What are some free alternatives to Univers and Helvetica?
Open Sans is a poor replacement. I quite like Source Sans Pro but it isn't the same as Helvetica
Open Sans is a poor replacement. I quite like Source Sans Pro but it isn't the same as Helvetica
You may also consider FreeSans (GNU replacement for Helvetica) and Liberation Sans (which is a metric replacement for Arial, which is an alternative for Helvetica...)
Also, what's wrong with Open Sans?
Most Linux systems come with the Nimbus fonts as part of the printer drivers, and Nimbus Sans is very close, but apparently (AFAIK) only has a limited character set unless you pay for the full version. GNU FreeFont is practically the same as Helvetica and Nimbus but gives you a much larger character set for free.
Liberation is not quite as geometric as Helvetica/FreeFont/Nimbus.
Here's a comparison of a few fonts (the first is San Francisco by Apple).
https://i.imgur.com/SwxydqB.png
The 'r' and 't' in Liberation look quite a bit different than the first three, which are basically Helevetica clones. The ring in the 'b' also has a weird lower-left side. It's like 20% of the way to being a Serif font.
I haven't used MS fonts in a while but DejaVu reminds me very much of Arial, and to me it looks a lot worse. Especially the way the 'S' looks is quite awkward.
https://public-sans.digital.gov/
Not quite as grotesque as Helvetica too.