editorial

Libre Baskerville and Montserrat font pairing

Serif headings with a sans serif body.

Background
Issue 07 · Field notes
Built for the long run

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 Montserrat, while the headline uses Libre Baskerville. Numbers like 0123456789, punctuation “quotes” — and ampersands & — reveal a lot about how two typefaces get along.

Contrast, then harmony

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: Libre Baskerville's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Montserrat's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens. Montserrat ships in 9 weights, so you can build captions, buttons and emphasis without adding another family.

HLibre Baskerville

Libre Baskerville is a free serif typeface designed by Impallari Type, added to Google Fonts in 2012. It comes in 4 weights with matching italics, and is a variable font with a weight axis.

More pairings for Libre Baskerville →

BMontserrat

Montserrat is a free sans serif typeface designed by Julieta Ulanovsky, Sol Matas, Juan Pablo del Peral and Jacques Le Bailly, added to Google Fonts in 2011. It comes in 9 weights with matching italics, and is a variable font with a weight axis.

More pairings for Montserrat →

Use this pairing on your website

HTML — paste in <head>
<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=Libre+Baskerville:wght@700&family=Montserrat:wght@400;700&display=swap" rel="stylesheet">
CSS
h1, h2, h3 {
  font-family: 'Libre Baskerville', serif;
  font-weight: 700;
}

body {
  font-family: 'Montserrat', sans-serif;
  font-weight: 400;
  line-height: 1.6;
}

More pairings with Libre Baskerville

More pairings with Montserrat

Notes from the studio

Typography sets the tone before a single word is read. A good pairing feels like one voice.

HBitterBMontserrateditorial→

A classic contrast: Bitter's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Montserrat's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens.

Ideas that travel well

Typography sets the tone before a single word is read. A good pairing feels like one voice.

HCinzelBMontserrateditorial→

A classic contrast: Cinzel's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Montserrat's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens.

Frequently asked questions

Do Libre Baskerville and Montserrat go well together?

A classic contrast: Libre Baskerville's serifs give headlines an editorial, trustworthy voice while Montserrat's clean shapes keep body text easy to scan on screens. Montserrat ships in 9 weights, so you can build captions, buttons and emphasis without adding another family.

Which font should be used for headings?

Use Libre Baskerville for headings at weight 700, and Montserrat for body text at weight 400. You can swap them in the pairing tool to compare.

Are Libre Baskerville and Montserrat free?

Yes — both are open-source fonts on Google Fonts and free for personal and commercial use.