If you’re looking for free alternatives to Gotham, here are 4 of the highest-quality look-alikes and similar fonts.
- Metropolis (best overall)
- Montserrat (best on Google Fonts)
- Raleway (great – if you make a coule tweaks)
31+ Best Web Safe Fonts. We’ve compiled a list of over thirty different great-looking web safe fonts you can use to design your website. Let’s jump right into it. Arial font example. Arial is a classic sans serif font, suitable for both paragraphs and headlines. It’s long been a staple in web design. One of the fonts similar to Montserrat is also Museo Sans, which is a font that was created for marketing strategies and campaigns. Two of the weights of the typeface are entirely free, while the other eight are payable. It is also a geometric sans-serif, just like the Montserrat font, and it can be used as an alternative for display and text. The design was inspired by signage from her historical Buenos Aires neighborhood of the same name. Montserrat is often mentioned as the closest free alternative to Gotham and Proxima Nova, however, in my opinion it’s a much more distinctive typeface compared to those two. The uppercase G and J really set it apart. Download Montserrat ZIP →. Google Fonts is a library of 1,075 free licensed font families and APIs for conveniently using the fonts via CSS and Android. We also provide delightful, beautifully crafted icons for common actions and items. Download them for use in your digital products for Android, iOS, and web.
For each, I’ll mention the advantages, disadvantages, and why you might choose it. Ready? Let’s get started.
You’re reading Free Font Alternatives: The Ultimate Guide. Quickly navigate to other fonts: Intro · Apercu · Avenir · Circular · DIN · Futura · Gotham · Helvetica · Proxima Nova · Times New Roman
1. Metropolis
If the name didn’t give it away, let me spell it out: Metropolis is the closest free alternative font to Gotham.
While there are subtle difference in some of the letterforms (Metropolis has stockier characters overall: an ever-so-slightly larger x-height combined with a smaller cap-height), Metropolis is basically a deadringer for Gotham.
Fonts Similar To Montserrat Classic
Since Gotham is frequently used – and quite distinctive – in uppercase, it’s worth looking at a direct comparison in that setting.
Again, deadringer.
What it’s got: 9 weights + italics
Get it at:Metropolis at Github
2. Montserrat
The fantastic Montserrat is another great and similar font to Gotham.
While there are some differences, Montserrat and Gotham are very much cut of the same cloth. If you love the latter but can only afford the former, check it out. With 9 weights and italics, it’s an incredible font in its own right – though heavily used, for this very reason.
In uppercase, some distinctive characters (Montserrat’s “Q”, “G”) can be dead giveaways for IDing the font, but Gotham’s distinctive uppercase feel (look at the low “A” crossbar or the squat “R” leg) is still there.
What it’s got: 9 weights + italics
Get it at:Montserrat at Google Fonts
3. Raleway
Raleway is a popular Google Font that I recommend freshening up with some alternate character forms.
The original Raleway has this “W” that sticks out like a sore thumb, making an otherwise solid body font into something that feels too gimmicky. Fortunately, the font comes with a number of OpenType alternate character styles. For max Gotham feel, you’ll want to use font-feature-settings: 'ss01' 1, 'ss03' 1, 'ss05' 1, 'ss08' 1, 'ss09' 1, 'ss11' 1;
in your CSS selectors.
This one tweak alone will not only knock out the overly-stylized “W”, but almost make a number of other characters (“a”, “d”, “l”, “u”, “G”) into their more Gotham-like twins.
What it’s got: 9 weights + italics; also available as a variable font
Get it at:Raleway at Google Fonts
4. Geomanist
The sturdy Geomanist lacks italics for all weights except regular, but has a similar geometric (go figure) vibe as Gotham.
Geomanist has a lot of the same character as Gotham in lowercase, but the reason it appears last on this list is because a lot of that falls away in uppercase. Gotham’s distinctively low crossbars for “A”, “R”, and “P” melt away into something with a lot less punch.
Nonethless, this is an underutilized font and worth considering!
Font Similar To Montserrat Light
What it’s got: 9 weights + 1 italic weight
Get it at:Geomanist at Atipo
Other Gotham Alternatives
If you’re looking to branch out from Gotham, it’s worth checking out some of the other alternatives in this guide. For instance, the Helvetica alternatives are similarly clean and simple, and the DIN alternatives have a squared-off punchy feeling to them that is similar to Gotham’s uppercase.
You’re reading Free Font Alternatives: The Ultimate Guide. Quickly navigate to other fonts: Intro · Apercu · Avenir · Circular · DIN · Futura · Gotham · Helvetica · Proxima Nova · Times New Roman
One Final Note 😎
If this is your first time here, you might also be interested in:
- Learn UI Design, my full-length online video course on user interface design
- The Design Newsletter, a 50,000+ person newsletter with original design articles aimed at giving you tactical advice to improve your UX/UI skills.
Some people have some really nice stuff to say about the newsletter.
A joy to read! Please post me when you will have published a novel. Your writing style is marvelous!
Karsten Bruchmann
Designer
I just wanted to say that this was a GREAT and really helpful email, I learned so much and got so many ideas I hadn't considered before. I read a ton of UX related articles daily but this was something different and new that I can apply to my work right away. Thanks a lot!
Stacey
UX/Product Designer, Freelance
Over 50,000 subscribed.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.