Kerning by Eye: Why I Don't Trust Auto-Spacing

The Metric Lie

Every design application has a metric kerning option. It uses the kerning pairs built into the font file itself — the spacing values the type designer set between specific character combinations. For body text at small sizes, metric kerning is fine. For display type, headlines, and logotypes, it's almost never enough.

Fonts are designed to work across hundreds of use cases. The type designer makes kerning decisions that are correct on average. But at 80pt, 120pt, 200pt — the sizes where headlines live — "correct on average" means visually wrong.

I kern by eye. Every headline. Every logotype. Every time.

What Optical Kerning Actually Means

Optical kerning isn't about equal space between letterforms. It's about equal perceived space. Those are very different things.

Two letters with the same numeric gap between them will look uneven if one pair has diagonal strokes and another has vertical ones. A W and an A sitting next to each other need to be physically closer than an H and an I to look equally spaced, because the diagonal strokes of the W and A create visual openness that the verticals don't.

The goal isn't to measure the distance between outlines. The goal is to pour equal amounts of visual "air" between each pair of letters. If you can imagine pouring water into each gap and you want the same volume in each one, you're thinking about optical kerning correctly.

The Squint Test

My primary tool for evaluating kerning is the squint. I set the headline, step back, and squint until the type blurs slightly. What I'm looking for is a consistent rhythm — a visual heartbeat of equally spaced marks. Any gaps that look heavier or lighter than their neighbors jump out immediately when the detail is blurred.

I also flip the text upside down. It's harder for your brain to read when it's inverted, so you see the spacing as abstract pattern rather than language. Problems that hide in familiar words become obvious when the text is flipped.

The Letter Pairs That Always Need Attention

Some combinations are reliably problematic:

• A followed by V, W, or Y (diagonal strokes create open space that needs closing)
• T followed by any lowercase letter (the crossbar creates a visual shelf that increases perceived distance)
• L followed by T, Y, or V (the flat bottom of L extends into the open space under the diagonal)
• Any uppercase followed by a quotation mark

I watch for these every time. They're where the autopilot fails.

Kerning in Logotypes

Logotype kerning is the most consequential work I do in type. The name of a brand gets set at large sizes, reproduced constantly, and scrutinized by the people who live with it every day. Bad kerning in a logotype will bother someone — usually the brand's own team — every single time they see it.

I spend more time on logotype kerning than any other typographic task. Sometimes I kern a six-letter wordmark for an hour. That's not excessive. That's care.

A Practical Habit

Set your headline. Then zoom in to 200% and kern every pair. Then zoom back to 100% and use the squint test. Then flip it upside down and check the rhythm.

It takes longer than leaving it on auto. It's worth it every time.