Full-scale expression with Grilli Type | Figma Blog (opens in new tab)
Variable fonts let designers adjust weight, optical size, slant, and other typographic properties from a single file, making type more adaptable across screens and contexts. Thierry Blancpain of Grilli Type argues that they improve efficiency, designer–developer collaboration, accessibility, and expressive web design. Their adoption in tools such as Figma helps turn precise typographic intentions into practical code. ## Scaling Typography Across Contexts - Fonts can become less readable when scaled from mobile or business-card sizes to desktop or billboard sizes. - Designers often need careful kerning and tracking adjustments to preserve legibility and visual balance. - Supporting multiple weights and styles traditionally requires separate font files, increasing assets, code complexity, download size, and opportunities for error. ## The Efficiency of Variable Fonts - A variable font contains an entire type family in one file. - Designers can adjust several axes—such as weight, optical size, and slant—rather than selecting from fixed styles. - Variable fonts are increasingly a standard format, so support across tools is important for avoiding workarounds and inconsistent workflows. - Figma’s support allows designers to use the same capabilities during design that developers can later implement in code. ## Improving Designer–Developer Collaboration - Developers benefit from managing one font file instead of many individual assets. - A single file simplifies updates, keeps code cleaner, and reduces implementation friction. - Designers gain finer control over typography, including custom weights and optical sizing. - Blancpain notes that variable fonts are especially valuable when designers and developers work in separate roles, since the format creates a shared, more transferable design language. ## More Expressive and Dynamic Web Design - Variable fonts support animated and interactive typography, such as changing from regular to bold on hover. - Grilli Type’s GT Maru Mega demonstrates how expressive type can remain usable at small sizes through variable adjustments. - Blancpain expects the web to become increasingly dynamic, with motion and responsive typography replacing purely static experiences. - Typography can communicate mood and interaction—not merely deliver information. Variable fonts are recommended as both a practical production format and a creative medium. Their combination of smaller asset overhead, precise control, and animation potential makes them useful for modern responsive interfaces and richer web experiences.