merriam-webster.com draws its headings and body text in Open Sans. It uses 2 fonts in all. We measured it on November 4, 2026.
The fonts merriam-webster.com draws
| Font | Used for | Share of its custom-font text | Licence | How common |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open Sans | Headings, Body text | 81.7% | Open source | 26 of 845 sites (rank 3) |
| Playfair Display | Smaller text | 18.3% | Open source | – |
Share is how much of the page’s custom-font text each font draws. System fonts and icon fonts are never counted. Each site was opened twice in a real browser and Chrome was asked which font file drew each piece of text. We count a font for a site only if both runs saw it and it drew at least 2% of the site’s custom-font text. The full method.
Can I use the same fonts?
- Open Sans is open source and free to use, including commercially. Get it from Google Fonts.
- Playfair Display is open source and free to use, including commercially. Get it from Google Fonts.
merriam-webster.com among nonprofit, government and reference sites
merriam-webster.com is one of the 37 nonprofit, government and reference sites we measured. Across them, Open Sans is the most used font you can get, on 6 of the 37 (16%). All the fonts nonprofit, government and reference sites use.
What pairing does merriam-webster.com use?
merriam-webster.com uses one family, Open Sans, for both headings and body text. So do 567 of the 845 sites we analyzed (67%). Pairings of two different fonts.
Other nonprofit, government and reference sites we measured
- loc.gov Open Sans, Roboto Slab
- nationalarchives.gov.uk Open Sans, Supria Sans
- redcross.org Roboto, Open Sans
- worldbank.org Open Sans
- worldwildlife.org Open Sans
- arxiv.org IBM Plex Sans
See the fonts on all 845 sites.
FAQ
What font does merriam-webster.com use?
merriam-webster.com draws its headings and body text in Open Sans. It uses 2 fonts in all: Open Sans, Playfair Display. We measured it on November 4, 2026.
Is Open Sans free?
Yes. Open Sans is open source and free for commercial use, according to Google Fonts.
What font pairing does merriam-webster.com use?
One family, Open Sans, for both headings and body text.
Can I use the same fonts as merriam-webster.com on my own site?
Only if the licence allows it. Free and open-source fonts can be used freely. Commercial fonts need your own licence, even though you can see the file on merriam-webster.com. Each font's licence is on this page, from its source.
How do you know which font merriam-webster.com uses?
We opened merriam-webster.com in a real browser and asked Chrome which font file drew each piece of text, twice in separate sessions. A font counts only if both runs saw it and it drew at least 2% of the site's custom-font text.
Can I check a different website?
Yes. Paste its address into the free font finder.