Understanding Monospace Fonts

In general, there are two types of fonts: proportional space and monospace. Proportional space fonts are designed so every letter only occupies the minimum horizontal space necessary for the letter. Thus, an "i" takes less space than a "w." Monospace typefaces, on the other hand, are designed so every letter and character takes the same amount of horizontal space. If you have ever spent any time working on typewriters, then you are familiar with monospace fonts—all the fonts used by typewriters fall into this category.

You can use either type of font in Excel—the only requirement is that the font be available within Windows. The type of font you select for use in your worksheets depends, in large part, on the purpose for which you are creating your worksheet. Monospace fonts are great for drafts and for pure numerical analysis. This is because every single character is the same width—the lack of "fanciness" means you can focus directly on the numbers. If you are creating a worksheet for more formal purposes or for publishing, then you will want to look toward some of the proportional fonts available on your system.

One important thing to keep in mind is that in virtually every font available, numbers are always monospace, provided they are formatted the same. Thus, if your worksheet contains only (or mostly) numeric data, then which font you choose to use is a purely aesthetic decision; the numbers will still line up in the font you choose. This is not the case, however if you change the formatting of the font. For instance, change the font size, and the numbers will no longer line up with numbers of a different font size in a different cell. This is also the case if you make certain cells bold or italic—all formatting can change the width of individual numbers in a cell.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (12573) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Excel in Microsoft 365, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Understanding Monospace Fonts.