Arabic Fonts for Flyers, Posters and Banner Ads

What matters on a flyer or an ad

• Impact at a glance: a headline is read in a second or two, from across the street or while scrolling. Heavy weights and short words do the work.
• A clear hierarchy: headline, offer, details. One family with several weights, or a display face plus a sans, keeps the three levels distinct.
• Numbers that read: prices, dates and phone numbers carry the message. Check the digits at the smallest size on the layout.
• Contrast over images: Arabic dots and marks are small, and busy backgrounds swallow them first.

Which font for each level of the ad

Lalezar is a dense display face inspired by Iranian film posters of the 1960s and 1970s. Use it for the big line only, and set the details in a sans.

Cairo goes further than any other free font here, up to weight 1000, and its slant axis adds emphasis without a second family. Noto Kufi Arabic, a simplified Kufi drawn mainly for larger sizes, gives banners and signage a steadier, more even voice.

Tajawal runs from ExtraLight to Black. ExtraBold and Black carry a headline, while Regular and Medium handle the small print, all with a matching Latin for bilingual ads.

Aref Ruqaa adds a handwritten Ruq'ah voice to a menu, a sale tag or a seasonal promotion. Keep it to a few words, in Regular or Bold.

Print and screen tips

• Check every Arabic line that holds a phone number with a plus sign, a price with a currency symbol or a percentage. Neutral characters can jump to the wrong side when the paragraph direction is not set.
• Use a real Bold or Black weight rather than a synthetic bold button. Synthetic bold thickens each letter with an added outline, which can fill small counters and flatten the contrast the designer drew.
• For print, ask the printer for a proof of the smallest text and of any line set over a photo.
• For social and banner ads, check the design at its real size on a phone, not zoomed in on a desktop monitor.
• Leave the quiet zone around a QR code free of decorative lettering.

To weigh a display face against a text face, read how to choose an Arabic font. The Kufi faces above sit in the Kufi style. Seasonal campaigns have their own page, Ramadan and Eid fonts, and the software setup is covered in Arabic fonts for Photoshop.