Typography is one of the most important aspects of responsive web design, and optimizing your fonts for mobile devices is an absolute necessity if you want your content to be palatable across all screen sizes. Fortunately, the process of building flexible fonts is not very difficult. When we talk about flexibility (which is the guiding principle in this case), we cannot overlook the specified size of the font we’ve chosen to adapt for our responsive website. We may use different metrics for this purpose, including pixels, ems, rems, or percentages. Choosing the right metric is critical for designing a malleable, responsive interface. In this continuation on responsive web design, I’ll explain how to manage dynamic fonts responsively, and I’ll analyze all of the aforementioned metrics, comparing the strength and weaknesses of each choice.
Pixels
For a long time, pixels have been the unit preferred of web designer due to its inherent precision and accuracy. Once the pixel value is chosen for the font, the type size will remain exactly across all devices and browsers. While that approach offers very precise control, it’s contrary to our need for flexibility and responsiveness. As most readers already know, when you set the dimensions for a “parent” item, they will be automatically applied to any “child” elements via inheritance. (That’s why they named CSS “cascading” stylesheets.) For example, setting a fixed pixel value to the body’s font-size will permeate nearly all other elements of your design. When the developer wants to assign different style declarations to each individual element of the page, he or she will have to set different parameters manually to override existing styles. As a result, basic edits and adjustments will require meticulous modifications to all of the previous settings. This is far more than just inconvenient; it can lead to serious accessibility problems in a variety of browsers and devices, many of which interfere with deliberate choices of font size. Some visitors may have difficulties reading text below a certain size and this should be absolutely avoided, especially considering our main goal of making a responsive design that works with all screen sizes and eyeballs involved. If you take a forward-thinking approach to your designs, the option of assigning rigid pixel values as your font sizes doesn’t seem to be the best choice. Today, devices have different screen sizes, as well as different pixel densities. Serving a one-size-fits-all font size to this huge range of products is contrary to our responsive approach.Ems
Let’s continue by considering ems. An em is the equivalent of the size (in pixels) defined in the CSS rule font-size. For example, if we build a<div> and include text with a font-size of 16 pixels, 1 em will correspond to 16 pixels, 2 em to 32 pixels, and so on. Ems are resizeable in all browsers, and it’s not necessary to set the value for each element, because in this case, the rule can be applied to the “parent” element and automatically to its respective “child” elements via the cascading process.
Obviously, working with ems involves pros and cons to consider. Although they make the maintenance of a site’s type easier (because, as mentioned before, all the changes will automatically apply to the whole content), this could hinder a developer who is seeking control, precision, and predictability with their fonts. Luckily, the problem can be easily solved by using the same measurement units for the most of the content, scaling only a few text elements such as the header or footer.
Percentages
Just like ems, percentages are resizeable units for font size, and their CSS declarations can be inherited. Theoretically, there isn’t a big difference between percentages and ems; they’re both malleable units of measurement. What’s just as important as understanding the differences (however slight they may be) between ems and percentages is being decisive about which unit of measurement you are going to use throughout your design. You certainly don’t want to use ems for certain elements of your design and percentages for others. One way to rule out percentages is to simply make the following sitewide CSS declaration:{ font-size:100%; }
This effectively overrides any browser defaults or other unwanted percentage declarations, and leaves the font sizing up to other methods and metrics. In this case, the content could be sized using ems.
Rems
Some of you may not be aware that there is another option that provides flexibility in font sizing: the rem unit (“root Em”). Its behavior is similar to that of the aforementioned em unit with one important difference: Its value is relative to the root element of the document (in HTML, that’s the<html> element) and not to any the other elements associated to it. This important difference makes it possible to solve many problems that occur with nested elements. And, as most designer knows, the vast majority of their design inherently consists of nested elements; like humans, nearly every one of them has a “parent” somewhere and inherits certain qualities from them.
However, it’s important to note that rems are a very new unit, and therefore not all desktop browsers will support them, interpret them, or display them correctly. For now, at least.
Conclusions
Having explored the various measurement options for your fonts, what is the best way to approach your type in terms of responsive web design? Surely, ems make font scaling easier and website maintenance substantially easier. If you decide, for example, to increase the font-size using percentages, you’ll simply have to change the percentage applied to the body and nothing else. Maintenance is actually a large problem that’s worthy of serious consideration in your design. It would be nice to ignore routine, everyday aspects like ease of maintenance and simplicity of stylesheets and focus entirely on aesthetics and functionality. But, outside of a blue-sky planning process, a good designer will give significant consideration and priority to utility and pragmatism. First, you must convert all elements with a fixed size into something that ensures higher fluidity. Second, you should always keep in mind the proportions of the elements of the page and implement careful changes so that these proportions are preserved. We’ll see later in the series, with some examples, a practical application of all the principles of responsive web design that we’re describing in these articles. It’s important to understand the basic methodologies of these techniques first. In the next post, we’ll move on to fluid layout and how you can combine fixed width and fluid width within the same page. Want to learn more about Responsive Web Design? Check out SitePoint’s new book, Jump Start Responsive Web Design!Frequently Asked Questions on Responsive Web Design and Font Management
What is the ideal font size for responsive web design?
The ideal font size for responsive web design varies depending on the device being used to view the website. For desktop screens, a font size of 16px is generally considered readable. However, for mobile devices, a larger font size, typically between 18px to 20px, is recommended to ensure readability on smaller screens. It’s important to remember that these are just guidelines and the ideal font size may vary depending on the specific design and content of your website.
How can I make my website text responsive?
Making your website text responsive involves using CSS media queries to adjust the font size based on the screen size. You can set different font sizes for different screen widths. For example, you might set a larger font size for screens that are less than 600px wide to ensure the text is readable on mobile devices. Additionally, using relative units like em or rem instead of pixels can help make your text more responsive.
What is the difference between em and rem in CSS?
Both em and rem are relative units in CSS used to define font sizes. The difference between them lies in their point of reference. An em unit is equal to the current font-size of its closest parent element, while a rem unit is equal to the root element’s font-size. This means that em can change depending on its parent element, while rem remains consistent throughout the document.
How can I test the responsiveness of my website’s text?
You can test the responsiveness of your website’s text by resizing your browser window to simulate different screen sizes. You can also use tools like Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test or Responsively App to see how your website looks on different devices. These tools can help you identify any issues with your text’s responsiveness and make necessary adjustments.
Why is responsive text important in web design?
Responsive text is crucial in web design because it ensures that your website’s content is readable and accessible on all devices, regardless of screen size. With the increasing use of mobile devices to access the internet, having a website that is not responsive can lead to a poor user experience and potentially drive away visitors.
How does responsive web design affect SEO?
Responsive web design can significantly impact SEO. Google has stated that it uses mobile-first indexing, meaning it primarily uses the mobile version of a website for indexing and ranking. Therefore, if your website is not responsive and does not provide a good user experience on mobile devices, it could negatively impact your website’s search engine rankings.
What are some best practices for managing fonts in responsive web design?
Some best practices for managing fonts in responsive web design include keeping your font choices to a minimum to reduce load times, using web-safe fonts to ensure compatibility across different devices and browsers, and using relative units like em or rem for font sizes to ensure responsiveness. Additionally, consider the readability of your text on different devices and adjust your font sizes accordingly.
Can I use different fonts for different screen sizes in responsive web design?
Yes, you can use different fonts for different screen sizes in responsive web design. However, it’s important to ensure that the fonts you choose are readable and provide a consistent user experience across all devices. Using too many different fonts can also increase your website’s load time, which can negatively impact user experience and SEO.
How can I ensure that my website’s text is readable on all devices?
To ensure that your website’s text is readable on all devices, you should use a responsive font size, consider the contrast between your text and background, and keep your line length to a comfortable reading length. Additionally, avoid using small font sizes or overly decorative fonts that may be difficult to read, especially on smaller screens.
What is viewport in responsive web design?
The viewport is the user’s visible area of a web page, which varies with the device being used to view the site. In responsive web design, the viewport is used with CSS media queries to adjust the layout of the website based on the screen size. You can set the viewport for your website using the meta viewport tag in your HTML.
Annarita TranficiI have a Bachelor's degree in European languages, cultures, and literature from the University of Naples. I'm passionate about graphics and web design, and for several years I've been working on projects and designs for many companies. I'm a writer for the Audero User Group; my specialties are HTML, CSS, Web Design, and Adobe Photoshop.
