November 6, 2026
The closest free fonts to the paid ones top sites use are usually Inter, Roboto and Arimo for grotesque sans such as Helvetica Now and Neue Haas Grotesk, and Montserrat, Manrope or Google Sans for geometric sans such as Proxima Nova. The table below ranks the top three free matches for ten paid fonts from the Enrichr font database, with a score out of 100 that you can inspect on each font's page.
What are the closest free fonts to each paid font?
| Paid font | Type | Closest free matches (score out of 100) |
|---|---|---|
| Proxima Nova | sans | Google Sans (74), Manrope (74), Montserrat (72) |
| Helvetica Now | sans | Roboto (74), Inter (74), Arimo (74) |
| Neue Haas Grotesk | sans | Roboto (74), Inter (74), Arimo (74) |
| Graphik | sans | Roboto (74), Inter (74), Arimo (74) |
| Aeonik | sans | IBM Plex Sans (73), Libre Franklin (71), Work Sans (69) |
| GT America | sans | IBM Plex Sans (73), Libre Franklin (71), Work Sans (69) |
| Akkurat | sans | IBM Plex Sans (73), Libre Franklin (71), Work Sans (69) |
| Roobert | sans | Google Sans (74), Manrope (74), Montserrat (72) |
| Tiempos | serif | Source Serif 4 (73), Merriweather (72), Lora (72) |
| Söhne | sans | Roboto (74), Inter (74), Arimo (74) |
Scores for paid fonts are approximate, because we hold the open fonts' files but not the paid fonts'. Where a font page has more than three matches, it lists them all with the numbers behind each one.
How is a match scored?
A score is the sum of parts we can measure:
| Part | Points | What it compares |
|---|---|---|
| Style | 40 | same style, such as neo-grotesque or geometric; related styles score part |
| Weight range | 20 | how much the lightest-to-heaviest ranges overlap |
| x-height | 20 | how close the lowercase height is, as a share of the em |
| Scripts | 10 | Latin Extended, Cyrillic, Greek and Vietnamese coverage |
| Width | 5 | normal, condensed or extended |
| Popularity | 5 | how widely the free font is already used |
A high score means the two fonts look and set text alike. It never means they are identical: put the two next to each other on your real copy before you switch.
What about Helvetica, Gotham and Futura?
These three are not in our database, so there is no score to show. The free matches designers cite most often are:
| Font | Free matches usually named |
|---|---|
| Helvetica | Inter, Arimo, Nimbus Sans, Roboto |
| Gotham | Montserrat, Metropolis, Figtree |
| Futura | Jost, Poppins |
These come from design write-ups such as Helvetica: Free Alternatives and Similar Fonts and Gotham similar fonts, read on November 6, 2026. Poppins is rounder than Futura, so it is a looser match than Jost.
Are free fonts safe to use commercially?
Fonts in the lists above are open-licence fonts, mostly under the SIL Open Font License, which allows commercial use and embedding. The licence and source for each one are on its page in the font database. A “free to download” font on a random site is not the same thing: check that the licence names commercial use.
How do I find the font a website uses?
- Paste the address into the website font finder. It lists the families the page really loads.
- Open that font in the font database to see who uses it, its licence and its free alternatives.
- For a whole-site view, see what 107 top websites use.
FAQ
What is a free alternative to Proxima Nova?
In our scoring the closest free matches are Google Sans, Manrope and Montserrat (about 72 to 74 out of 100). Proxima Nova is a geometric-leaning humanist sans, and Montserrat is the one most designers reach for first. The scores for paid fonts are approximate.
What is a free alternative to Helvetica?
Inter, Roboto and Arimo score highest as free matches for Helvetica Now in our data, and designers commonly cite Inter, Arimo and Nimbus Sans as Helvetica substitutes. Inter is tuned for screens, which suits web use.
What is a free alternative to Gotham?
Montserrat is the match most often cited for Gotham, with Metropolis and Figtree also suggested in design write-ups. Gotham is not in our database, so this answer comes from those write-ups, not our scoring.
What is a free alternative to Futura?
Jost is the match most often cited for Futura: an open geometric sans built on Futura's circular shapes. Futura is not in our database, so this comes from design write-ups, not our scoring.
How do you score a font match?
Each score out of 100 is the sum of parts we can measure from the font files and catalogues: style 40, weight range 20, x-height 20, scripts covered 10, width class 5 and popularity 5. When a paid font's files are unavailable, the parts we cannot measure score neutral, and the match is marked approximate.
Are the free fonts safe for commercial use?
The fonts listed are open-licence fonts, mostly under the SIL Open Font License, which allows commercial use. Each font's page in our database states its licence, so check it before you ship.
How do I find the font a website uses?
Paste the address into the website font finder; it lists the fonts the page really loads. Then look the font up in the font database for its free alternatives.