Sans serif · Jonny Pinhorn
Karla
Find the font. Find its kind.
CSSfont-family: 'Karla', sans-serif; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; line-height: 1.1;
Karla is a free sans serif by Jonny Pinhorn, on Google Fonts since 2012. Among the 697 sans serifs on FontKind, Karla has an x-height shorter than 83%, is wider than 61% and, at its regular weight, is lighter than 70%. Its thickest strokes are 1.2 times its thinnest: nearly even strokes.
01 / Light table
Laid on top of Estedad
Karla on one light table with its two closest fonts, Estedad (84 out of 100) and Phlatt Grotesk (79). Estedad has more stroke contrast; Phlatt Grotesk is 6% narrower and 6% lighter.
Karla and Estedad laid on top of each other.
Ink shared with KarlaEstedad…
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 Karla 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
Karla in 7 weights
7 weights, 200–800, with italics · variable from 200 to 800
Variable weight, 200 to 800
- 200 Extra light, with its italic
- 300 Light, with its italic
- 400 Regular, with its italic
- 500 Medium, with its italic
- 600 Semibold, with its italic
- 700 Bold, with its italic
- 800 Extra bold, with its italic
04 / Facts
Who made Karla, and can you use it?
- Designer
- Jonny Pinhorn
- Kind
- Sans serif
- Styles
- 7 weights, 200–800, with italics
- Variable axes
- Weight 200–800
- On Google Fonts since
- 2012
- 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 or loaded from Google Fonts.
- PDFs and documents
- Yes.
- Changes
- Yes.
- Sharing the files
- Yes, but not for sale. With the licence.
Karla 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
- Most likely. Under More fonts, in Sheets and Slides too. Google’s guide
- Word, PowerPoint
- No. Install it from Google Fonts first. Microsoft’s list
- Figma
- Yes. Built in, nothing to install. Figma’s help
- Canva
- Not verified. Search its font menu for Karla, or upload it with Canva Pro. Canva’s help
- Cricut
- Once installed. Design Space lists Karla under System. Fonts for Cricut →
From each app’s own font list or help pages, read on 28 September 2026.
05 / Measurements
Karla, measured
Taken from the font file's own outlines, regular style
- x-height
- 47.9% of the emlowercase x
- Cap height
- 62.8% of the emcapitals
- x / cap
- 0.76lowercase against capitals
- Width
- 52.0% of the emaverage lowercase
- Ink
- 39%letter box filled
- Contrast
- 1.18 : 1nearly even strokes
Where it stands among sans serifs
Ranked against all 697 sans serifs on FontKind
x-heightSmaller than 83% of sans serifs
WidthWider than 61% of sans serifs
InkLighter than 70% of sans serifs
ContrastNear the middle of sans serifs
06 / Similar fonts
Fonts similar to Karla
Matched letter by letter · its own family apart
- Estedad84more stroke contrast
- Phlatt Grotesk796% narrower · 6% lighter
- Special Gothic779% narrower · x-height 5% taller · 10% heavier
- Padauk7713% narrower · x-height 9% shorter · more stroke contrast
- Mukta769% narrower · 15% heavier · more stroke contrast
- Paysage765% narrower · x-height 4% shorter
All 100 fonts similar to Karla →Compare side by side →Get Karla on Google Fonts
07 / Swap
Swap Karla without a jump
Running text within 3% of the width, x-height within 5%
- Estedad84text 1.1% wider · x-height 2.1% taller
- Funnel Sans71text 2.0% narrower · x-height 4.4% taller
- Garcia71text 1.8% narrower · x-height 4.0% shorter
- Gantari69same text width · x-height 1.9% shorter
- Rethink Sans68text 2.0% wider · x-height 3.5% taller
- Host Grotesk67text 1.7% wider · x-height 3.5% taller
Fallback while it loads
Until Karla loads, this sets Arial in its place at 103.9% of its size, so running text keeps Karla’s width and lines keep their height: nothing moves when it arrives.
@font-face {
font-family: 'Karla Fallback';
src: local('Arial');
size-adjust: 103.90%;
ascent-override: 88.26%;
descent-override: 24.26%;
line-gap-override: 0.00%;
}
font-family: 'Karla', 'Karla Fallback', sans-serif;08 / Pairs
Used together with Karla
Of the 39,139 home pages that load Karla, 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
- Montserrat14%5,339 sites · 1× chance
- Roboto11%4,300 sites · 0.5× chance
- Rubik7.7%3,012 sites · 4.7× chance
- Open Sans7.4%2,882 sites · 0.4× chance
- Poppins6.7%2,633 sites · 0.6× chance
- Inter5.6%2,211 sites · 0.6× chance
More than chanceUnica One 28×Coustard 17×Arapey 11×
Fonts that go with Karla: pairs and trios →The pairs sites choose most →
Pair checkerKarla + 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 Karla
Answered from its licence, Google Fonts and each app’s own font list
Is Karla free for commercial use?
Yes. Karla 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 Karla?
FontKind doesn’t host Karla’s files: it comes free from Google Fonts . On its page there, choose Get font, then Download all, and unzip the file. It holds two variable files, one for the uprights and one for the italics, and a static folder with a file per style: install one set or the other, not both. On Windows or a Mac, double-click each font file and choose Install, then restart any app that was open, Word included.
Is Karla in Microsoft Word?
Not until you install it: Karla isn’t one of Microsoft 365’s cloud fonts. Installed, it is in Word’s font menu and PowerPoint’s. On Windows, its weights beyond Regular and Bold show as fonts of their own, such as Karla ExtraLight and Karla ExtraBold. For someone who hasn’t installed it, turn on Embed fonts in the file in Word’s save options: its licence allows that.
Is Karla in Google Docs?
Most likely. Search for Karla under More fonts in the font menu of Docs; added there, it is in Sheets and Slides too.
Is Karla in Figma?
Yes: Karla is in Figma’s font menu with all seven weights and their italics, in the browser and the desktop app, with nothing to install.
How many weights does Karla have?
Karla comes in seven weights, from ExtraLight (200) to ExtraBold (800), each with an italic. It is a variable font: it takes any weight from 200 to 800.
Who designed Karla?
Karla was designed by Jonny Pinhorn. It has been on Google Fonts since March 2012. Jonny Pinhorn also made Poppins, Shrikhand and Quilon.
What fonts are similar to Karla?
The closest in our letter-by-letter match are Estedad (84), Phlatt Grotesk (79) and Special Gothic (77), out of 100. Next to Karla, Estedad has more stroke contrast. See all 100 fonts like Karla.