Arial Narrow

Arial Narrow — a condensed sans serif for compact layouts

About this font

Arial Narrow is the condensed member of the Arial family, designed by Robin Nicholas and Patricia Saunders. It is useful when a heading, label or column needs more room for text without reducing the font size.

This is a reference page: Webfonts does not distribute Arial Narrow files. Compare three free alternatives below, or visit the official source for information about the original.

Usage

Not free for personal use
Not free for commercial use

License: A proprietary Microsoft/Monotype typeface. Appropriate licensing is required for use and redistribution of the font files.

Formats: TTF, WOFF

Designer: Robin Nicholas, Patricia Saunders

Variable font: No

Cyrillic support: Yes

Categories: Sans

Styles: Regular, Bold, Bold Italic, Italic

Compare free alternatives to Arial Narrow

Compare three free alternatives using the same specimen. They have their own letterforms and spacing: replacing Arial Narrow may change line breaks and the fit of your layout.

Same text · 32 px · Regular (400)

Roboto Condensed
Design in every detail Aa Bb Cc 012345
Our pick for compact interfaces and short text blocks. Its open curves give it a softer character; test it with your actual labels and numbers.
License: SIL Open Font License 1.1
Open font Roboto Condensed
Oswald
Design in every detail Aa Bb Cc 012345
Our pick for prominent headings and posters. Its tall, condensed character creates a stronger display effect, so we would not treat it as an invisible replacement in a document.
License: SIL Open Font License 1.1
Open font Oswald
Barlow Condensed
Design in every detail Aa Bb Cc 012345
Our pick for labels, navigation and editorial headings. Slightly rounded shapes give it a different tone; compare its punctuation and capitals with your design.
License: SIL Open Font License 1.1
Open font Barlow Condensed

ContactOfficial source

Arial Narrow styles

The Microsoft listing identifies four styles: Regular, Bold, Italic and Bold Italic. Choose the actual italic or bold style in your software rather than relying on an artificial slant or emboldening. The available character set depends on the version you have.

Where to get Arial Narrow

Start with Microsoft’s Arial Narrow reference. It documents the family and its availability in Office applications. Check the product and license you use rather than assuming the font is installed on every computer.

The Arial family on Adobe Fonts is another place to check available styles and service terms. Desktop use, a hosted web project and self-hosting font files are different uses; choose the terms that cover your project.

Using Arial Narrow on a website

A CSS stack such as font-family: "Arial Narrow", Arial, sans-serif; uses the font if it is available on the visitor’s device. Otherwise, the browser falls back to the next family. This declaration does not download Arial Narrow.

Hosting a font file yourself requires the appropriate rights. See Microsoft’s font redistribution FAQ before copying or converting a font from an installed product.

Choosing a free alternative

For an interface, start with Roboto Condensed. For a more prominent headline, try Oswald. For labels and editorial layouts, compare Barlow Condensed. These are our starting points for testing, not exact substitutes.

Before replacing a font in an existing document, check your longest heading, a paragraph, numbers and punctuation at the intended size. Keep the same text and weight while comparing. Inspect line breaks, table widths and page count before approving the change.

The specimens above use the free alternatives themselves. For examples of the original Arial Narrow, use the official Microsoft reference linked above.