If Comic Sans was a character on a TV show, it would be the annoying and slightly pitiable comic relief. You know the one I mean. The character that walks into chairs or says sad little one-liners that the producers have to insert a laugh track over. The character that, deep down, you really wish they would kill off.
Comic Sans is a font much despised by all designers, but particularly among web designers and developers. Why is this font so hated? The smooth, round edges of this jaunty little font were designed to be appealing, so why does the font’s curves have exactly the opposite effect?
Most designers will avoid Comic Sans because it is perceived as amateur-looking. In the early days of computers, amateur users delighted in using any interesting fonts they came across. Comic Sans was predominant, and is still a telltale clue of amateur-designed websites.
Search engine optimisation experts have their reasons for hating Comic Sans as well, although these are related to designs. Those in SEO careers know that an amateur-looking website will usually get treated as amateur, putting off internet users and damaging the company’s reputation. This kind of off-putting design can hamper rankings, as lack of return traffic indicates an unpopular website. Google recently backed this opinion up with an April Fool’s Day prank referencing the unpopularity of the font.
Serious studies of the elements of Comic Sans provide solid reasons for the bad image of Comic Sans, but there’s no need to get technical to know that this font could damage your site.
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