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Fira Code VS Consolas

Compare Fira Code VS Consolas and see what are their differences

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Fira Code logo Fira Code

A font derived from Fira Mono with added ligatures.

Consolas logo Consolas

A list of fonts and supported products
  • Fira Code Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-23
  • Consolas Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-09-23

Fira Code features and specs

  • Ligatures
    Fira Code includes programming ligatures, which combine multiple characters into a single, visually distinct symbol, making code more readable and aesthetically pleasing.
  • Readability
    The font is designed specifically for coding and enhances readability, with a high distinction between similar-looking characters.
  • Open Source
    It is open-source, allowing for community contributions and modifications, which can lead to rapid improvements and updates.
  • Wide Language Support
    Fira Code supports a wide range of characters and symbols, making it suitable for use with many different programming languages.
  • Customizable
    Users can customize the font to fit their personal preferences and needs, including turning ligatures on or off.

Possible disadvantages of Fira Code

  • Performance Issues
    The complexity of ligatures can sometimes lead to performance issues in editors, making typing feel sluggish.
  • Compatibility
    Some older editors and IDEs may not fully support ligatures or the font itself, leading to display issues.
  • Personal Preference
    Not all developers prefer ligatures; some may find them distracting or harder to read compared to traditional monospaced fonts.
  • Learning Curve
    Developers new to ligatures might need some time to get used to the combined symbols, which could initially slow down their coding speed.
  • File Size
    The font file size is larger compared to some other coding fonts, which might be a consideration for environments with constrained resources.

Consolas features and specs

  • Readability
    Consolas is a monospaced font that provides clear distinction between similar characters, which enhances readability, particularly in code editors and development environments.
  • Consistency
    Being a monospaced font, Consolas ensures consistent character width, making it ideal for lining up code or tabular data where alignment is crucial.
  • Unicode Support
    Consolas supports a wide range of Unicode characters which is beneficial for internationalization and working with diverse character sets.
  • Antialiasing
    It is designed with ClearType antialiasing in mind, which makes it appear clear and smooth on LCD screens.

Possible disadvantages of Consolas

  • Aesthetic Limitations
    As a monospaced font, Consolas might not be as visually appealing as proportional fonts for body text or design work outside of code.
  • Limited Use Cases
    Consolas is primarily designed for programming and may not be the best choice for other types of documents, such as presentations or formal writing.
  • Screen Optimization
    While it is optimized for screen display, especially with ClearType, it might not perform as well in print as other fonts specifically designed for print media.

Analysis of Fira Code

Overall verdict

  • Fira Code is generally considered a good choice for developers who appreciate the added readability provided by ligatures and a modern, clean visual style. It is widely adopted in the coding community, which speaks to its effectiveness and popularity.

Why this product is good

  • Fira Code is a popular monospaced font that includes programming ligatures, which improves code readability by visually representing common multi-character combinations as single, more aesthetically pleasing symbols. This can make coding more accessible and reduce visual clutter, particularly for those who spend long hours looking at code. Its open-source nature also allows it to be freely used and modified, fostering a community of contributors who continually optimize and enhance its features.

Recommended for

  • Developers who spend significant time coding and want to improve their code readability.
  • Programmers who appreciate aesthetic components and clarity in code design.
  • Users who utilize text editors and IDEs that support ligatures, such as Visual Studio Code or IntelliJ IDEA.

Fira Code videos

+ Add

Fira Code - Programming Font Review

More videos:

  • Review - A Better Font For Web Development - Fira Code
  • Review - Fira Code in VS Code

Consolas videos

+ Add

Comparativa CONSOLAS RETRO. Review en español

More videos:

  • Review - CONSOLAS CHINAS PARA EMULAR VS PSP - ¿ MERECEN LA PENA ? - Bittboy Review Craker
  • Review - RETRO REVIEW CONSOLAS DE JUEGO TIGER ELECTRONICS

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Fira Code and Consolas)

Fira Code

Consolas

Typography
76 76%
Typography
24% 24
Design
75 75%
Design
25% 25
Tool
77 77%
Tool
23% 23
OSX
65 65%
OSX
35% 35

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Consolas seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 2 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Fira Code mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of Fira Code yet. Tracking of Fira Code recommendations started around Mar 2021.

Consolas mentions (2)

  • Is there a place where i can search for Serif Fonts that are included with the latest version of Office ?
    Apparently there's a list here - https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/typography/font-list/ - but it doesn't show a preview of the fonts. To find the serif fonts I would need to open all of them, one by one, in the Word application :(. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • How to Install Microsoft Fonts on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS
    The majority of Linux distributions employ open-source fonts to replace Microsoft’s classic typefaces such as Arial, Courier New, and Times. Red Hat designed the Liberation family to replace these similar-looking but different sizes — all you have to do when editing documents is choose your chosen font so that they are legible without interruptions! Source: over 3 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Fira Code and Consolas, you can also consider the following products

Operator - Looking for something? Make a request and we'll find it.

Inconsolata - OSX, Productivity, Design, Typography, powerline, and Fonts

M+ 1m - Download and install the M+ 1m free font family by M+ Fonts as well as test-drive and see a complete character set.

Noto Mono - OSX, Typography, Fonts, Design, and powerline

Bitstream Vera Sans Mono - Bitstream Vera Sans Mono Font | dafont.com

Ubuntu Mono - Ubuntu brand, app and web guidelines that help you create professional materials, software, sites, apps that build the Ubuntu brand.

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