Garamond vs Times New Roman

Times New Roman is one typeface, drawn in 1932 for The Times of London; Garamond is a family of typefaces after Claude Garamond, a 16th-century Paris punchcutter, among them the one Microsoft Office installs and the free EB Garamond. Garamond is the smaller and narrower of the two: we measured EB Garamond’s x-height 9% shorter than Times New Roman’s, and the same text 5% narrower at the same size.^1,2,3,4

On this deviceTimes New Roman: looking…Garamond: looking…

01 / In your words

Garamond vs Times New Roman, side by side

Paid and system fonts show only from your own device: FontKind never sends their files. The free fonts below them are labelled as what they are.

Set every font in your words

Size65 px

WeightDefault

Letter spacing0 em

Free · EB Garamond · A free Garamond, after a 1592 specimen of Claude Garamont’s type
Find the font. Find its kind.
Times New Roman · looking on this device
Looking for Times New Roman on this device…
Garamond from Microsoft Office · looking on this device
Looking for Garamond on this device…
Free · Cormorant Garamond · A free display family inspired by Garamond, for large sizes
Find the font. Find its kind.
Free · Tinos · Drawn to Times New Roman’s widths
Find the font. Find its kind.

02 / Compared

What is the difference between Garamond and Times New Roman?

Garamond and Times New Roman compared
What differs	Garamond	Times New Roman
Designed^2,1	GaramondRevivals of type Claude Garamond cut in 16th-century Paris; Office’s is Monotype’s of 1922	Times New Roman1932, by Stanley Morison with Victor Lardent, for The Times
Style^2,1	GaramondOld-style serif: a low x-height, long ascenders and descenders, clear but limited contrast	Times New RomanTransitional serif: a high x-height, short descenders and a condensed build
Made for^2,1	GaramondBooks: Adobe Garamond is one of the most popular Garamonds in book printing	Times New RomanA newspaper’s narrow columns and tight lines
Comes with^2,5,1,6	GaramondMicrosoft Office installs Monotype Garamond; Windows itself has none	Times New RomanWindows since Windows 3.1, and macOS
Licence^7,2,5	GaramondEB Garamond is open source: free for any use, websites included. Adobe’s and Monotype’s cuts are commercial	Times New RomanComes with the system, for use there
Free alternative^7,8	GaramondEB Garamond	Times New RomanTinos, drawn to its widths
Measured by FontKind⁴
x-heightHeight of the lowercase x, share of the em	Garamond40.5%Measured on EB Garamond	Times New Roman44.7%
Cap heightHeight of the capitals, share of the em	Garamond65.3%Measured on EB Garamond	Times New Roman66.2%
Letter widthThe 26 lowercase letters on average, share of the em	Garamond43.7%Measured on EB Garamond	Times New Roman45.9%
Running textWidth of English text a character, share of the em	Garamond38.3%Measured on EB Garamond	Times New Roman40.5%
InkHow much of the letter box the lowercase fills	Garamond40%Measured on EB Garamond	Times New Roman41%
ContrastThe o’s sides against its top and foot	Garamond2.69 : 1Measured on EB Garamond	Times New Roman2.73 : 1

03 / Letter by letter

How to tell Garamond from Times New Roman

Each letter in both fonts, as this device and the catalogue set them, with what to look for.

x-height, ascenders and descenders^2,1
EB Garamond
hxp
A low x-height under long ascenders and descenders
Times New Roman
Looking…
A high x-height, with short descenders so lines can sit close
The e^2,1
EB Garamond
e
A small eye
Times New Roman
Looking…
A larger eye, on a taller x-height
Width^4,1
EB Garamond
mno
Narrower: EB Garamond’s lowercase measures 5% narrower on average
Times New Roman
Looking…
Condensed for newspaper columns, yet wider than Garamond

04 / Which to use

Garamond or Times New Roman: which should you use?

An essay with a page count
Whatever your guide names: APA lists Times New Roman at 12 points, not Garamond. At the same size Garamond fits more on a page, because its letters are smaller.^9,3,4
A book, an invitation or a menu
Garamond, an old-style book face. Set it larger than you would Times New Roman: EB Garamond at 13.3 points matches Times New Roman at 12.^2,4
A website
EB Garamond is free to serve. Times New Roman shows only from the visitor’s own copy; Tinos is free with its widths.^7,8
Using less ink
Garamond uses less at the same point size only because its letters are smaller: any font set smaller saves ink too.³

05 / Free instead

Free fonts instead of Garamond and Times New Roman

Free for commercial use, under open licences. A font drawn to the original’s widths keeps a document’s line breaks; the others are the closest our data finds.

Instead of Garamond

Picked
EB Garamond
A free Garamond, after a 1592 specimen of Claude Garamont’s type
Picked
Cormorant Garamond
A free display family inspired by Garamond, for large sizes
Match 87 · by our data
Ovo
13% wider · x-height 13% taller · less stroke contrast
Match 83 · by our data
Junicode
x-height 3% taller
Match 81 · by our data
Sorts Mill Goudy
12% wider · x-height 5% taller · 8% lighter

EB Garamond, a free Garamond

Instead of Times New Roman

Picked
Tinos
Drawn to Times New Roman’s widths
Match 96 · by our data
Sneaky Times
5% wider · x-height 4% taller
Match 91 · by our data
STIX Two Text
x-height 6% taller · 5% wider · less stroke contrast
Match 91 · by our data
Jomolhari
x-height 12% taller · 12% wider · more stroke contrast

Free alternatives to Times New Roman

06 / Questions

Garamond vs Times New Roman: questions people ask

Which Garamond is in Microsoft Word?

Monotype Garamond, a 1922 revival that Microsoft Office installs. Despite its name it follows the type of Jean Jannon, cut decades after Claude Garamond’s death, a mix-up that went unnoticed until 1926.²

Is Garamond smaller than Times New Roman?

Yes, at the same point size. We measured EB Garamond’s x-height at 40.5% of the em against Times New Roman’s 44.7%, so 9% shorter, and the same text sets 5% narrower. EB Garamond at 13.3 points has the x-height of Times New Roman at 12.⁴

Does Garamond save ink?

At the same point size it uses less, but only because its letters are smaller: any font set smaller saves ink, as the typographer Thomas Phinney pointed out when a 2014 school study proposed Garamond to cut US government printing costs.³

Is Garamond free?

EB Garamond is: an open-source Garamond on Google Fonts, free for any use, websites included. The Garamond in Microsoft Office comes with Office, and other cuts, such as Adobe Garamond, are commercial.^7,2

Can I use Garamond in Google Docs?

Yes: Google Docs adds fonts from the Google Fonts library, and EB Garamond is one of them. Open the font menu, choose More fonts and search for it.^10,7

Is Times New Roman or Garamond better for an essay?

Use the font your guide names: APA lists Times New Roman at 12 points among its choices, and Garamond is not on the list. Where you choose, Garamond reads smaller at the same size, so set it larger.^9,4

Sources

Updated 1 October 2026. Garamond and Times New Roman are trademarks of their owners, named here only to say which fonts the page compares. FontKind is not affiliated with them: this is an independent comparison.