Code Samples from the Java Developers Almanac 2000

 
 // From within the paint() method.
 public void paint(Graphics g) {
   Graphics2D g2d = (Graphics2D)g;
   Font font = new Font("Serif", Font.PLAIN, 12);
   FontMetrics fontMetrics = g2d.getFontMetrics();
     
   int width = fontMetrics.stringWidth("aString");
   int height = fontMetrics.getHeight();
 }
     
 // From within a component.
 class MyComponent extends JComponent {
   MyComponent() {
   Font font = new Font("Serif", Font.PLAIN, 12);
   FontMetrics fontMetrics = getFontMetrics(font);
     
   int width = fontMetrics.stringWidth("aString");
   int height = fontMetrics.getHeight();
   }
 }