Playfair
Playfair is a serif font in 7 weights with italics, also available as a variable font. Its lowercase letters are 4% narrower than the typical serif font. Last updated 10 September 2025.
Editing a PDF that uses Playfair
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 Playfair from the widths stored in your PDF, loads the complete open font, and sets your new text in Playfair itself. The rest of the page is carried over untouched.
Measured metrics
| Average lowercase letter width | 499 units per 1000 em |
|---|---|
| Average capital letter width | 611.3 units per 1000 em |
| Word space | 209.7 units per 1000 em |
| Digits | proportional (digit widths differ) |
| Spacing | proportional |
| Width of i compared with m | 37% |
| Printable ASCII characters covered | 94 of 94 |
| Category | Serif |
Weights and styles
Languages beyond basic Latin
Open fonts closest to Playfair
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.
- Lisu Bosa Regularloosely similar widths (32.8 units)
- Sahitya Regularloosely similar widths (33.2 units)
- Alegreya Regularloosely similar widths (33.4 units)
- Poly Regularloosely similar widths (33.9 units)
- Song Myung Regularloosely similar widths (34.5 units)
- Libre Caslon Condensed Regularloosely similar widths (36.4 units)
- Mukta Mahee Regularloosely similar widths (36.8 units)
- Vidaloka Regularloosely similar widths (36.8 units)
Compare Playfair
Questions people ask
+Can I edit a PDF that uses Playfair?
Yes. Drop the PDF into MythosPDF and click the text. New letters are set in Playfair itself, loaded from the open font, so the edit matches the rest of the page.
+Is Playfair free to use?
Playfair 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 Playfair?
By measured letter widths, Lisu Bosa is the closest match among open fonts (a mean difference of 32.8 units per 1000 em). Text set in one takes almost the same space in the other.
+Which languages does Playfair support?
It includes these character sets: Cyrillic, Cyrillic Extended, Latin, Central European, Vietnamese.
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