type-pair-design

name	type-pair-design
description	Use when selecting a typography pair for a brand. Serif headline + sans body is the editorial classic; choose intentionally.

Type Pair Design

Fraunces (serif) + Inter Tight (sans) is the X3 type pair. Serif headline + sans body = editorial; sans + sans = SaaS; serif + serif = academic.

The classic pairings

Pair	Style	Example
Serif headline + sans body	Editorial luxury	NYT, The Atlantic, Bugatti, CardPrepAI
Sans display + sans body	Modern SaaS	Stripe, Linear, Figma
Serif headline + serif body	Academic/print	Vogue, Harper's
Mono headline + sans body	Tech/code	GitHub, Vercel
Display + sans body	Brand expression	Glossier, Aesop

The X3 pair

Fraunces (Recoleta-inspired serif): headlines, drop caps, brand wordmarks. Has true italics, small caps, swash ligatures. Inter Tight: body text, UI, captions. Modern grotesque with high x-height, optimized for screen.

Both open-source. Bunny Fonts for edge-cached delivery (no Google tracking).

Pairing rules

1. Different categories (serif + sans, not serif + serif)
2. Compatible x-heights (Inter Tight's high x-height pairs well with Fraunces)
3. Tonal compatibility (Fraunces warm + Inter Tight neutral)
4. Weight ladder available (both fonts have 100-900 weights)
5. Optical sizes if available (Fraunces has display + text)

Where this fits in the X3 empire

Brand foundation for all CardPrepAI typography.