Font Size Converter | Convert Japanese Q (kyu) and H (ha), Points, mm, px, Japanese Gōsū and Chinese Zihao Sizes, Leading, Line Spacing and Tracking, Type Area from Characters per Line and Lines, and How Much Text Fits a Page
The Font Size Converter answers questions such as “how many points is 13 Q?”, “how many Q is 10 pt?”, “what is the line gap with 21 H leading?”, “how big is the type area for 13 Q, 38 characters × 16 lines?” and “how many characters and lines fit on a bunko page?”. It converts between the Japanese phototypesetting units Q (kyu) and H (ha), both 0.25 mm, DTP points (1/72 inch), JIS points (0.3514 mm), mm, CSS px and inches, and also lets you pick the Japanese gōsū sizes (No. 0 to No. 8, JIS Z 8305) and the Chinese zihao sizes (such as xiao si). It shows the nearest gōsū and zihao, the height in pixels in a print image (for example at 350 dpi) and an on-screen sample. From the font size and leading it gives the line gap, the leading ratio and CSS line-height; from tracking (1/1000 em) the character pitch; from characters per line, lines, columns, column gap and vertical or horizontal setting the type area width and height, characters per page and the centred margins with a diagram; and from a paper size (A4, B5, A5, B6, bunko, shinsho, shiroku) with head, foot, gutter and fore-edge margins the characters per line and lines that fit. Conversion tables for Q and points and for gōsū and zihao are included.
Convert Q, points, mm, px and gōsū
Enter a font size in one unit to convert it to all the others. Q (kyu) and H (ha) are both 0.25 mm, a DTP point is 1/72 inch (about 0.3528 mm) and a CSS px is 1/96 inch.
Input unit
Q (kyu)
14.11 Q
Japanese phototypesetting/DTP type size. 1 Q = 0.25 mm
Points (pt)
10 pt
DTP point (1/72 inch). The pt in Word, Illustrator and InDesign
Millimetres (mm)
3.528 mm
Millimetres
Pixels (px)
13.33 px
CSS pixel (1/96 inch). Browser font-size
H (ha)
14.11 H
Unit for leading and pitch. 1 H = 0.25 mm (same as Q)
JIS points
10.04 pt(JIS)
JIS Z 8305 point (0.3514 mm). Basis of the gōsū sizes
Inches (in)
0.1389 in
1 inch = 25.4 mm
Nearest gōsū
Gōsū No. 5
10.5 pt (difference -0.46 pt)
Nearest Chinese zihao
Zihao No. 5
10.5 pt (difference -0.5 pt)
In a 350 dpi image, text of this size is about 48.6 pixels high.
Sample at this size (approximate on screen)
永 Aa 123
Browsers draw mm on screen using a 96 dpi convention, so the size differs from reality depending on the device. Print it to check the actual size.
These are theoretical values. In real typesetting, punctuation squeezing, line-breaking rules and differences in each font’s glyph size change the look and the fit slightly.
ABOUT
About Font Size Converter | Convert Japanese Q (kyu) and H (ha), Points, mm, px, Japanese Gōsū and Chinese Zihao Sizes, Leading, Line Spacing and Tracking, Type Area from Characters per Line and Lines, and How Much Text Fits a Page
The Font Size Converter is a free tool that converts font sizes between Japanese Q (kyu), points, mm, px and the traditional gōsū sizes, turns leading (in H) into line spacing, and works out the type area from characters per line and lines. It helps when preparing print files for flyers, booklets and self-published books, when turning a Japanese phototypesetting spec (Q and H) into DTP points, or when translating web px into print sizes.
How to use Font Size Converter | Convert Japanese Q (kyu) and H (ha), Points, mm, px, Japanese Gōsū and Chinese Zihao Sizes, Leading, Line Spacing and Tracking, Type Area from Characters per Line and Lines, and How Much Text Fits a Page
- 1On the Unit conversion tab, enter a font size and choose its unit (Q, pt, mm, px, H, gōsū or zihao)
- 2Check the other units, the nearest gōsū and zihao, and the pixel height in a print image
- 3On the Leading tab, enter the font size and leading to see the line gap and line-height
- 4On the Type area tab, choose vertical or horizontal setting and enter characters per line, lines and columns to see the type area and margins
- 5Enter a paper size and the head, foot, gutter and fore-edge margins to see how many characters × lines fit on a page
Great for
- Turning a Japanese design spec such as “13 Q, 21 H leading” into points for Illustrator or InDesign
- Finding out how many mm or Q Word’s 10.5 pt or the gōsū “No. 5” size is
- Seeing how big 16 px web text would be in print
- Deciding how many characters × lines a novel or zine fits on a bunko or A5 page
- Working out the line gap (H and mm) when the leading is 1.7 times the font size
- Converting Chinese Word zihao sizes (such as xiao si or wu hao) into pt or mm
Good to know
- Q (kyu) is the Japanese phototypesetting unit for type size, 1 Q = 0.25 mm; H (ha) is the unit for leading and character pitch, 1 H = 0.25 mm. A DTP point is 1/72 inch (about 0.3528 mm), so 1 pt ≈ 1.411 Q, 10 pt ≈ 14.11 Q and 13 Q ≈ 9.21 pt.
- A CSS px is 1/96 inch (about 0.2646 mm), so 1 pt = 4/3 px and 16 px = 12 pt ≈ 4.23 mm. In a print image, the pixel height of text is mm ÷ 25.4 × dpi; 10 pt text is about 48.6 pixels at 350 dpi.
- Gōsū are the sizes of Japanese letterpress type. JIS Z 8305 maps them to points: No. 0 (shogō) 42 pt, No. 1 27.5 pt, No. 2 21 pt, No. 3 16 pt, No. 4 14 pt, No. 5 10.5 pt, No. 6 8 pt, No. 7 5.25 pt and No. 8 4 pt (in JIS points of 0.3514 mm). Japanese Word’s default 10.5 pt comes from No. 5. Chinese zihao sizes, such as xiao si 12 pt and wu hao 10.5 pt, are a separate table.
- Leading is the distance from the top of one line to the top of the next; the line gap is leading − font size. With 13 Q and 21 H leading the gap is 8 H (2 mm) and the leading is about 161.5% of the font size (CSS line-height about 1.615).
- In the type area, a line is (characters − 1) × character pitch + font size long, and the line direction is (lines − 1) × leading + font size. Real typesetting changes the fit slightly through punctuation squeezing, line-breaking rules and font differences, so use the results as a design guide.
Questions this tool answers
Use Font Size Converter | Convert Japanese Q (kyu) and H (ha), Points, mm, px, Japanese Gōsū and Chinese Zihao Sizes, Leading, Line Spacing and Tracking, Type Area from Characters per Line and Lines, and How Much Text Fits a Page for searches like these:
- q to pt conversion table
- 13 Q how many pt
- 10 pt how many mm
- kyu vs ha japanese typesetting
- leading vs line spacing calculator
- gosu font size points table
- type area calculator characters lines
- bunko page characters per line
- px to pt 16px
- font pixel height at 350 dpi
FAQ
- How many points is 13 Q?
- 13 Q is 13 × 0.25 = 3.25 mm, which is about 9.21 DTP points (0.3528 mm each). The other way round, 10 pt is about 14.11 Q, 9 pt about 12.7 Q and 12 pt about 16.9 Q. Multiply Q by 0.709 to get points and points by 1.411 to get Q.
- What is the difference between Q (kyu) and H (ha)?
- Both are 0.25 mm. Japanese phototypesetting specs use Q for the size of the characters and H for distances such as leading and character pitch. “13 Q, 22 H” therefore means 3.25 mm type on 5.5 mm leading.
- What is the difference between leading and line gap?
- Leading is the distance from the top of one line’s characters to the top of the next line’s; the line gap is the space between them. Line gap = leading − font size, so 13 Q type on 21 H leading has an 8 H (2 mm) gap. CSS line-height corresponds to leading divided by font size, about 1.615 in this example.
- How many mm is Word’s 10.5 pt, or gōsū No. 5?
- 10.5 pt is about 3.70 mm (about 14.8 Q) in DTP points. Gōsū No. 5 corresponds to 10.5 pt in JIS Z 8305; in JIS points of 0.3514 mm it is about 3.69 mm. Japanese Word’s default 10.5 pt comes from this No. 5 size.
- How many points is 16 px web text when printed?
- A CSS px is 1/96 inch, so 16 px is 16 × 25.4 ÷ 96 ≈ 4.23 mm, the same as 12 pt (about 16.9 Q). Multiply pt by 4/3 to get px, and px by 0.75 to get pt.
- How big is a vertical type area of 13 Q, 38 characters × 16 lines?
- Set solid (no tracking) on 21 H leading, a line is 37 × 3.25 + 3.25 = 123.5 mm long (the height) and the line direction is 15 × 5.25 + 3.25 = 82 mm (the width), giving 608 characters per page. Centred on an A6 bunko page (105 × 148 mm), the margins are 11.5 mm left and right and 12.25 mm top and bottom.
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