Crimson Pro and Work Sans font pairing
A Garamond-inspired text serif with a grotesque — classic and contemporary.
Good pairings feel inevitable. Great ones set the tone before a single word is read.
Typography sets the tone before a single word is read. A strong pairing creates clear hierarchy while feeling like one consistent voice across every page. This paragraph is set in Work Sans, while the headline uses Crimson Pro. Numbers like 0123456789, punctuation “quotes” — and ampersands & — reveal a lot about how two typefaces get along.
Look for contrast in structure and harmony in proportion: similar x-heights, compatible widths and a shared sense of rhythm. Bold text and italic text should feel natural, too.
Why this pairing works
A classic contrast: Crimson Pro's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Work Sans's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens. Work Sans ships in 9 weights, so you can build captions, buttons and emphasis without adding another family.
HCrimson Pro
Crimson Pro is a free serif typeface designed by Jacques Le Bailly, added to Google Fonts in 2018. It comes in 8 weights with matching italics, and is a variable font with a weight axis.
More pairings for Crimson Pro →BWork Sans
Work Sans is a free sans serif typeface designed by Wei Huang, added to Google Fonts in 2015. It comes in 9 weights with matching italics, and is a variable font with a weight axis.
More pairings for Work Sans →Use this pairing on your website
<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com">
<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.gstatic.com" crossorigin>
<link href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=Crimson+Pro:wght@700&family=Work+Sans:wght@400;700&display=swap" rel="stylesheet">h1, h2, h3 {
font-family: 'Crimson Pro', serif;
font-weight: 700;
}
body {
font-family: 'Work Sans', sans-serif;
font-weight: 400;
line-height: 1.6;
}More pairings with Crimson Pro
Typography sets the tone before a single word is read. A good pairing feels like one voice.
A classic contrast: Crimson Pro's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Open Sans's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens.
Typography sets the tone before a single word is read. A good pairing feels like one voice.
A classic contrast: Crimson Pro's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Inter's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens.
Typography sets the tone before a single word is read. A good pairing feels like one voice.
A classic contrast: Crimson Pro's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Nunito's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens.
More pairings with Work Sans
Typography sets the tone before a single word is read. A good pairing feels like one voice.
A retro-futurist mono for accents and headings with a grotesque built for screens.
Typography sets the tone before a single word is read. A good pairing feels like one voice.
A classic contrast: Cormorant Garamond's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Work Sans's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens.
Typography sets the tone before a single word is read. A good pairing feels like one voice.
A classic contrast: Merriweather's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Work Sans's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens.
Frequently asked questions
Do Crimson Pro and Work Sans go well together?
A classic contrast: Crimson Pro's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Work Sans's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens. Work Sans ships in 9 weights, so you can build captions, buttons and emphasis without adding another family.
Which font should be used for headings?
Use Crimson Pro for headings at weight 700, and Work Sans for body text at weight 400. You can swap them in the pairing tool to compare.
Are Crimson Pro and Work Sans free?
Yes — both are open-source fonts on Google Fonts and free for personal and commercial use.