I’ve been noticing something lately.

A lot of websites, especially here in my country Malaysia 🇲🇾, force justify their text. You know—when the left and right edges of a paragraph are perfectly aligned, like a neatly trimmed hedge.

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It looks symmetrical. It looks polished. It looks... pretty. But here’s the thing: I have no idea why this is so common.

Maybe it’s just that—we’ve all been conditioned to chase visual perfection. It feels like people do it because, well... it “looks nice.” But as the saying goes: beauty is pain.

And in this case, that pain isn’t just aesthetic—it’s functional.

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Let me explain with a metaphor we all understand. Plastic surgery.

Yes, it may make someone look more “beautiful” on the outside. But it often comes with pain, a lot of maintenance, and even hidden long-term effects. What appears visually appealing might actually compromise the natural rhythm and ease of movement.

That’s what force justifying text does to your writing. On the surface? It’s neat. But beneath? It’s dysfunctional.

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Here’s Why It’s Actually Bad (Like… Really Bad)

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When you force text to justify, it comes with a package, and that is "uneven gaps" between words so they fit the edge perfectly. Sounds harmless?

It’s not.

• Those random gaps break the natural flow of reading.
• The rhythm is gone. Like listening to music with beats that skip and stutter.
• Your reader’s eyes start working overtime just to keep up.
• It slows them down.
• Makes them feel tired without even knowing why.

Its             like            talking          word       by          word     with  random       pauses  like       you     read here

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And we live in an attention economy. A slower read means higher drop-off rates. And when your content becomes exhausting, it opens the door wide open for someone else—your competitor, maybe—to win the reader over.

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All they have to do is... left-align the text. That’s it.

That one small tweak improves readability instantly.

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Bonus Problem: It’s Bad for Tech, Too

There’s something else people don’t think about: how justified text messes up text recognition.

If you’ve ever used your iPhone or Mac to copy text from an image (Live Text feature), you’ll know how smart it’s gotten. But when the spacing between words becomes unpredictable?

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It gets confused.

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Words are jumbled. Selection becomes messy. Tech can’t “read” your writing clearly, because it’s not written naturally.

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So now, not only are humans struggling to read your content… machines are too.

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But Why Are We Still Doing It?

The short answer? Habit. And maybe a little bit of vanity.

We’re still thinking of the web like we’re designing brochures. And I get it, there’s a lingering instinct to “make things pretty” at all costs. But when it comes at the expense of readability, accessibility, and user experience?

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It’s not worth it.

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I see this all the time in websites for government agencies, corporate businesses, and even universities in Malaysia. We're unintentionally creating friction for our readers, all in the name of visual symmetry.

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What Can You Do?

It starts with awareness.

If you're a designer, writer, or business owner—please stop force justifying text on the web. Left-aligning your copy makes it easier to read, easier to skim, and easier to feel connected.

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If you’re not in design but you’ve noticed this problem, share this article with someone who is. We need to stop designing with print rules in a digital world.

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Small decisions like this affect how people interact with your brand. And trust me, clarity always beats beauty when beauty becomes a burden.

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Key Takeaways

• Force justified text might look nice, but it ruins readability.
• Uneven spacing between words makes reading slower and harder.
• Slower reading = more drop-offs and lost opportunities.
• It breaks text recognition technology like Apple’s Live Text.
• Most importantly—it’s a habit worth unlearning in favor of real clarity.

Let’s keep design simple, human-first, and actually helpful.

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