modern · editorial

News Cycle and Merriweather font pairing

Sans Serif headings with a serif body.

Background
Issue 07 · Field notes
Ideas that travel well

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 Merriweather, while the headline uses News Cycle. 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 modern twist on the classic: News Cycle keeps headings crisp and contemporary, while Merriweather's serifs guide the eye along longer lines of text. Merriweather ships in 7 weights, so you can build captions, buttons and emphasis without adding another family.

HNews Cycle

News Cycle is a free sans serif typeface designed by Nathan Willis, added to Google Fonts in 2011. It comes in 2 weights.

More pairings for News Cycle →

BMerriweather

Merriweather is a free serif typeface designed by Sorkin Type, added to Google Fonts in 2011. It comes in 7 weights with matching italics, and is a variable font with optical size, width and weight axes.

More pairings for Merriweather →

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=News+Cycle:wght@700&family=Merriweather:wght@400;700&display=swap" rel="stylesheet">
CSS
h1, h2, h3 {
  font-family: 'News Cycle', sans-serif;
  font-weight: 700;
}

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

More pairings with News Cycle

Ideas that travel well

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

HNews CycleBRoboto Slabmoderneditorial→

A modern twist on the classic: News Cycle keeps headings crisp and contemporary, while Roboto Slab's serifs guide the eye along longer lines of text.

A field guide to good ideas

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

HNews CycleBCinzelmoderneditorial→

A modern twist on the classic: News Cycle keeps headings crisp and contemporary, while Cinzel's serifs guide the eye along longer lines of text.

Stories worth reading slowly

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

HNews CycleBRobotomodern→

Two sans serifs can work when they differ in structure: News Cycle carries the headings, Roboto handles text, and hierarchy comes from weight and size.

More pairings with Merriweather

Frequently asked questions

Do News Cycle and Merriweather go well together?

A modern twist on the classic: News Cycle keeps headings crisp and contemporary, while Merriweather's serifs guide the eye along longer lines of text. Merriweather ships in 7 weights, so you can build captions, buttons and emphasis without adding another family.

Which font should be used for headings?

Use News Cycle for headings at weight 700, and Merriweather for body text at weight 400. You can swap them in the pairing tool to compare.

Are News Cycle and Merriweather free?

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