Serif · Designer not listed
CMU Serif
Find the font. Find its kind.
CSSfont-family: 'CMU Serif', serif; font-weight: 500; font-style: normal; line-height: 1.1;
CMU Serif is a free serif, from CTAN. Among the 354 serifs on FontKind, CMU Serif has an x-height shorter than 83%, is narrower than 69% and, at its regular weight, is lighter than 87%. Its thickest strokes are 3.5 times its thinnest: high stroke contrast.
01 / Light table
Laid on top of Hausschrift
CMU Serif on one light table with its two closest fonts, Hausschrift (95 out of 100) and BJCree (89). Hausschrift is 19% heavier; BJCree is 17% heavier, with less stroke contrast.
CMU Serif and Hausschrift laid on top of each other.
Ink shared with CMU SerifHausschrift…
Most different letters first; the figure is the share of ink the fonts have in common. Where the fonts agree the letters cancel to black: every white sliver is a real difference.
02 / Letters
The CMU Serif alphabet
Capitals, lowercase, figures and signs · weight 500
Tap the letters you like, here and in other fonts, to find the fonts whose letters look most like them.
- &
- ?
- !
- @
- %
- (
- )
03 / Weights
CMU Serif in 2 weights
2 weights, 500–700, with italics
- 500 Medium, with its italic
- 700 Bold, with its italic
04 / Facts
Can you use CMU Serif?
- Designer
- Not listed
- Kind
- Serif
- Styles
- 2 weights, 500–700, with italics
- From
- CTAN
- Character sets
- latin, latin-ext
- Licence
- SIL Open Font License 1.1
Can I use it?
- Commercial use
- Yes.
- Logos
- Yes.
- Websites and apps
- Yes. Self-hosted.
- PDFs and documents
- Yes.
- Changes
- Yes, under another name. Not as “Computer Modern Unicode fonts”: the licence reserves the name.
- Sharing the files
- Yes, but not for sale. With the licence.
CMU Serif is under the SIL Open Font License 1.1. This is a plain summary, not legal advice: the licence itself decides.
Already in your apps?
- Google Docs
- Not verified. Docs adds Google Fonts, and CMU Serif comes from CTAN. Google’s guide
- Word, PowerPoint
- Not verified. Install it from CTAN first. Microsoft’s list
- Figma
- Not verified. Search its font menu, or install it. Figma’s help
- Canva
- Not verified. Search its font menu for CMU Serif, or upload it with Canva Pro. Canva’s help
- Cricut
- Once installed. Design Space lists CMU Serif under System. Fonts for Cricut →
From each app’s own font list or help pages.
05 / Measurements
CMU Serif, measured
Taken from the font file's own outlines, regular style
- x-height
- 43.1% of the emlowercase x
- Cap height
- 68.3% of the emcapitals
- x / cap
- 0.63lowercase against capitals
- Width
- 48.8% of the emaverage lowercase
- Ink
- 34%letter box filled
- Contrast
- 3.53 : 1high stroke contrast
Where it stands among serifs
Ranked against all 354 serifs on FontKind
x-heightSmaller than 83% of serifs
WidthNarrower than 69% of serifs
InkLighter than 87% of serifs
ContrastMore contrast than 88% of serifs
06 / Similar fonts
Fonts similar to CMU Serif
Matched letter by letter · its own family apart
- Hausschrift9519% heavier
- BJCree8917% heavier · less stroke contrast
- Old Standard TT85x-height 6% taller
- Baskervville79Nearly identical proportions
- Shippori Mincho B179x-height 11% taller · 10% wider · less stroke contrast
- Frank Ruhl Libre7818% heavier · x-height 9% taller · less stroke contrast
All 100 fonts similar to CMU Serif →Compare side by side →Get CMU Serif on CTAN
07 / Swap
Swap CMU Serif without a jump
Running text within 3% of the width, x-height within 5%
- Hausschrift95text 2.9% narrower · same x-height
- Baskervville79same text width · x-height 1.2% taller
- Zen Old Mincho75text 2.6% narrower · same x-height
- Gambetta72same text width · x-height 4.9% taller
- Baskervville SC66same text width · x-height 1.2% taller
- Radley63text 1.1% narrower · x-height 1.9% taller
Fallback while it loads
Until CMU Serif loads, this sets Times New Roman in its place at 110.1% of its size, so running text keeps CMU Serif’s width and lines keep their height: nothing moves when it arrives.
@font-face {
font-family: 'CMU Serif Fallback';
src: local('Times New Roman');
size-adjust: 110.05%;
ascent-override: 84.96%;
descent-override: 22.72%;
line-gap-override: 18.17%;
}
font-family: 'CMU Serif', 'CMU Serif Fallback', serif;08 / Questions
Questions about CMU Serif
Answered from its licence, CTAN and each app’s own font list
Is CMU Serif free for commercial use?
Yes. CMU Serif is under the SIL Open Font License 1.1 , which allows commercial use at any scale, logos, websites, apps and PDFs included; a changed version may not be called “Computer Modern Unicode fonts”.
How do I download and install CMU Serif?
CMU Serif comes free from CTAN . Download it from its page there and unzip the file. On Windows or a Mac, double-click each TTF or OTF file and choose Install, then restart any app that was open. The web fonts this page uses are FontKind’s own copy, kept with its licence file .
Is CMU Serif in Google Docs?
Probably not: the More fonts list in Docs draws on Google Fonts, and CMU Serif comes from CTAN. Docs can’t add a font of your own, so set it in an app on your computer, such as Word, instead.
How many weights does CMU Serif have?
CMU Serif comes in two weights: Medium (500) and Bold (700), each with an italic.
What fonts are similar to CMU Serif?
The closest in our letter-by-letter match are Hausschrift (95), BJCree (89) and Old Standard TT (85), out of 100. Next to CMU Serif, Hausschrift is 19% heavier. See all 100 fonts like CMU Serif.