Font Pairing Guide & Reference
Stop fiddling. Start designing.
You know the ritual. Find the font in your font manager. Activate it. Switch back to your design app. Select the text. Scroll through the font list. Apply. Squint. Hate it. Repeat.
An hour later, you’re no closer to a decision — and your coffee’s cold.
The BBOFC ends that cycle. 350 font pairings across 370 pages. Already tested. Already beautiful. Already trusted by over 10,000 designers.
- 350 pairings you can steal — use them as-is or as springboards for your own ideas
- 50+ classic typefaces — Futura, Garamond, Helvetica, Bodoni — finally working together
- No software to fight — no activating, no crashing, no font manager headaches
- Works in 30 seconds — flip, find, done
The classics you already own
We researched the most popular fonts in graphic design history and paired them — methodically, obsessively — into 350 combinations. These are typefaces you likely already have: the workhorses, the legends, the ones that have defined decades of design.
Use the pairings directly, or let them spark your own combinations with fonts you own that aren’t in the book. Either way, you’re starting miles ahead.
Think of it as a sketchbook with the hard work already done. The final masterpiece is yours.
Learn while you browse
Every chapter opens with a single typeface in focus — its personality, its quirks, its best partners. Even typefaces you thought you knew will reveal something new when you see them in unexpected pairings.
It’s impossible to spend time with this book and not sharpen your eye for type.
Click on a sample for a close up…
Ready to stop fiddling?
Frequently Asked Questions
What is this book?
An inspiration resource — 350 curated font pairings using the most influential typefaces in design history. No software to fight, no fonts to activate. Just open, browse, and find combinations that work. Use them directly or as springboards for your own ideas.
Who is it for?
Designers, students, and typography enthusiasts. Anyone who’s wasted an afternoon fighting their font manager instead of designing. Students will learn the classics. Professionals will save time. Everyone will find inspiration.
How do I use it?
Each chapter focuses on one typeface, then pairs it with dozens of others. Flip to a chapter. Find a pairing that clicks. Use it as-is, or fine-tune the tracking and leading to make it yours. Either way — you’re designing in minutes, not hours.
Are these meant to be rules?
No. Some pairings are ready to print. Others are starting points. Some have more harmony, some more tension — that’s intentional. The samples stay consistent (same text, same sizes) so you can compare apples to apples. The fine-tuning is up to you.
Why only classic typefaces?
Logistics. 100 fonts × 100 fonts = 10,000 pages. We focused on the most popular, most enduring typefaces — the ones you likely already own. Pair them with newer fonts in your collection to expand your repertoire.
Why isn’t [my favorite font] included?
We had to draw the line somewhere. Another fifteen typefaces would have pushed this to 500 pages. The ones we chose reflect decades of research into what designers actually use.