Choosing the right font can be tricky, especially when you know the style you like but not the name of it.

Fonts help set the tone of your design. They can make your artwork feel professional, elegant, friendly, bold, traditional or more creative. Whether you are creating business cards, flyers, menus, signage, invitations or packaging, the right font can make your design feel much more considered.

To help, we have created a simple font example guide. You do not need to know the exact font name. Just browse the examples, choose the style you like, and our design team can help from there.

Professional Services

Best for accountants, solicitors, consultants, finance, healthcare, property and corporate businesses.

These designs usually need fonts that feel clear, trustworthy and easy to read. Clean sans serif fonts and classic serif fonts work well because they look professional without being distracting.

Suggested fonts from our guide:

 

Beauty, Wellness & Lifestyle

Best for salons, spas, skincare brands, fitness studios, lifestyle brands and wellbeing businesses.

These designs often suit softer, more polished fonts. A refined serif, elegant script or clean modern font can help create a stylish, calm and considered feel.

Suggested fonts from our guide:

Works well for:

Treatment menus, loyalty cards, appointment cards, gift vouchers, packaging, price lists and branded stationery.

Restaurants, Cafés & Food Brands

Best for cafés, restaurants, bakeries, food packaging, menus and hospitality brands.

Food and drink designs can have more personality, but they still need to be readable. Friendly serif fonts, bold display fonts and character-led typefaces can all work well, depending on the mood of the brand.

Suggested fonts from our guide:

 

Works well for:

Menus, table talkers, takeaway cards, food labels, loyalty cards, posters and window graphics.

Trades, Construction & Practical Services

Best for builders, electricians, plumbers, decorators, mechanics, cleaning companies and local trade businesses.

For these industries, clarity is key. Strong sans serif fonts are ideal because they are easy to read on vans, banners, workwear, signs and flyers.

Suggested fonts from our guide:

Works well for:

Van graphics, site boards, banners, workwear, flyers, business cards and outdoor signage.

Education, Childcare & Community Groups

Best for schools, nurseries, tutors, charities, churches, clubs and local community organisations.

These designs should feel welcoming, friendly and easy to understand. Rounded, softer or clear fonts work well, especially when the information needs to be read quickly.

Suggested fonts from our guide:

 

Works well for:

Posters, leaflets, event flyers, information packs, booklets, certificates and noticeboard displays.

Events, Weddings & Invitations

Best for weddings, parties, private events, luxury invitations and celebration stationery.

This is where serif, script and decorative fonts can work beautifully. The key is balance. Use more decorative fonts for names, headings or feature wording, then pair them with a simpler font for the details.

Suggested fonts from our guide:

Works well for:

Wedding invitations, save the dates, order of service booklets, place cards, table plans, menus and thank you cards.

Retail, Fashion & Creative Brands

Best for boutiques, product launches, fashion brands, creative studios and independent makers.

These brands can often be more expressive with font choice. A stylish display font or distinctive serif can help your print feel more memorable, especially when paired with strong photography or simple layouts.

Suggested fonts from our guide:

 

Works well for:

Lookbooks, swing tags, packaging, postcards, launch flyers, posters and branded stationery.

How to Use Our Font Guide

Our font examples are here to give you a starting point.

You can tell us:

  • “I like something clean and modern”

  • “I want it to feel more luxury”

  • “I need something bold and easy to read”

  • “I like this font, but can it be softer?”

  • “I want something with more personality”

From there, our design team can advise what will work best for your artwork, product and print finish.

Need Help Choosing?

Not every font works for every print product. A delicate font may look lovely on an invitation, but may not be suitable for a small sticker or outdoor sign. A bold font may look great on a banner, but feel too heavy for a wedding menu.

If you are unsure, send us your wording, design idea or a few font examples you like. We can help you choose a font style that suits your business, event or printed product.

View our font examples below and use them as inspiration for your next SM1 Print Studio project.