Palatino at a glance
| Category | Serif |
|---|---|
| Designer | Hermann Zapf (1949) |
| Styles on iOS | 4 (Bold, Bold Italic, Italic, Roman) |
| First on iPhone | iOS 3.0 |
| First on iPad | iOS 4.3 |
| Family name | Palatino |
| Default PostScript name | Palatino-Roman |
PostScript names for every Palatino style
iOS looks fonts up by their PostScript name, not the friendly family name. Use the names below exactly as written — they are case-sensitive.
| Style | PostScript name | iPhone | iPad |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bold | Palatino-Bold | 3.0 | 4.3 |
| Bold Italic | Palatino-BoldItalic | 3.0 | 4.3 |
| Italic | Palatino-Italic | 3.0 | 4.3 |
| Roman | Palatino-Roman | 3.0 | 4.3 |
How to use Palatino in code
SwiftUI
Text("Hello, world")
.font(.custom("Palatino-Roman", size: 17, relativeTo: .body))UIKit
let base = UIFont(name: "Palatino-Roman", size: 17)!
label.font = UIFontMetrics(forTextStyle: .body).scaledFont(for: base)
label.adjustsFontForContentSizeCategory = trueObjective-C
label.font = [UIFont fontWithName:@"Palatino-Roman" size:17];CSS for Safari on iPhone and iPad
.headline {
font-family: "Palatino", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;
font-weight: 700;
}Wrapping the font in UIFontMetrics, or passing relativeTo: in SwiftUI, lets Palatino grow and shrink with the user’s Dynamic Type setting. Read the custom fonts guide for the full checklist, or the San Francisco guide if you want Apple’s system font instead.
Frequently asked questions
What is the PostScript name of Palatino on iOS?
Use “Palatino-Roman” with UIFont(name:size:) or SwiftUI’s Font.custom(_:size:). The bold style is “Palatino-Bold”. The family has 4 styles: Bold, Bold Italic, Italic, Roman.
Which iOS version added Palatino?
According to the iOS Fonts availability data, Palatino first shipped on iPhone in iOS 3.0 and on iPad in iOS 4.3.
Can I use Palatino on a website?
Safari on iPhone and iPad can render installed system fonts, so a CSS stack such as font-family: "Palatino", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; will use Palatino on Apple devices and fall back elsewhere. Embedding the font files on a server requires a separate web licence from the foundry.