Sans serif · Jonas Hecksher
Play
Find the font. Find its kind.
CSSfont-family: 'Play', sans-serif; font-weight: 400; font-style: normal; line-height: 1.1;
Play is a free sans serif by Jonas Hecksher, on Google Fonts since 2011. Among the 697 sans serifs on FontKind, Play has an x-height shorter than 80%, is of average width and, at its regular weight, is of average darkness. Its thickest strokes are 1.6 times its thinnest: moderate stroke contrast.
01 / Light table
Laid on top of Saira
Play on one light table with its two closest fonts, Saira (89 out of 100) and Saira Semi Condensed (83). Saira is 4% wider, with less stroke contrast and an x-height 5% taller; Saira Semi Condensed is 8% narrower, with less stroke contrast and an x-height 5% taller.
Play and Saira laid on top of each other.
Ink shared with PlaySaira…
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 Play 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
Play in 2 weights
2 weights, 400–700
- 400 Regular
- 700 Bold
04 / Facts
Who made Play, and can you use it?
- Designer
- Jonas Hecksher
- Kind
- Sans serif
- Styles
- 2 weights, 400–700
- On Google Fonts since
- 2011
- Character sets
- cyrillic, cyrillic-ext, greek, latin, latin-ext, vietnamese
- 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, under another name. Not as “Play”, “Playtype” or “Playtype Sans”: the licence reserves the name.
- Sharing the files
- Yes, but not for sale. With the licence.
Play 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 Play, or upload it with Canva Pro. Canva’s help
- Cricut
- Once installed. Design Space lists Play under System. Fonts for Cricut →
From each app’s own font list or help pages, read on 28 September 2026.
05 / Measurements
Play, measured
Taken from the font file's own outlines, regular style
- x-height
- 48.4% of the emlowercase x
- Cap height
- 64.9% of the emcapitals
- x / cap
- 0.75lowercase against capitals
- Width
- 50.4% of the emaverage lowercase
- Ink
- 42%letter box filled
- Contrast
- 1.56 : 1moderate stroke contrast
Where it stands among sans serifs
Ranked against all 697 sans serifs on FontKind
x-heightSmaller than 80% of sans serifs
WidthNear the middle of sans serifs
InkNear the middle of sans serifs
ContrastMore contrast than 92% of sans serifs
06 / Similar fonts
Fonts similar to Play
Matched letter by letter · its own family apart
- Saira89less stroke contrast · x-height 5% taller · 4% wider
- Saira Semi Condensed838% narrower · less stroke contrast · x-height 5% taller
- Blinker83less stroke contrast · 6% narrower
- Doppio One7925% heavier · x-height 6% taller · 6% wider
- Ropa Sans7915% narrower · less stroke contrast · 9% heavier
- Sarpanch7812% wider · 11% lighter
All 100 fonts similar to Play →Compare side by side →Get Play on Google Fonts
07 / Swap
Swap Play without a jump
Running text within 3% of the width, x-height within 5%
- Kanit74text 0.9% wider · x-height 2.1% shorter
- Bai Jamjuree74text 2.5% wider · x-height 3.1% taller
- Maven Pro70text 2.2% wider · x-height 3.1% taller
- Metrophobic69text 2.1% wider · x-height 2.0% taller
- Supreme67text 1.3% narrower · x-height 0.8% taller
- Changa66text 0.8% narrower · x-height 3.3% taller
Fallback while it loads
Until Play loads, this sets Arial in its place at 101.8% of its size, so running text keeps Play’s width and lines keep their height: nothing moves when it arrives.
@font-face {
font-family: 'Play Fallback';
src: local('Arial');
size-adjust: 101.79%;
ascent-override: 92.05%;
descent-override: 21.61%;
line-gap-override: 0.00%;
}
font-family: 'Play', 'Play Fallback', sans-serif;08 / Pairs
Used together with Play
Of the 8,741 home pages that load Play, 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 Sans17%1,511 sites · 1× chance
- Roboto13%1,178 sites · 0.7× chance
- Montserrat11%981 sites · 0.8× chance
- Lato11%979 sites · 1.4× chance
- Playfair Display3.5%310 sites · 1.3× chance
- Ubuntu3.2%283 sites · 2.6× chance
More than chanceKeania One 579×Russo One 11×Permanent Marker 10×
Fonts that go with Play: pairs and trios →The pairs sites choose most →
Pair checkerPlay + 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 Play
Answered from its licence, Google Fonts and each app’s own font list
Is Play free for commercial use?
Yes. Play 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 “Play”, “Playtype” or “Playtype Sans”.
How do I download and install Play?
FontKind doesn’t host Play’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 font files, one per style. On Windows or a Mac, double-click each font file and choose Install, then restart any app that was open, Word included.
Is Play in Microsoft Word?
Not until you install it: Play 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 Play in Google Docs?
Most likely. Search for Play under More fonts in the font menu of Docs; added there, it is in Sheets and Slides too.
Is Play in Figma?
Yes: Play is in Figma’s font menu with all two weights, in the browser and the desktop app, with nothing to install.
How many weights does Play have?
Play comes in two weights: Regular (400) and Bold (700).
Who designed Play?
Play was designed by Jonas Hecksher. It has been on Google Fonts since May 2011.
What fonts are similar to Play?
The closest in our letter-by-letter match are Saira (89), Saira Semi Condensed (83) and Blinker (83), out of 100. Next to Play, Saira is 4% wider, with less stroke contrast and an x-height 5% taller. See all 100 fonts like Play.