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Atkinson Hyperlegible Next
Overview
Braille Institute's 2025 release describes Atkinson Hyperlegible Next as designed to improve legibility for readers with low vision and reports support for over 150 languages and seven font weights. The mechanism is typographic clarity: distinct shapes that reduce character confusion. Benefit: less reading fatigue and fewer errors for low-vision users. Lesson: inclusive typography is infrastructure because once adopted, it improves every surface that uses it.
Why it matters
Low-vision readers often face letter and number ambiguity that slows comprehension and increases cognitive load. Braille Institute explains the font was designed because certain letters and numbers can be hard to distinguish, and the design uses principles to make each character more unique. Benefit: better readability across UI, documents, and signage. Call to action: test typography with low-vision users and avoid ambiguous letterforms in critical flows.
Learn more
- Blindness and Low Vision - https://www.afb.org/blindness-and-low-vision
- Vision impairment and blindness - https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/blindness-and-visual-impairment
- https://www.nngroup.com/articles/typography-usability/
- https://accessibility.huit.harvard.edu/designing-accessible-documents
Take action
- https://www.w3.org/WAI/WCAG21/QuickRef/
- Microsoft Inclusive Design - https://inclusive.microsoft.design/
- Content design: planning, writing and managing content - Writing for GOV.UK - Guidance - GOV.UK - https://www.gov.uk/guidance/content-design/writing-for-gov-uk
- Checklist - The A11Y Project - https://www.a11yproject.com/checklist/
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