Compare Fonts → Sans Serif → Barlow vs Red Hat Display

Barlow vs Red Hat Display

Both are sans serif faces on Google Fonts. Barlow has the larger x-height, so it looks bigger at the same size. Red Hat Display takes more horizontal space.

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Barlow

Handgloves & Quartz Jockeys

The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. Pack my box with five dozen liquor jugs, then ship it to 1,842 Grove Street by 9:30 AM.

Red Hat Display

Handgloves & Quartz Jockeys

The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. Pack my box with five dozen liquor jugs, then ship it to 1,842 Grove Street by 9:30 AM.

Measured differences

Measured from the font files. Heights and widths are shown as a share of the font size, so they compare directly at any point size.
Measurement	Barlow	Red Hat Display	Difference
x-heightHeight of lowercase letters, as a share of the font size. Higher reads larger at the same point size.	50.6%	50.1%	0.5%
Cap heightHeight of capitals, as a share of the font size.	70.0%	70.0%	0.0%
x-height to cap ratioProportion of lowercase to uppercase. Higher feels more modern and open.	0.72	0.72	0.01
Stroke weightMeasured thickness of a vertical stroke. Higher is heavier on the page.	7.1%	7.3%	0.2%
Stroke contrastHorizontal stroke divided by vertical. 1.0 is even; below 0.5 means strong thick-thin modulation.	0.87	0.90	0.04
Average character widthMean lowercase advance. Higher takes more horizontal space.	48.7%	49.8%	1.1%

Where they diverge most

Stroke contrast: Barlow measures 0.87, Red Hat Display measures 0.90. Horizontal stroke divided by vertical. 1.0 is even; below 0.5 means strong thick-thin modulation.
Average character width: Barlow measures 48.7%, Red Hat Display measures 49.8%. Mean lowercase advance. Higher takes more horizontal space.
x-height: Barlow measures 50.6%, Red Hat Display measures 50.1%. Height of lowercase letters, as a share of the font size. Higher reads larger at the same point size.

At a glance

	Barlow	Red Hat Display
Category	Sans Serif	Sans Serif
Weights	9	7
Variable axes	None	1
Language subsets	3	2
Designer	Jeremy Tribby	MCKL