Title case or sentence case? Rules for headlines, UI and code names
Title case capitalises most words in a heading, while sentence case capitalises only the first word and proper nouns. Use sentence case for most body text, interface labels and long headlines, and title case when a style guide or your brand asks for it. The rules for small words differ between style guides, so pick one and apply it consistently.
Change caseText is in the wrong caseOpenTwo styles, one difference
Sentence case reads like an ordinary sentence: "How to fix a broken link". Title case capitalises the main words: "How to Fix a Broken Link". Both are common, and each suits a different setting. Sentence case is easier to read in long text and is the default for many interface labels. Title case appears often in book titles, magazine headlines and some marketing.
Which small words stay lowercase
In title case, short articles (a, an, the), short conjunctions (and, but, or) and short prepositions (in, of, to) are usually lowercase, unless they open or close the title. Style guides differ in the detail. Some lowercase prepositions of any length, some capitalise words of four or more letters, and some keep their own lists. Write your choice down, so the rule does not get invented again for every heading.
A practical approach that works for most sites:
- Always capitalise the first and last word.
- Capitalise nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs and pronouns.
- Lowercase articles, short conjunctions and short prepositions in the middle of a title.
- Keep product names, acronyms and brand spellings exactly as their owners write them.
Here is one heading in both styles:
| Style | Heading |
|---|---|
| Title case | The Guide to Saving Money on Travel |
| Sentence case | The guide to saving money on travel |
In both versions, "to" and "on" stay lowercase because they fall in the middle of the heading. The first word is capitalised in both, and only the title-case version capitalises "Saving", "Money" and "Travel".
Where each style fits
- Headlines and article titles. Either works. Pick one and use it across the whole site.
- Email subject lines. Sentence case is common, because it looks like a note from a person rather than a press release.
- Buttons and menu items. Often title case, but many modern interfaces use sentence case. Follow the rest of the product.
- Error messages and help text. Sentence case, with full stops only where the interface style uses them.
- Titles of works. Use the title exactly as it is published, even if it breaks your house rule.
Code names: camelCase, snake_case and kebab-case
Programmers write names without spaces, so case does a different job. Three forms come up constantly:
| Form | Example | Common use |
|---|---|---|
| camelCase | userName | variables and functions in JavaScript and Java |
| snake_case | user_name | variables in Python and many database columns |
| kebab-case | user-name | web addresses, CSS class names and file names |
Acronyms are where converters go wrong. A naive converter can split every capital letter, so "parseHTMLText" may become "parse_h_t_m_l_text" instead of "parse_html_text". Check any acronym by eye after converting.
Worked example
Take the phrase "the quick brown fox" and convert it:
- Title case: The Quick Brown Fox
- Sentence case: The quick brown fox
- camelCase: theQuickBrownFox
- snake_case: the_quick_brown_fox
- kebab-case: the-quick-brown-fox
If you have a whole list of headings or variable names to change, paste them into the case converter rather than retyping. For text you wrote by hand, check the small words after conversion, since a tool cannot know which words are articles in your language.
Edge cases
- Hyphenated compounds. Some title-case guides capitalise both parts of a compound ("Well-Known"), others only the first ("Well-known"). Choose one.
- Words after a colon. Many guides capitalise the first word after a colon in a title, so "Title Case: Some Rules" is common.
- Brand capitals. Names such as iPhone or eBay keep their own capitals in both styles.
- Languages differ. German capitalises all nouns, so these rules do not carry over. Use the conventions of the language you are writing in.
For more on how readers scan headings, the word count limits guide covers how the length of a title is measured in search results.
Quick answers
Should I use title case for blog headings?
Either is fine if you stay consistent. Sentence case is easier to scan in long posts, and title case suits short, formal headlines.
Do all style guides agree on small words?
No. They broadly agree that short articles and conjunctions stay lowercase, but they differ on prepositions and on words of four or more letters. Choose one guide and write the rule down.
What is the difference between snake_case and kebab-case?
snake_case joins words with underscores and is common in Python and database columns. kebab-case uses hyphens and is common in web addresses and CSS class names.
