# Public Sans font

> A neutral variable sans from the United States Web Design System, based on Libre Franklin, in nine weights.

Public Sans is a neutral sans serif from the United States Web Design System (USWDS) that builds on Libre Franklin. Public Sans is a variable font with a weight axis from 100 to 900, nine named weights and italics. Public Sans is released under the SIL Open Font License 1.1 and suits interfaces, body text and headings.

## Facts

- Classification: [Sans Serif](https://trendhub.net/fonts/category/sans-serif)
- Designed by: USWDS, Dan Williams, Pablo Impallari, Rodrigo Fuenzalida
- License: SIL Open Font License 1.1 (https://openfontlicense.org/open-font-license-official-text/)
- Styles: 18 (Thin 100, ExtraLight 200, Light 300, Regular 400, Medium 500, SemiBold 600, Bold 700, ExtraBold 800, Black 900; with italics)
- Variable font: Yes (wght 100–900)
- Glyphs: 645
- Character sets: latin, latin-ext, vietnamese
- Last updated: 2025-09-16
- Official source: https://fonts.google.com/specimen/Public+Sans
- Page: https://trendhub.net/fonts/public-sans
- Tagged for: Headlines, Body text, Interfaces, Minimalist

## About Public Sans

Public Sans is a sans serif typeface from the United States Web Design System, known as USWDS. It is derived from Libre Franklin, a family by Pablo Impallari with Rodrigo Fuenzalida, and keeps that design's plain grotesque structure: a double-storey a and g, a straight-legged R and even proportions. The stated aim is a strong, neutral face for interfaces, text and headings. The family became a variable font in May 2022 and has one axis, weight, from 100 to 900, with nine named weights from Thin to Black and an italic for each. The fonts hold 645 glyphs in the latin, latin-ext and vietnamese subsets. Dan Williams is listed among the designers together with the authors of the source design. Public Sans is licensed under the SIL Open Font License 1.1.

## License

SIL Open Font License 1.1. Copyright 2015 The Public Sans Project Authors (https://github.com/uswds/public-sans)

Allowed:
- Use the fonts in personal and commercial work, in print, on the web and in apps.
- Modify the fonts and build new versions from them.
- Redistribute the fonts, on their own or bundled with software, as long as the license text and copyright notice go with them.

Conditions:
- The fonts cannot be sold by themselves.
- A modified version must stay under the same license and cannot use a Reserved Font Name without the copyright holder's permission.
- The authors' names cannot be used to promote a modified version without permission.

Summary only, not legal advice. Full text: https://openfontlicense.org/open-font-license-official-text/

## Where it works

- **Government and institutional websites**: The typeface comes from a government web design system and is neutral in tone.
- **Web application interfaces**: Nine weights from Thin to Black give labels, buttons, tables and headings distinct levels.
- **Forms and long instructions**: Plain, evenly proportioned letters keep step-by-step text easy to scan.
- **Design systems needing an open license**: One variable file per style group covers every weight between 100 and 900.
- **Reports and documentation**: Regular and SemiBold with italics handle body copy, emphasis and subheads.

## Things to know

- **Based on Libre Franklin**: Public Sans is a derivative of Libre Franklin, and the font file credits that family's designers.
- **Variable since May 2022**: The official notes record the upgrade to a variable font. The download holds one upright and one italic variable file.
- **Default weight is 100**: The variable files open at Thin 100, which is why the specimen headline is so light; set font-weight explicitly.
- **Latin scripts only**: There is no Cyrillic or Greek. Vietnamese is included.

## FAQs

### Is Public Sans free for commercial use?

Public Sans can be used free of charge in personal and commercial work under the SIL Open Font License 1.1. The license also permits modification and redistribution, but the fonts cannot be sold on their own and derivatives must stay under the same license.

### Who designed Public Sans?

Public Sans comes from the United States Web Design System (USWDS), with Dan Williams among its designers. Its source design, Libre Franklin, is by Pablo Impallari and Rodrigo Fuenzalida.

### How many weights does Public Sans have?

Public Sans has nine named weights, from Thin 100 to Black 900, each with an italic, for 18 styles.

### Is Public Sans a variable font?

Yes. Public Sans is a variable font with one axis, weight, running from 100 to 900.

### Which languages does Public Sans support?

Public Sans includes the letters needed for English and other Latin-script languages such as Spanish, French, German, Turkish, Polish, Romanian and Vietnamese.

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Source: https://trendhub.net/fonts/public-sans (trendhub)