Sentence Case or Title Case for Blog Headings?

Choose a declared house style for blog headings, then apply it consistently while preserving names and acronym spelling. Sentence case and title case are editorial conventions; the useful outcome here is a decision another editor can repeat.

Sentence case normally capitalizes the first word and keeps other ordinary words lowercase. Title case capitalizes most words, with exceptions for specified small words. Microsoft's capitalization guide uses sentence-style headings, preserves proper names and capitalizes the first word after a colon. It also describes a separate title-style convention. We use that explicit reference for the examples below; another publisher may choose different rules.

Compare Completed Versions of the Same Headings

This is an original teaching set for Balcony Notes, a fictional gardening blog. These are proposed headings, not edits observed on a real publication. The comparison changes capitalization, not the subject each heading promises.

The first pair shows the ordinary choice. The colon pair makes the rule visible: When begins with a capital in both versions. That is the convention selected here, not a rule to leave unstated until an editor encounters a colon.

The name OneNote retains its spelling in both columns. CSV stays uppercase as the acronym used in this teaching set. A heading-case edit should not turn those strings into “Onenote” or “Csv.” July also retains its capital as a proper name.

The final pairs catch two tempting shortcuts. Title case is not “capitalize every word”: the interior to stays lowercase, while the final On is capitalized in the selected convention. Nor does word length alone decide the examples: Is and Too receive capitals in the title-case version.

Fill the House-Style Decision

For Balcony Notes, choose sentence case for article-section headings. This fictional choice gives the editor a concrete instruction; it is not a finding that one convention ranks better or produces greater comprehension.

The completed card records:

• Scope: article-section headings. Page-title fields and other publishing rules need their own stated scope.

• Chosen examples: the sentence-case column above, including the capital after the colon.

• Names and acronyms: preserve OneNote, July and CSV rather than changing their established spelling during a case edit.

• Exception to check: confirm unfamiliar names or terms before altering their capitalization.

Letter case is separate from a heading's role in the outline. Changing a word's capital does not decide whether a section belongs under another section. Settle the article's question and structure with the blogger keyword research guide and an article brief; use this card after the headings say what the article needs.

Reuse the Filled Style Card

Download the filled heading-case style card. It carries the house decision, all completed examples, reasons and exceptions, plus a reusable entry for a new heading.

Replace the fictional blog name with yours. State the reference you actually follow, the chosen case and the fields it governs. Add a heading from your own draft, write both versions, and keep the chosen version beside the reason. Record names and acronym spellings explicitly; check an unfamiliar term rather than guessing from its length.

Finally, read the heading in its surrounding section. If the words promise the wrong answer, fix that wording as a separate edit instead of expecting capitalization to solve it. Use the blog-writing guide to finish that answer, then check the final headings against your declared card.