Twitter is finally rolling out its own font on the desktop web version of the platform. The new font is called "Chirp" and was developed in-house by Twitter. The platform has previously used existing typefaces, but is now migrating to its own.
Twitter Starts Rolling Out Its Own Font
Twitter first announced that it was working on its own font back in January 2021 with a Tweet from Derrit DeRouen.
In the announcement, Twitter said:
Our key objective with this brand refresh is to improve how we convey emotion and imperfection. Regardless of whether you're pro or anti Helvetica, I think we can all agree that it's not up for the job.
So, that brings us to "Chirp", our first ever proprietary typeface. Development was no easy task as it had to cover a lot of ground for us. For everyday use it must be sharp and legible (with good density), but with personality and distinctiveness.
Rounded tittles and punctuation introduce a humanist character. The result is a versatile, contemporary family (82 styles across Standard and Display!) with international sensibilities.
Twitter worked alongside Grilli Type to develop the font, which is a blend of American Gothic and European Grotesque fonts. The typeface was introduced as part of a rebranding of the platform.
While Twitter has not officially announced the rollout yet, many users have reported that they're now seeing the updated font. As first reported by Neowin, the font seems to have been rolling out to users throughout the day.
Some of those users have managed to see the font name updated in the developer tools section of their browser. So, it seems Twitter is definitely implementing this change, and we have confirmation that the font is called "Chirp".
When Will I Get Twitter's New "Chirp" Font?
Given that Twitter hasn't officially announced the rollout of the new font, it would be hard to give an estimate of when you may start seeing it.
Users have reported seeing the font on the platform throughout the day, so there is a chance it could be rolled out to all users over a short space of time. However, Twitter may also have opted for a more gradual rollout, so it could be a while before you can see "Chirp" in action.
Chirping Its Way to You Soon
Now that Twitter seems to be releasing "Chirp" to users, you can expect to see the font soon. Not many other companies have developed proprietary fonts, so this is quite a development in the world of typefaces.
For most, this isn't the most exciting change to the platform, but it will certainly tweak Twitter's design going forward.