you love best with feedback and comments on social,” they conclude.