Proxima Nova
Proxima Nova (2005) bridges the gap between typefaces like Futura and Akzidenz Grotesk. The result is a hybrid that combines modern proportions with a geometric appearance. The original six fonts released in 1994 as Proxima Sans with a basic character set in only three weights (with italics) have been expanded over the last 30 years into a full-featured and versatile family of 198 fonts — and counting — across seven weights and five widths, with matching italics.
I’ve continually updated and expanded Proxima Nova, more than doubling the character set from 700 in its initial release to 1,453 characters in the latest version. Additions have included support for Greek, Cyrillic, and Vietnamese, numerous currency symbols, Wide and Extra Wide widths, as well as a Medium weight for all five widths and italics. Now, in 2024, with support from The Type Founders and their collaborators, three entirely new writing systems join the family: Proxima Nova Arabic, Proxima Nova Devanagari, and Proxima Nova Thai, expanding the family’s usability into multiple non-Latin scripts.
Since the mid-2010s, Proxima Nova has become one of the most popular fonts on the web, used on millions of websites around the world.
A variable font version of Proxima Nova is also available separately as
Proxima Vara. Looking for the perfect serif typeface to pair with Proxima Nova?
Try Proxima Sera!
Features
All Proxima Nova families include eight weights (Thin, Light, Regular, Medium, Semibold, Bold, Extrabold, and Black), matching small caps for all weights, Case-sensitive forms for all-caps settings, lining and old style figures (proportional and tabular), full “f” ligature set (ff, fi, fl, ffi, ffl, etc.), alternate characters (a, l, y, G, slashed zero, and seriffed 1), automatic arbitrary fractions, automatic ordinals, and alternate characters (a, l, y, G, slashed zero, and seriffed 1).
Proxima Nova also features 5 widths (Normal, Condensed, Extra Condensed, Wide, and Extra Wide) and matching italics.
Proxima Nova Arabic features the Arabic rial, and percent symbols and Romanization of the Arabic character set.
Proxima Nova Devanagari features Marathi and Nepali forms, Devanagari-aligned Latin punctuation, symbols including the rupee, and figures.
Proxima Nova Thai features Thai punctuation, figures, and symbols; required ligatures; two versions: Looped, a more traditional style of the Thai script, and Loopless a more contemporary style.
Specimens
Proxima Nova Overview. The story of Proxima Nova, basic style showings, full character set and technical information. 12 pages. 566 KB PDF.
Proxima Nova Specimen. Complete text and display specimen for the regular width styles of Proxima Nova, including the full character sets. 42 pages. 1 MB PDF.
Proxima Nova Condensed Specimen. Complete text and display specimen for Proxima Nova Condensed, including the full character sets. 42 pages. 1 MB PDF.
Proxima Nova Extra Condensed Specimen. Complete text and display specimen for Proxima Nova Extra Condensed, including the full character sets. 42 pages. 1 MB PDF.
Additional Information
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First Public Use of What Became Proxima Nova
A post on my blog in which I talk about how I used an early version of Proxima Nova for the package design I did for “Star Wars: The Original Radio Drama” in 1993.
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Proxima Nova Introduced
My announcement of the initial release of Proxima Nova on my blog, June 30, 2005.
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Proxima Nova on “Fonts In Use”
“Fonts In Use” is a collaborative website where interesting or notable examples of fonts in use are shared.
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Proxima Nova Mini-Site
Try out Proxima Nova for yourself. Now with added support for Arabic, Devanagari, and Thai writing systems!
