Title Case vs Sentence Case: Which Should You Use for Headlines?
The difference between title case and sentence case, what AP, Chicago and Google style guides recommend, and practical rules for headings, buttons and emails.
Should this headline be “How to Write a Great Headline” or “How to write a great headline”? Both are correct; they follow different conventions. Choosing one and applying it consistently is what makes a website, a document or an app look professional.
The two styles
Title case capitalises the main words: nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs and pronouns. Short function words such as articles (a, an, the), short prepositions (in, on, of, to) and coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or) stay lowercase unless they are the first or last word.
Sentence case capitalises only the first word and proper nouns, exactly like a normal sentence.
- Title case: The Best Way to Learn a Language in Six Months
- Sentence case: The best way to learn a language in six months
What the style guides say
- AP style (common in US news) uses title case for headlines in many publications but capitalises prepositions of four or more letters, such as “With” and “From”.
- Chicago Manual of Style uses title case for titles and headings and lowercases all prepositions regardless of length.
- APA style uses title case for paper titles and major headings and capitalises words of four letters or more.
- Google, Microsoft and GOV.UK writing guides recommend sentence case for headings and interface text, because it is easier to read and less formal.
- UK newspapers such as The Guardian and the BBC News website generally use sentence case for headlines.
So the “right” answer depends on which guide you follow. The rules differ in details, which is why small words like “with”, “about” and “into” are often capitalised inconsistently.
Why sentence case is winning online
Over the last decade, most technology companies have moved to sentence case for product interfaces and documentation. The reasons are practical:
- It is faster to read, because the eye recognises words by their shape and capitals disrupt it.
- It has one simple rule, so different writers produce consistent results.
- It sounds friendlier and more conversational.
- Proper nouns stand out, because they are the only capitalised words.
Where title case still makes sense
- Titles of books, films, songs and articles when you cite them.
- Formal documents and academic papers that follow APA, MLA or Chicago.
- Publications and brands whose style is already title case. Consistency beats preference.
Practical rules we follow
- Pick one style per product or publication and write it down. Mixing styles between pages looks careless.
- Buttons and menu items: sentence case (“Save changes”, “Download all”).
- Email subject lines: sentence case reads as personal; title case reads as marketing.
- Never use ALL CAPS for anything longer than a short label. It is harder to read and feels like shouting.
- Brand names keep their own spelling: iPhone, eBay, YouTube, regardless of the style.
Fixing text quickly
If you received a document written with Caps Lock on or need to convert a list of headings to a different style, the case converter does it in one click. Its title case follows the common rule shared by most guides, keeping short function words lowercase. Always review the result for proper nouns and acronyms, which no automatic tool can identify perfectly. And if you are also writing to a length limit, the word counter shows characters as you type.
Our take
For websites, apps and anything people scan quickly, use sentence case. Keep title case for formal titles and for publications that already use it. Whatever you choose, consistency matters more than the choice itself.