The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog
Times New Roman vs Garamond
Two of the most familiar serifs in the world, and two of the oldest ideas in type. Times New Roman is a 1932 newspaper face from Monotype, drawn by Stanley Morison and Victor Lardent to pack crisp, economical text into narrow columns, while Garamond is a family of old-style revivals tracing back to the 16th-century Parisian punchcutter Claude Garamond, built for the unhurried pace of book pages.
Times New Roman is a commercial font, so it is shown here in Tinos, its closest free alternative. All free alternatives to Times New Roman → Garamond is a commercial font, so it is shown here in EB Garamond, its closest free alternative. All free alternatives to Garamond →
The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog
- Times New Roman was commissioned by The Times in 1931 and modelled on Plantin, with a high x-height, short descenders, and a relatively condensed width tuned for tight newspaper linespacing.
- Garamond's old-style forms have a low x-height, long ascenders and descenders, a small-eyed 'e', and a diagonal stress, which gives it a lighter, more open texture on the page.
- Times New Roman has sharpened stroke contrast for a crisp image on newsprint, while Garamond keeps limited but clear contrast that feels calmer at book sizes.
- 'Garamond' is not one font but many revivals: Monotype Garamond (based on Jean Jannon's work) ships with Microsoft Office, Adobe Garamond and Garamond Premier are Robert Slimbach's interpretations, and EB Garamond is a free open-source version.
- Both are proprietary: Times New Roman is licensed from Monotype and bundled with Windows, and Monotype or Adobe Garamond need a paid license or subscription outside the software they ship with, so licensing cost is a factor for web use.
Times New Roman
Reach for Times New Roman when you need dense, space-efficient body text with a neutral, institutional tone, such as reports, academic manuscripts, and anything that must look conventional.
Garamond
Reach for Garamond for long-form reading on paper or large-size editorial pages, where its open, elegant old-style forms give books, essays, and literary brands a classic warmth.