Menu board font size calculator

Free · no signup · for food truck menu boards, window menus, A-frames and wall menus

If customers in line have to squint, they order the first thing they can read or leave. Enter how far back your line stands and get the minimum letter height for item names, prices and descriptions, plus how many lines fit on your board.

How the calculator works

Sign makers use a simple legibility rule: 1 inch of letter height for every 10 feet of distance is the bare minimum to read, and about double that to read quickly. A menu is read quickly, by someone deciding while the line moves, so the calculator uses the quick-read figure for item names and scales prices and descriptions from there.

• Item names are what people scan for, so they get the biggest size.
• Prices can be about 80% of the name size, and bold.
• Descriptions can be about half the name size. If that is too small to read from the line, cut them and put the detail behind a QR code.

Thin, script and chalk fonts and glare all lose contrast, so the calculator adds margin for them.

Quick reference (bold font, outdoor)

Too many items for the size you need? Keep the board to your best sellers and put the full menu behind a QR code. Size that code with the free QR code size calculator, and see food truck menu ideas.