Roboto was designed as the system typeface for Android 4.0, with the aim of being readable on every smartphone screen. It blends rational shapes with more open curves.
At a glance
Origin: Google, United States.
Designer: Christian Robertson.
Date: 2011.
Evolution
It was extensively redesigned in 2014 to accompany Google's Material Design, then extended into Roboto Slab, Roboto Mono and Roboto Flex, a variable font released in 2022.
Famous examples
It runs on billions of Android devices and sets many Google services.
Current use
It is one of the most used typefaces in the world, especially in interfaces and on the web.
Alternatives
Inter, Open Sans, SF Pro.
Great typefaces glossary
Akzidenz-Grotesk, Arial, Avenir, Baskerville, Bodoni, Caslon, Circular, Cooper Black, Didot, DIN, FF Meta, Franklin Gothic, Frutiger, Futura, Garamond, Georgia, Gill Sans, Gotham, Graphik, Helvetica, IBM Plex, Inter, Minion, Montserrat, Myriad, Neue Haas Grotesk, Optima, Poppins, Roboto, Sabon, SF Pro, Source Sans, Source Serif, Times New Roman, Univers, Verdana