Free fonts similar to Publico
Publico is a newspaper serif with a modern edge. The Headline cut plays sharp serifs against soft ball terminals, while the Text cut trades elegance for sturdiness at small sizes. Several newspapers and magazines adopted it after its debut in Portugal.
Short answer: the closest free alternative to Publico is Newsreader. Lora is also worth a look. All are open source and free for commercial use.
Publico is not installed on this device, so it cannot be drawn here. The free alternatives below are live. On a device that has it, this row shows the original and unlocks the overlay.
/* Newsreader is open source. Self-host it or load it from Google Fonts. */ font-family: "Newsreader", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;
The alternatives in detail
1. Newsreader
Why it works. A news-oriented serif with an optical size axis, so it can play both the Text and the Headline role.
What differs. Warmer and rounder, with less sharpness in the serifs. It sets a little wider.
2. Lora
Why it works. A contemporary text serif with moderate contrast and brushed curves that reads well in articles.
What differs. More calligraphic and gentle. It has no display cut, so large headlines look softer than Publico’s.
How to recognize Publico
Paul Barnes and Christian Schwartz with Kai Bernau and Ross Milne. Drawn for the redesign of the Lisbon daily Público in 2007 and released by Commercial Type in 2010.
- Sharp, crisp serifs combined with soft ball terminals in the Headline cut.
- Compact, economical proportions made for narrow columns.
- Distinct Text, Headline and Banner cuts, with contrast rising as the intended size grows.
In a site’s CSS it may appear as Publico Text, Publico Headline, Publico Banner, Publico Text Web, Publico Headline Web. Not sure what you are looking at? Identify the font on the live page first.
Is Publico free?
Commercial, sold by Commercial Type. It is not on Adobe Fonts and not preinstalled on any system.
The alternatives on this page are open source, so you can use them on commercial sites, self-host the files and ship them in products. Read more in font licensing in plain English.
Use Newsreader in your CSS
Put the free font first and keep sensible fallbacks behind it. Self-hosting the files is the most private and usually the fastest option.
@font-face {
font-family: "Newsreader";
src: url("/fonts/newsreader-400.woff2") format("woff2");
font-weight: 400;
font-display: swap;
}
@font-face {
font-family: "Newsreader";
src: url("/fonts/newsreader-700.woff2") format("woff2");
font-weight: 700;
font-display: swap;
}
body {
font-family: "Newsreader", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;
}Saw a font you can’t place, or can’t afford?
Font Inspector names the font on any website in one click. For popular paid and system fonts it suggests free look-alikes right in the panel.
Questions & answers
What is the closest free font to Publico?+
Newsreader is the closest free alternative to Publico. A news-oriented serif with an optical size axis, so it can play both the Text and the Headline role. Lora is also worth testing.
Is Publico free to use?+
Commercial, sold by Commercial Type. It is not on Adobe Fonts and not preinstalled on any system.
What Google Font looks like Publico?+
On Google Fonts, the nearest matches are Newsreader and Lora. All are open source and free for commercial use. None is an exact copy, so compare them with your own text first.
How can I tell whether a website uses Publico?+
Inspect the text. Browser DevTools show the rendered font in the Computed tab, and the Font Inspector extension shows the family, the rendered font and free look-alikes in one click.
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