System Font Study

When researching apps and what fonts they use whether it be using a (custom font, custom and system font, or only system font) I found that for most leading mobile apps custom fonts win over default native system fonts. However, system fonts are increasingly becoming popular as they bring a familiar look and feel to the reading experience and are optimized for a variety of form factors by the OS. In my research, one thing Hilton and Facebook have in common is that we both (only) use the system fonts SF UI and Roboto provided by our respective platforms iOS and Android. Creating continuity within our platforms while utilizing two different system fonts can be challenging, especially coming from a background where I used the same custom fonts for both platforms. As part of updating our Hilton style guide, I found this challenge to be fun and achievable! Well, although not perfect, I think I am getting pretty close. Here is my proposed direction as an example that won’t be implemented (exactly) the same in the future, but fun to explore.