Are fancy fonts accessible?

What happens

A screen reader reads characters, not pictures of them. When it meets 𝐇𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨, it finds five characters named “Mathematical Bold Capital H,” “Mathematical Bold Small E,” and so on. Depending on the reader, its version and its settings, it may announce those names one by one, skip them, or try to map them back to plain letters. Per Axbom's write-up documents the problem with examples; the specimen below shows the names themselves.

The five kinds, from kindest to worst

1. Letters + marks Strikethrough, underline, glitch. The real letters are still there, with marks added. The word survives; some readers also announce the marks.
2. Wide letters Full-width. Real letters in a wide form; often read as letters, sometimes by long names.
3. Rearranged Spaced and backwards text: ordinary letters, but no longer a word, so readers spell or garble it.
4. Symbols Bold, italic, script, Fraktur, bubbles, small caps, upside down. Not letters at all; the most likely to be read as names.
5. Look-alike Faux Cyrillic and Greek-ish. Real letters from other alphabets, so a reader set to that language will pronounce them, and people who read Russian or Greek see nonsense.

Decorate without locking anyone out

• Keep names and key words in plain letters, and put the decoration beside them: Maya Lopez ✧ 𝓬𝓮𝓻𝓪𝓶𝓲𝓬𝓼.
• Use real formatting where the app has it (Discord, WhatsApp, Reddit, email).
• Never write a whole post in fancy text. A few words of emphasis is the most you need.
• Don't put information only in fancy text: dates, prices, links, instructions.

Sources: Per Axbom, “Don’t fake bold and italic text with Unicode”; Unicode Standard, Mathematical Alphanumeric Symbols chart.

Questions

Can screen readers read fancy text?

Some partly, many badly. Most styles are math symbols, and readers may announce each symbol's name instead of the word.

Which fancy text style is most accessible?

Strikethrough, underline and other 'letters + marks' styles keep the real letters, so the word survives. Math-symbol styles are the least accessible.

How can I use fancy text responsibly?

Keep names and important words plain, decorate beside them, and use real formatting where the app has it.