Cardo
Cardo is a serif font in 2 weights with italics. Its lowercase letters are 7% narrower than the typical serif font. Last updated 8 September 2025.
Editing a PDF that uses Cardo
Most PDFs embed only the letters they already use. Type a new letter and many editors either refuse or swap in a different font. MythosPDF recognises Cardo from the widths stored in your PDF, loads the complete open font, and sets your new text in Cardo itself. The rest of the page is carried over untouched.
Measured metrics
| Average lowercase letter width | 482.4 units per 1000 em |
|---|---|
| Average capital letter width | 721.3 units per 1000 em |
| Word space | 268.6 units per 1000 em |
| Digits | tabular (every digit is 512.2 units wide, so columns of numbers line up) |
| Spacing | proportional |
| Width of i compared with m | 33% |
| Printable ASCII characters covered | 94 of 94 |
| Category | Serif |
Weights and styles
Languages beyond basic Latin
Open fonts closest to Cardo
Measured on every printable character both fonts contain. A smaller difference means the same words take the same space, so lines break in the same places.
- Spectral Regularloosely similar widths (39.5 units)
- Spectral SC Regularloosely similar widths (39.5 units)
- Tinos Regularloosely similar widths (41.3 units)
- Libertinus Serif Regularloosely similar widths (41.5 units)
- EB Garamond Regularloosely similar widths (41.7 units)
- Libertinus Sans Regularloosely similar widths (42.5 units)
- Newsreader Regularloosely similar widths (42.7 units)
- Ibarra Real Nova Regularloosely similar widths (43 units)
Compare Cardo
Questions people ask
+Can I edit a PDF that uses Cardo?
Yes. Drop the PDF into MythosPDF and click the text. New letters are set in Cardo itself, loaded from the open font, so the edit matches the rest of the page.
+Is Cardo free to use?
Cardo is released under the SIL Open Font License 1.1, an open licence that allows free use in documents, including commercial ones. Check the licence text for your exact use.
+Which font is closest to Cardo?
By measured letter widths, Spectral is the closest match among open fonts (a mean difference of 39.5 units per 1000 em). Text set in one takes almost the same space in the other.
+Which languages does Cardo support?
It includes these character sets: Gothic, Greek, Greek Extended, Hebrew, Latin, Central European, Old Italic, Runic.
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