Legibility refers to the ease with which a reader can recognize and differentiate between letterforms.
Readability refers to how easily a page of text can be read and navigated.
Factors that affect legibility
Style of a Typeface
- Familiarity
- Serif vs. Sans Serif
- Typeface style
- Color and value
- Typographic color
- Texture of type
Size and Shape of Type
- Stroke weight
- Contrast
- Set width (width of letters)
- Point size
Background
- Contrast between text and background
- Texture of background
- Surface (of paper or screen)
Factors that affect readability
Arrangement of Letterforms
- Number of typefaces
- Alignment
- Measure
- Widows and orphans
Use of negative spaces in a layout
Your Audience
- Physiology of reading: eye focusing
- and reading gravity
- Spelling
