For Apple, typography is not an afterthought; it is a strategic tool and a foundational element of their brand identity. The journey from the elegant serifs of to the now-ubiquitous San Francisco is a masterclass in design evolution, driven not just by aesthetics but by a rigorous focus on clarity, usability, and brand cohesion.
If you are looking to create a presentation that feels like a keynote, I can help you with:
San Francisco is a neo-grotesque sans-serif optimized for screens. In recent keynotes, you will often see SF Pro used when displaying "Widgets" or software features, because that is the font actually running on the device. This creates a seamless transition: the font on the 100-foot projection screen is the exact same font you will see on your wrist or phone screen. It is "truth in advertising." what font does apple use in their keynote presentations
For internal corporate events and product launch keynotes, Apple also deploys a specialized, restricted in-house version known as . In specific editorial, artistic, or narrative contexts, they complement these sans-serif fonts with their custom serif typeface, New York .
Myriad is a humanist sans-serif designed by Carol Twombly and Robert Slimbach for Adobe. It's known for its clean, friendly, and highly readable characters, a significant departure from the more formal serif typefaces of the past. During Steve Jobs' era and well into Tim Cook's, Myriad was the unmistakable font of the product reveal. The transition to San Francisco began around 2016, marking the end of the Myriad era. For Apple, typography is not an afterthought; it
It is the default system font across all Apple platforms. If you are building an app or designing for iOS/macOS, SF Pro is the go-to standard.
With the dawn of the new millennium and the introduction of iconic products like the iPod, Apple's design language shifted towards a cleaner, more minimalist aesthetic. They adopted , a humanist sans-serif, as their corporate typeface. Its clean, friendly, and highly legible letterforms, particularly in the light and ultra-light weights, became synonymous with the "iPod era" of Apple's design, appearing on product packaging, advertisements, and marketing materials, including keynote slides. In recent keynotes, you will often see SF
If you are creating a Keynote presentation and want a similar look, you can download these fonts, although they are designed for macOS and iOS environments. Alternatives to SF Pro
If you have access to Apple design tools, you can use the official font. Keynote Design Principles (Beyond the Font)
By following these resources and tips, you'll be well on your way to creating presentations that are both visually stunning and effective in communicating your message.
With the launch of iOS 7 and OS X Yosemite, Apple shifted toward ultra-thin, hyper-minimalist aesthetics. For a brief period, Keynote slides featured thin weights of Helvetica Neue. While beautiful on paper, its tight spacing and uniform geometric shapes proved difficult to read on projector screens, prompting the creation of San Francisco.