Capitalization looks like a small detail, but it changes how a headline feels. The two most common styles are title case and sentence case. Here is how they differ and how to choose.
What is title case?
In title case, the main words of a headline start with a capital letter. Short words such as "a", "an", "the", "and", "or", "of" and "to" usually stay lowercase unless they come first or last.
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What is sentence case?
In sentence case, only the first word and any proper nouns are capitalized, just like a normal sentence.
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Which one should you use?
- Title case feels formal and traditional. It is common for book titles, newspaper headlines and many academic styles.
- Sentence case feels modern, friendly and easy to read. Many websites, apps and style guides now prefer it for headings and buttons.
The most important rule is consistency. Pick one style and use it across your whole site or document.
Style guides disagree on small words
AP, APA, MLA and Chicago all handle title case slightly differently, especially for words of four or five letters and for prepositions. If you are publishing formally, follow the guide your publisher or teacher requires.
Convert text in one click
If you pasted a headline in the wrong case, you do not need to retype it. Use the Case Converter to switch between UPPER CASE, lower case, Title Case and Sentence case instantly, or the Sentence Case Converter for sentence case.
One thing to remember: converters lowercase everything before capitalizing, so names, places and the word "I" may need a quick manual fix afterward.