What Is Tracking (Letter-Spacing)?
Tracking is the uniform amount of space added or removed between all letters in a run of text, also called letter-spacing. Unlike kerning, which targets individual pairs, tracking adjusts spacing evenly. Loosening tracking on uppercase headings improves legibility; tightening it can make text feel denser.
Open tracking suits all-caps text and small-cap labels, where letters otherwise look cramped. Tight tracking can pull display headlines into a compact block.
Over-tracking body copy hurts readability by breaking the word shapes readers rely on, so use it sparingly and mostly on short, large-set lines.