I think Myriad works well. Gotham, Avenir, Frutiger, Gill Sans, should all work ok. I would avoid anything overtly geomertic like Futura or Avante Garde.

Hi Amit,

here’s a list of sans serif typefaces that might fit your bill.
F

As I’ve advocated on other threads, Linotype Syntax with oldstyle figures is the best of all sans text faces, mainly because the base weight is so well judged, just a tad lighter than so many other starting weights, so it has just a tad more delicacy than its competitors. The sans faces mentioned by Chris above, though excellent, do not offer oldstyle figures (except for one version of Futura from Berthold) and nowadays all my clients demand oldstyle figures. That’s a shame, especially with Avenir, which otherwise I adore. Josh Darden’s Freight Sans is a good alternative to Gill Sans because it does offer default-loaded oldstyle figures while maintaining a similar look. Check that one out too.

I guess what rubs me the wrong way about your posts, John, is that you phrase your opinions as though they were objective fact. The fact is, you prefer Syntax, and I can’t see why, now that it’s 2008 and so many other options have appeared since Syntax. Syntax starts to look weird and clumsy at large sizes, and has a limited range of weights. It’s a pure humanist sans, like Caspari, Bliss, Freight Sans, Haarlemmer Sans, Scala Sans, etc, with the typical low contrast. The more modulated options like Legacy Sans, Amira, Beorcana, Optima Nova, Chianti and Argo are better for longer text.

Often I get the feeling that you resist even appreciating new designs because they represent a financial outlay. When people ask for recommendations, their concerns and budget may be different from yours.

Chris: Avenir is overtly geometric. It’s been called “the better Futura” and is even named to pay homage to Futura. Gotham isn’t all that readable either; what it has going for it is its big x-height and wide, open shapes. Still pretty monoline and not very humanist.

For yet another addition to the world of humanist sans faces, see Berling Nova Sans, an addition to the updated Berling family by Linotype.

The sans faces mentioned by Chris above, though excellent, do not offer oldstyle figures (except for one version of Futura from Berthold)

That’s plain wrong. Both Frutiger and Avenir are available with old-style figures, in their ‘Next’ incarnations. Myriad of course has osf, too. And there’s even a Gill Sans with osf. (The latter should be proof enough that the availability of osf is not the sole and crucial criterion for choosing a text face.)

As requested, I’m giving my own opinion, Crossgrove...perhaps you can do so too without personally abusing other posters.

I’ve used Legacy Sans for long texts but find it too low-slung, which of course was intentional in order to match its serif version.
I’m also using newer sans with more funky details like Anivers and really liking them, but they may be too edgy to recommend more widely.

Thanks Florian for those osf updates...OpenType is now starting to fill glyph gaps at long last...very encouraging indeed.

“personally abusing other posters”

???? Go back and read what I wrote. There is no abuse. It isn’t the same thing as disagreement.

I think when it comes to choosing a typeface, you have to consider a lot more that humanist or geometric, personal abuse or delicacy of a font — put them to test.

I agree that as a rule, a humanist style sans is a great choice, and I would definitely begin with that. But grab a couple old stand-by’s (like gill sans, helvetica, syntax, myriad, and so on) and see what feel right.

One other thing to consider is the other typefaces you are using. What serif fonts are you using?

Good luck,

Evan
evanmade(dotcom)

Agree with Evan...often, it’s not a choice of sans-serif alone, because in your design work a serif may be doing the primary work, leaving you to choose a matching sans for sidebars and secondary uses. Another reason I often favor Syntax is how well it matches and blends with the serifs my clients use. But there are also some funkier choices on the market worth looking at too—Anivers, Prokyon, and Giacomo, which offer fresh subtle details not always found on older sans classics, and these blend better with serifs for that very reason. You’ll have a lot of fun researching such choices.