Headline Analyzer
Check title length, words and clarity cues before publishing.
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Review notes
No simple length or formatting issues found. Check that the title accurately describes the page.
These are editorial hints, not a ranking score.
Discuss a result
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What is the Headline Analyzer?
A headline is often the only part of a page people read before deciding whether to click. It appears as the title link in search results, as the link text when the page is shared and as the main heading on the page itself. A good headline tells the reader what the page covers and what they will get from it, in words they would use themselves, and does so before any truncation cuts it off.
This analyzer counts the characters and words in a headline as you type and lists simple review notes. It flags titles longer than 70 characters, which may be cut off in some layouts; titles shorter than 25 characters, which may not name the task or benefit; headlines written entirely in capitals; and headlines over 14 words. When none of these apply, it reminds you to check that the title accurately describes the page. The checks are transparent rules rather than a predictive score, and nothing you type leaves your browser.
How to use it
- 1Enter your proposed headline.
- 2Review its length and formatting notes.
- 3Revise the title so it accurately names the page.
How it works
Counts characters and words and flags broad, rule-based observations such as excessive length, all caps and repeated words.
Example
Compare “Free tools” with a title that names the task and expected result.
Limitations & notes
- A rule-based score cannot predict search ranking or click-through rate.
- Good titles can be longer or shorter depending on context.
Frequently asked questions
How long should a headline or title tag be?
Google truncates search titles by pixel width, roughly 600 pixels on desktop, which usually works out to about 50 to 60 characters. Wide letters like W and M use more space than i or l. Put the most important words first so a cut-off title still makes sense. Headlines on the page itself are not truncated and can be longer, though 6 to 12 words is a common range for quick scanning.
Why does Google sometimes change my page title?
Since a 2021 update, Google may build a different title link from your main heading, link anchor text or other page content when the title tag is very long, stuffed with keywords, repeated across many pages, or does not match the content. Google says it uses the title element in most cases. A concise, unique title that agrees with the page's main H1 heading reduces the chance of a rewrite.
What makes a headline clear?
Name the specific task or topic, state the outcome, and add a qualifier that sets expectations. Compare Image Tips with How to Compress JPEG Images Under 200 KB Without Visible Quality Loss: the second tells readers exactly what they will get. Avoid vague teasers, unexplained abbreviations and promises the page does not keep. A headline that overpromises may earn a click but loses the reader within seconds.
Should headlines use title case or sentence case?
Either works if used consistently. Title case capitalizes the major words and is common in magazines and in Chicago style. Sentence case capitalizes only the first word and proper nouns; AP style, the BBC and Google's developer documentation style guide use it because it reads more naturally. What hurts readability is writing entirely in capitals, which this tool flags, because uppercase words lose their distinctive shapes and are slower to scan.
How does this tool count characters and words?
Characters are counted exactly as typed, including spaces and punctuation, and the field accepts up to 200 characters. Words are runs of text separated by spaces, so a hyphenated term like step-by-step counts as one word and a number counts as a word. Emoji and some special symbols count as two characters because of how browsers measure text length, which slightly inflates the character total.
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