Optimal font size for digital content, display banners and maps
Not sure which font type and what font size to use for your next presentation or display. If you are interested in engaging with your audience, you have come to the right place.I have conducted extensive scientific studies and developed a simple formula to determine the minimum font size required for your presentations and displays.Simply, enter the basic details about the venue and the age of the oldest person expected in the audience to know the minimum font size you should use.
1. Distance between the center of the screen and the farthest viewer:
(You don't need the precise measurement; an estimate is fine)
2. Size of the display screen:
(measured diagonally)
3. Age (in years) of the oldest viewer:
(Leave it blank if you don't know)
4. Font Type:
(If your choice of font is not available, select Helvetica and apply an adjustment factor)
Minimal Recommended Font Size
(For main content)
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Interested in the science behind this calculator, Click here to download the research paper containing details of my study and the parameters used in this calculator.
This should work well in most situations, but if you want to be perfect, consider the following additional factors:
Screen resolution: Increase the font size or use bold text, if the screen resolution is less than 1080p.
Lighting: Increase the font size or use bold text if the room is brightly lit in contrast to the display.
Line Spacing: Consider increasing the size if line spacing is less than 1.0. (this should not be confused with paragraph or bullet spacing.
Font case: Consider reducing the size if the entire sentence is written in UPPER CASE/CAPITAL LETTERS.
Font style: Consider increasing the size for italicized text.
Viewing angle: Consider increasing the size if the viewing angle is more than 30 degrees (horizontal or vertical).
Duration: Consider increasing the size for a presentation longer than 60 minutes.
Other factors to consider: Aspect ratio, information density, familiarity with content, viewer demographics, cultural considerations and non-English language content.
