Use Google Fonts In Next.js: A Complete Guide

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Hey guys! Ever wondered how to jazz up your Next.js projects with some snazzy fonts from Google Fonts? You've come to the right place! This guide will walk you through all the different ways you can integrate Google Fonts into your Next.js app, making your website look slick and professional. We'll cover everything from the classic <link> tag method to the optimized @next/font package, ensuring your fonts load quickly and your site performs like a champ. So, let's dive in and get those fonts looking fabulous!

Why Use Google Fonts in Next.js?

First off, let's talk about why using Google Fonts is such a great idea in the first place, especially when you're building with Next.js. Google Fonts is like a massive library filled with hundreds of fonts, all free for you to use. That's right, free! This means you can find the perfect font to match your brand's vibe without spending a dime. But the benefits go beyond just cost.

Using Google Fonts can seriously level up your website's design. Think about it: fonts are a huge part of how people perceive your site. A clean, modern font can make your site look professional and trustworthy, while a fun, quirky font can add personality and flair. By choosing the right fonts, you can create a visual identity that really resonates with your audience. And with so many options available on Google Fonts, you're sure to find something that fits your style.

Now, let's talk about why Next.js and Google Fonts are a match made in heaven. Next.js is all about performance, and loading fonts the right way is a big part of that. If you load fonts incorrectly, your site can feel slow and clunky, which is a major turn-off for visitors. But fear not! Next.js has some fantastic features that make integrating Google Fonts super smooth and efficient. We'll get into those details in the sections below, but the key takeaway here is that Next.js helps you optimize font loading so your site stays lightning-fast.

Another cool thing about using Google Fonts with Next.js is the ease of use. There are several ways to load fonts, from the traditional <link> tag method to the Next.js-specific @next/font package. Each method has its pros and cons, but they all make it relatively straightforward to get Google Fonts working in your project. We'll explore these methods in detail, so you can choose the one that best fits your needs.

Finally, using Google Fonts ensures consistency across different browsers and devices. Google takes care of the technical stuff, like font file formats and delivery, so you don't have to worry about whether your chosen font will display correctly on every screen. This means you can focus on the creative aspects of your design, knowing that your fonts will look great no matter what.

In a nutshell, using Google Fonts in your Next.js project is a win-win. You get access to a massive library of free fonts, you can enhance your website's design and branding, and Next.js helps you optimize font loading for top-notch performance. So, let's get started on how to actually do it!

Method 1: Using the <link> Tag

The first method we're going to explore is the classic way of including Google Fonts: using the <link> tag in your HTML. This approach is straightforward and works well, especially if you're already familiar with how HTML links work. Basically, you'll add a line of code to your <head> section that tells the browser where to find the font files on Google's servers.

So, how do you actually do it? First, you'll need to head over to the Google Fonts website (fonts.google.com). This is where the magic happens! Browse through the vast collection of fonts until you find one (or a few) that you absolutely love. Once you've made your choice, click on the font to view its details. You'll see different styles and weights available, like Regular 400, Bold 700, or Italic 400. Select the ones you want to use by clicking the "Select this style" button next to each style. A panel will slide out from the right, showing your selected fonts.

In this panel, you'll see a section labeled "Use on the web." This is where Google Fonts generates the code you need to include in your project. Make sure the "Link" option is selected (it's usually the default). You'll see a <link> tag that looks something like this:

<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com">
<link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.gstatic.com" crossorigin>
<link href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=YourFontName:wght@400;700&display=swap" rel="stylesheet">

Let's break down what this code does. The first two <link> tags with rel="preconnect" are hints to the browser to establish early connections to the Google Fonts servers. This can help speed up font loading because the browser doesn't have to wait as long to start downloading the font files. The crossorigin attribute is important for security reasons when loading resources from a different domain.

The third <link> tag is the main one that actually loads the font. The href attribute points to a URL on Google Fonts that specifies the font family (YourFontName will be replaced with the actual name of the font you chose) and the weights you selected (e.g., 400 for Regular, 700 for Bold). The display=swap part is crucial for performance. It tells the browser to display text using a fallback font while the Google Font is loading, and then swap to the Google Font once it's ready. This prevents the dreaded "flash of invisible text" (FOIT) and makes your site feel much faster.

Now that you have the code, it's time to add it to your Next.js project. Open the _document.js or _document.tsx file in your pages directory (if you don't have one, create it). This file is special in Next.js because it allows you to customize the <html> and <body> tags of your application. Inside the Head component, paste the <link> tags you copied from Google Fonts.

Here's an example of what your _document.js file might look like:

import { Html, Head, Main, NextScript } from 'next/document';

function MyDocument() {
  return (
    <Html>
      <Head>
        <link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com" />
        <link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.gstatic.com" crossorigin />
        <link href="https://fonts.googleapis.com/css2?family=YourFontName:wght@400;700&display=swap" rel="stylesheet" />
      </Head>
      <body>
        <Main />
        <NextScript />
      </body>
    </Html>
  );
}

export default MyDocument;

Replace YourFontName with the actual name of your font and adjust the wght values to match the weights you selected. Once you've saved the file, your Google Font should be loading on your site! You can then use it in your CSS or styled-jsx styles by referencing the font family name.

The beauty of this method is its simplicity. It's easy to understand and implement, especially if you're already comfortable with HTML. However, it's not the most optimized way to load fonts in Next.js. The @next/font package, which we'll discuss next, offers some significant performance advantages.

Method 2: Using @next/font (The Optimized Way)

Alright, let's talk about the cool kid on the block: the @next/font package. This is the recommended way to load Google Fonts in Next.js, and for good reason. It's designed to optimize font loading and improve your site's performance, making your users super happy (and your site score higher on those performance tests!).

The @next/font package is a built-in feature of Next.js, so you don't need to install anything extra. It allows you to import Google Fonts directly into your React components, just like you would with any other JavaScript module. This approach offers several benefits, including automatic font optimization, reduced layout shift, and improved loading times.

So, how does it work? First, you'll need to import the specific font you want to use from the @next/font/google module. For example, if you want to use the Roboto font, you would import it like this:

import { Roboto } from '@next/font/google';

Next, you'll create an instance of the font object, specifying the weights and styles you want to use. You can also define a fallback font, which will be used while the Google Font is loading. This helps prevent the "flash of invisible text" (FOIT) and keeps your site looking smooth.

Here's an example of how you might set up the Roboto font with different weights:

const roboto = Roboto({
  weight: ['400', '700'],
  subsets: ['latin'],
  display: 'swap',
});

Let's break down these options. The weight array specifies the font weights you want to load (400 for Regular, 700 for Bold, etc.). The subsets array tells Google Fonts which character sets you need (e.g., latin for most Western languages). The display property, as we discussed earlier, controls how the font is displayed while it's loading. Setting it to swap is generally the best option for performance.

Now that you've created your font object, you can use it in your components. The @next/font package provides a className property that you can apply to any HTML element. This className will automatically apply the Google Font styles to that element and its children.

Here's an example of how you might use the Roboto font in a Next.js component:

import { Roboto } from '@next/font/google';

const roboto = Roboto({
  weight: ['400', '700'],
  subsets: ['latin'],
  display: 'swap',
});

function MyComponent() {
  return (
    <div className={roboto.className}>
      <h1>Hello, Next.js!</h1>
      <p>This text is using the Roboto font.</p>
    </div>
  );
}

export default MyComponent;

In this example, we're applying the roboto.className to a div element. This means that the <h1> and <p> elements inside the div will use the Roboto font. It's that simple!

One of the key benefits of using @next/font is that it automatically optimizes your fonts for production. Next.js will download the font files during the build process and serve them from your own server. This eliminates the need to make requests to Google Fonts at runtime, which can significantly improve loading times. Additionally, Next.js will automatically subset your fonts, meaning it will only include the characters that are actually used on your site. This can drastically reduce the font file size and further improve performance.

Another cool feature of @next/font is its built-in support for variable fonts. Variable fonts are a new type of font that allows you to adjust various aspects of the font, such as weight, width, and slant, using CSS. This can give you a lot of flexibility in your design and can also help reduce font file sizes.

To use a variable font with @next/font, you simply need to specify the variable property when creating your font object. For example:

const myVariableFont = Roboto({
  subsets: ['latin'],
  variable: '--my-variable-font',
});

Then, you can apply the variable font className to your element and use CSS variables to control the font's properties:

<div className={myVariableFont.variable}>
  <h1 style={{ '--font-variation-settings': '	wdth 150' }}>Hello, Variable Font!</h1>
</div>

The @next/font package is a game-changer for font loading in Next.js. It's easy to use, highly optimized, and packed with features that can help you create a fast and beautiful website. If you're serious about performance, this is the way to go.

Method 3: Using a Custom Font (Local Fonts)

Okay, so we've covered Google Fonts, but what if you want to use a custom font that's not available on Google Fonts? Maybe you've purchased a font, or you're using a font that's specific to your brand. No worries! Next.js has you covered with its support for local fonts.

Using a custom font in Next.js is pretty straightforward. The first step is to add your font files to your project. A common practice is to create a fonts directory in your public folder and place your font files there. You'll typically have different font files for different weights and styles (e.g., MyFont-Regular.woff2, MyFont-Bold.woff2, MyFont-Italic.woff2).

Once you've added your font files, you can use the @font-face CSS rule to define your custom font. This rule tells the browser how to load and display your font. You'll need to specify the font family name, the source URLs for your font files, and other properties like font-weight and font-style.

You can define the @font-face rule in a global CSS file (e.g., styles/global.css) or within a CSS Modules file. If you're using CSS Modules, you'll need to import the CSS Modules file into your component and apply the font family using CSS class names.

Here's an example of how you might define a custom font using @font-face in a global CSS file:

/* styles/global.css */

@font-face {
  font-family: 'MyFont';
  src: url('/fonts/MyFont-Regular.woff2') format('woff2'),
       url('/fonts/MyFont-Regular.woff') format('woff');
  font-weight: 400;
  font-style: normal;
}

@font-face {
  font-family: 'MyFont';
  src: url('/fonts/MyFont-Bold.woff2') format('woff2'),
       url('/fonts/MyFont-Bold.woff') format('woff');
  font-weight: 700;
  font-style: normal;
}

@font-face {
  font-family: 'MyFont';
  src: url('/fonts/MyFont-Italic.woff2') format('woff2'),
       url('/fonts/MyFont-Italic.woff') format('woff');
  font-weight: 400;
  font-style: italic;
}

In this example, we're defining a custom font called MyFont. We're providing different font files for Regular, Bold, and Italic styles. The src property specifies the URLs of the font files, and the format property tells the browser the file format. It's a good practice to provide both woff2 and woff formats for better browser compatibility. The font-weight and font-style properties specify the weight and style of the font.

Once you've defined your @font-face rules, you can use the font family name in your CSS styles. For example:

body {
  font-family: 'MyFont', sans-serif;
}

h1 {
  font-family: 'MyFont', serif;
  font-weight: 700;
}

In this example, we're setting the font-family of the body element to MyFont, with sans-serif as a fallback. We're also setting the font-family and font-weight of the h1 element to MyFont and 700 (Bold), respectively.

Now, let's talk about how to use the @next/font/local package to load local fonts in Next.js. This package, introduced in Next.js 13, provides an optimized way to load local fonts, similar to how @next/font/google works for Google Fonts.

To use @next/font/local, you'll first need to import the localFont function from the @next/font/local module:

import localFont from '@next/font/local';

Then, you can create a font object by calling the localFont function and passing in the path to your font files. You can also specify other options, such as the font family name and the font display strategy.

Here's an example of how you might use @next/font/local to load a custom font:

import localFont from '@next/font/local';

const myFont = localFont({
  src: [
    { path: '../public/fonts/MyFont-Regular.woff2', weight: '400', style: 'normal' },
    { path: '../public/fonts/MyFont-Bold.woff2', weight: '700', style: 'normal' },
    { path: '../public/fonts/MyFont-Italic.woff2', weight: '400', style: 'italic' },
  ],
  display: 'swap',
  variable: '--my-font',
});

function MyComponent() {
  return (
    <div className={myFont.className}>
      <h1>Hello, Custom Font!</h1>
      <p>This text is using the MyFont font.</p>
    </div>
  );
}

In this example, we're passing an array of font file objects to the src property. Each object specifies the path to the font file, the font weight, and the font style. We're also setting the display property to swap and defining a CSS variable name using the variable property. This allows us to use the font as a variable font in our CSS.

Just like with @next/font/google, the @next/font/local package provides a className property that you can use to apply the font styles to your elements. This approach offers several advantages, including automatic font optimization and improved performance.

Using custom fonts in Next.js gives you a lot of flexibility in your design. Whether you're using a purchased font or a brand-specific font, Next.js makes it easy to load and use your custom fonts in an optimized way. The combination of @font-face and @next/font/local provides a powerful toolset for managing your local fonts and ensuring your site looks exactly the way you want it to.

Conclusion

Alright guys, we've covered a lot about using Google Fonts and custom fonts in Next.js! From the simple <link> tag method to the optimized @next/font package, you now have a toolbox full of options to make your website look fantastic. Remember, choosing the right fonts is crucial for creating a strong visual identity and a positive user experience.

We started by discussing why Google Fonts are such a great resource, offering a vast library of free fonts that can enhance your website's design and branding. We then dove into three different methods for integrating fonts into your Next.js projects:

  1. Using the <link> Tag: This is the classic, straightforward approach that involves adding <link> tags to your _document.js or _document.tsx file. It's easy to understand and implement, but it's not the most optimized method for performance.
  2. Using @next/font: This is the recommended way to load Google Fonts in Next.js. The @next/font package provides automatic font optimization, reduced layout shift, and improved loading times. It allows you to import fonts directly into your React components and apply them using CSS class names.
  3. Using a Custom Font (Local Fonts): If you want to use a font that's not available on Google Fonts, Next.js has you covered with its support for local fonts. You can use the @font-face CSS rule to define your custom font and the @next/font/local package for optimized loading.

Each method has its pros and cons, so choose the one that best fits your needs and project requirements. If performance is a top priority, the @next/font package is definitely the way to go. It's designed to optimize font loading and ensure your site stays lightning-fast.

No matter which method you choose, remember to test your fonts on different devices and browsers to ensure they look great everywhere. Pay attention to font weights, styles, and sizes, and make sure your fonts are readable and accessible.

So, go ahead and experiment with different fonts, have fun with your design, and create a website that truly stands out. With the power of Google Fonts and Next.js, the possibilities are endless! Keep exploring, keep learning, and keep building amazing things. You've got this! And remember, the right font can make all the difference in how your website is perceived, so take the time to choose wisely and implement effectively. Happy font-ing!