LaTeX Font Packages: lmodern, Times, Palatino, and More
Date Published
LaTeX Font Packages
Typography matters. Choose the right font for your LaTeX documents.
Default: Computer Modern
LaTeX's default font family, designed by Donald Knuth:
- Classic academic look - Perfect for mathematics - Can look thin at some sizes
Latin Modern (lmodern)
An enhanced version of Computer Modern:
\usepackage{lmodern}
Benefits: - Better scaling - More glyphs - Improved PDF quality - Drop-in replacement for CM
Recommendation: Always use lmodern unless you have a specific reason not to.
Times-like Fonts
times (Legacy)
\usepackage{times}
Outdated—use alternatives below.
mathptmx
\usepackage{mathptmx}
Times with matching math fonts.
newtx (Recommended)
\usepackage{newtxtext} \usepackage{newtxmath}
Modern Times implementation with excellent math support.
Palatino-like Fonts
palatino (Legacy)
\usepackage{palatino}
mathpazo
\usepackage{mathpazo}
Palatino with matching math.
newpx (Recommended)
\usepackage{newpxtext} \usepackage{newpxmath}
Modern Palatino with great math support.
Sans-Serif Fonts
Helvetica
\usepackage{helvet} \renewcommand{\familydefault}{\sfdefault}
Computer Modern Sans
\renewcommand{\familydefault}{\sfdefault}
Liberation Sans
\usepackage{libertinus}
Monospace Fonts
Courier
\usepackage{courier}
Inconsolata (Recommended)
\usepackage{inconsolata}
Better for code listings.
Fira Mono
\usepackage{FiraMono}
Modern Font Families
Libertinus
\usepackage{libertinus}
Beautiful modern font with full math support.
STIX Two
\usepackage{stix2}
Designed for scientific publishing.
EB Garamond
\usepackage{ebgaramond} \usepackage{ebgaramond-maths}
Elegant classical look.
Using System Fonts (XeLaTeX/LuaLaTeX)
With XeLaTeX or LuaLaTeX:
\usepackage{fontspec} \setmainfont{Arial} \setsansfont{Helvetica} \setmonofont{Menlo}
Font Sizing
\tiny \scriptsize \footnotesize \small \normalsize \large \Large \LARGE \huge \Huge
Or specific sizes:
\fontsize{14pt}{16pt}\selectfont
Font Combinations
Classic Academic
\usepackage{lmodern}
IEEE Style
\usepackage{newtxtext,newtxmath}
Modern Elegant
\usepackage{libertinus}
Book Publishing
\usepackage{newpxtext,newpxmath}
Math Font Considerations
Some fonts lack math support. Good math fonts:
- lmodern (Computer Modern style) - newtxmath (Times style) - newpxmath (Palatino style) - libertinust1math (Libertinus) - stix2 (STIX fonts)
Quick Reference Table
Typography with Octree
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