You can match text appearance to your target OS, adjust glyph weight and contrast, choose which fonts to use for default CSS families, and more.

> 📘 AppCore Defaults
>
> In AppCore, `App::Create()` automatically picks the host platform's font profile and generic font families for new Views (`Settings::auto_font_profile` and `Settings::auto_font_families`). A profile you set on `Config` yourself always wins. A `ViewConfig` you pass to `AddPanel()` keeps its own font families unless it starts from `Window::default_view_config()`.

## Matching a Platform's Look

`Config::font_profile` selects a preset for text weight and sharpness. Set it on your `Config` before creating the `Renderer` ([Creating the Renderer](/docs/2.0/creating-the-renderer#content-configuring-the-library)).

| Profile | Appearance |
|---|---|
| `FontProfile::Default` | The standard appearance (currently the same as `WindowsLike`). |
| `FontProfile::WindowsLike` | The crisp, moderate weight of mainstream browsers on Windows. |
| `FontProfile::MacOSLike` | The weight and sharpness of Safari and other macOS applications. |
| `FontProfile::Light` | No weight compensation at all, the thinnest appearance. |

## Tuning Weight and Contrast

Every text-rendering knob defaults to the value from your chosen `font_profile`. You can override individual knobs on `Config` while leaving the rest of the profile untouched— full defaults and ranges are in the `Config` reference.

| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| `font_contrast` | Thickens the midtones of antialiased edges to increase apparent weight at every size (useful range is 0.0 to 1.0). |
| `font_gamma` | Compositing gamma for glyphs. Lower values make text heavier, while higher values make it lighter with more edge contrast. |
| `font_embolden` | Widens glyph stems by a fraction of the font size on light and dark backgrounds without changing text layout. |
| `font_stem_darkening` | Boosts coverage to keep thin stems from fading on light backgrounds. Text on dark backgrounds is unaffected. |
| `font_blend_mode` | Blends antialiased edges using `FontBlendMode::GammaCorrected` (how Windows browsers composite) or `FontBlendMode::SRGB` (how macOS composites). |

```cpp
#include <Ultralight/Ultralight.h>

using namespace ultralight;

void Init() {
  Config config;

  ///
  /// Start from the macOS preset, then thicken the midtones a touch.
  /// Every knob we leave alone keeps the preset's value.
  ///
  config.font_profile = FontProfile::MacOSLike;
  config.font_contrast = 0.2;

  ///
  /// Pass our configuration to the Platform singleton before creating
  /// the Renderer.
  ///
  Platform::instance().set_config(config);
}
```

## Which Fonts Pages Use

`ViewConfig` sets the font family a page receives for generic CSS families and when styling specifies none. By default, `font_family_standard` is "Times New Roman", `font_family_sans_serif` is "Arial", and `font_family_fixed` is "Courier New" (used for `<pre>` and `<code>`). The `ViewConfig` reference lists the remaining generic families along with `font_size_default` and `font_size_fixed`.

```cpp
RefPtr<Renderer> renderer;
RefPtr<View> view;

void CreateView() {
  ///
  /// Point the generic families at fonts we ship with the app.
  ///
  ViewConfig view_config;
  view_config.font_family_sans_serif = "Inter";
  view_config.font_family_fixed = "JetBrains Mono";
  view_config.font_size_fixed = 14;

  view = renderer->CreateView(800, 600, view_config, nullptr);
}
```

To ship a custom font with your application, a CSS `@font-face` rule pointing to a `file:///` URL is enough for most apps. If you need to manage font discovery and fallbacks programmatically, provide your own font loader ([Custom Font Loading](/docs/2.0/custom-font-loading))— its fallback font is what a page gets when every other font fails.

## Analytic Text and Hinting

On GPU-accelerated Views, text above a size cutoff renders analytically through Photon, the GPU vector renderer. Edges stay crisp under any zoom or transform, and CPU Views match this appearance using unhinted outlines and fractional placement so both renderers look near-identical.

`Config::enable_photon_text` enables analytic text and is on by default (disabling `Config::enable_photon` turns it off too). `Config::photon_text_min_px` sets the size cutoff, which defaults to 16 pixels— smaller glyphs come from a rasterized atlas, and setting it to 0 renders all text analytically.

`Config::font_hinting` sets the hinting algorithm for those atlas glyphs. The default setting is `FontHinting::Normal`, which lets your selected font profile choose— every profile disables hinting except `FontProfile::Light`.