Sans serif · DejaVu fonts team
DejaVu Sans
Find the font. Find its kind.
CSSfont-family: 'DejaVu Sans', sans-serif; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; line-height: 1.1;
DejaVu Sans is a free sans serif by DejaVu fonts team, from Fontsource. Among the 697 sans serifs on FontKind, DejaVu Sans has an x-height taller than 83%, is wider than 84% and, at its regular weight, is lighter than 65%. Its thickest strokes are 1.2 times its thinnest: nearly even strokes.
01 / Light table
Laid on top of Biryani
DejaVu Sans on one light table with its two closest fonts, Biryani (84 out of 100) and Varela (82). Biryani is 7% heavier; Varela is 4% narrower and 7% heavier, with an x-height 7% shorter.
DejaVu Sans and Biryani laid on top of each other.
Ink shared with DejaVu SansBiryani…
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 DejaVu Sans alphabet
Capitals, lowercase, figures and signs · weight 400
Tap the letters you like, here and in other fonts, to find the fonts whose letters look most like them.
- &
- ?
- !
- @
- %
- (
- )
03 / Weights
DejaVu Sans in 2 weights
2 weights, 400–700, with italics
- 400 Regular, with its italic
- 700 Bold, with its italic
04 / Facts
Who made DejaVu Sans, and can you use it?
- Designer
- DejaVu fonts team
- Kind
- Sans serif
- Styles
- 2 weights, 400–700, with italics
- From
- Fontsource
- Character sets
- latin
- Licence
- SIL Open Font License 1.1
Can I use it?
- Commercial use
- Yes.
- Logos
- Yes.
- Websites and apps
- Yes. Self-hosted or loaded from Fontsource.
- PDFs and documents
- Yes.
- Changes
- Yes.
- Sharing the files
- Yes, but not for sale. With the licence.
DejaVu Sans 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 DejaVu Sans comes from Fontsource. Google’s guide
- Word, PowerPoint
- No. Install it from Fontsource first. Microsoft’s list
- Figma
- No. DejaVu Sans comes from Fontsource: install it first. Figma’s help
- Canva
- Not verified. Search its font menu for DejaVu Sans, or upload it with Canva Pro. Canva’s help
- Cricut
- Once installed. Design Space lists DejaVu Sans under System. Fonts for Cricut →
From each app’s own font list or help pages, read on 28 September 2026.
05 / Measurements
DejaVu Sans, measured
Taken from the font file's own outlines, regular style
- x-height
- 54.7% of the emlowercase x
- Cap height
- 72.9% of the emcapitals
- x / cap
- 0.75lowercase against capitals
- Width
- 56.3% of the emaverage lowercase
- Ink
- 40%letter box filled
- Contrast
- 1.25 : 1nearly even strokes
Where it stands among sans serifs
Ranked against all 697 sans serifs on FontKind
x-heightLarger than 83% of sans serifs
WidthWider than 84% of sans serifs
InkLighter than 65% of sans serifs
ContrastMore contrast than 67% of sans serifs
06 / Similar fonts
Fonts similar to DejaVu Sans
Matched letter by letter · its own family apart
- Biryani847% heavier
- Varela82x-height 7% shorter · 4% narrower · 7% heavier
- Prompt82x-height 12% shorter · 17% heavier
- Amiko81x-height 5% shorter
- Mulish80x-height 8% shorter · 7% narrower
- Guidy80x-height 5% shorter · 7% heavier
All 100 fonts similar to DejaVu Sans →Compare side by side →Get DejaVu Sans on Fontsource
07 / Swap
Swap DejaVu Sans without a jump
Running text within 3% of the width, x-height within 5%
- Amiko81text 1.5% narrower · x-height 4.5% shorter
- Poppins71text 0.6% narrower · same x-height
- Sora70same text width · x-height 2.4% shorter
- Stack Sans Text68text 2.6% narrower · x-height 2.4% taller
- Encode Sans Expanded68text 0.6% narrower · x-height 0.8% shorter
- Argentum Sans68same text width · x-height 2.7% shorter
Fallback while it loads
Until DejaVu Sans loads, this sets Arial in its place at 114.8% of its size, so running text keeps DejaVu Sans’s width and lines keep their height: nothing moves when it arrives.
@font-face {
font-family: 'DejaVu Sans Fallback';
src: local('Arial');
size-adjust: 114.82%;
ascent-override: 80.84%;
descent-override: 20.54%;
line-gap-override: 0.00%;
}
font-family: 'DejaVu Sans', 'DejaVu Sans Fallback', sans-serif;08 / Pairs
Used together with DejaVu Sans
Of the 782 home pages that load DejaVu Sans, the share that load each font too, and how that compares with chance.
Same page, not which sets the headings · HTTP Archive , 1 September 2026
- Open Sans13%102 sites · 0.7× chance
- Roboto12%93 sites · 0.6× chance
- Merriweather7.3%57 sites · 6.8× chance
More than chanceMerriweather 6.8×
Pair checkerDejaVu Sans + any fontHow many of the 6,276,350 home pages counted load the two together, and how that compares with chance.Check this font with any other09 / Questions
Questions about DejaVu Sans
Answered from its licence, Fontsource and each app’s own font list
Is DejaVu Sans free for commercial use?
Yes. DejaVu Sans is under the SIL Open Font License 1.1 , which allows commercial use at any scale, logos, websites, apps and PDFs included.
How do I download and install DejaVu Sans?
FontKind doesn’t host DejaVu Sans’s files: it isn’t on Google Fonts, and comes free from Fontsource , a library of open fonts. On its page there, choose Get font, then Download complete family, and unzip the file: it holds desktop fonts for every weight and style. On Windows or a Mac, double-click each font file and choose Install. For a website, npm install @fontsource/dejavu-sans adds it in one line.
Is DejaVu Sans in Microsoft Word?
Not until you install it: DejaVu Sans isn’t one of Microsoft 365’s cloud fonts. Installed, it is in Word’s font menu and PowerPoint’s. For someone who hasn’t installed it, turn on Embed fonts in the file in Word’s save options: its licence allows that.
Is DejaVu Sans in Google Docs?
Probably not: the More fonts list in Docs draws on Google Fonts, and DejaVu Sans comes from Fontsource. Docs can’t add a font of your own, so set it in an app on your computer, such as Word, instead.
Is DejaVu Sans in Figma?
Not built in: Figma includes Google Fonts, and DejaVu Sans comes from Fontsource. Install it on your computer and Figma lists it.
How many weights does DejaVu Sans have?
DejaVu Sans comes in two weights: Regular (400) and Bold (700), each with an italic.
Who designed DejaVu Sans?
DejaVu Sans was designed by DejaVu fonts team. DejaVu fonts team also made DejaVu Mono and DejaVu Serif.
What fonts are similar to DejaVu Sans?
The closest in our letter-by-letter match are Biryani (84), Varela (82) and Prompt (82), out of 100. Next to DejaVu Sans, Biryani is 7% heavier. See all 100 fonts like DejaVu Sans.