Headline analyzer
Score a headline with every rule shown: length, Google pixel width, word balance, structure and clarity. No signup, no daily limit, no black box. Scores are heuristics, not click predictions.
commonuncommonemotionalpowerflagged
| Check | Points | Why |
|---|
The score is a rule-based heuristic. It measures writing habits, not how many people will click.
4 steps, no signup
- 01
Type a headline
Paste the headline or title you are working on. The score and every check update as you type.
- 02
Read the breakdown
Each of the seven checks shows its points and the reason for them. Nothing is hidden behind one number.
- 03
Look at the highlighted words
Common, uncommon, emotional and power words are colour-coded, and vague or clickbait phrases are flagged in red.
- 04
Compare versions
Switch to Compare and paste several drafts, one per line, to see them scored side by side.
What this headline analyzer does
Type a headline and the headline analyzer checks it against seven rules, gives each one points, and adds them up to a score out of 100. Every rule, its points and the reason are shown in the table under the score. If you disagree with a rule, you can see exactly how much it moved the number and ignore it.
Most free analyzers give you one number and a grade. Some of the best known ask for an email before showing the full report. This one shows the whole working, runs in your browser, and lets you paste several drafts to compare them side by side, which is how headlines actually get chosen.
How the score is calculated
| Check | Max | Full points when |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 15 | 6 to 13 words |
| Google pixel width | 15 | Fits about 600 px at 20px Arial (desktop result title) |
| Word balance | 25 | Common words 20–45%, at least one uncommon word, one or two emotional words, one or two power words |
| Headline type | 10 | Reads as a how-to, list, question, guide or comparison |
| Specificity | 10 | Contains a number, a year or a concrete unit |
| Clarity | 15 | No vague filler, clickbait patterns, all-caps words or stacked punctuation |
| Readability | 10 | Short, plain words (average of about 1.6 syllables or fewer) |
The word lists are short and written for this page: around 100 common words (the, you, how, your), a few dozen emotional words, and a few dozen power words. Any word longer than three letters that is not on the common list counts as uncommon. That is deliberately simple. A long secret list would not make the score more accurate, only harder to question.
Why pixel width, not just characters
If your headline is also the page title, Google may cut it short. Google says there is no limit on the length of a title element, but the title link is "truncated in Google Search results as needed, typically to fit the device width" (Google Search Central). Truncation follows the width of the letters, so a title full of capitals and wide letters is cut sooner than one of the same length in lower case. The tool measures your headline in 20px Arial and compares it to roughly 600 px, a common estimate of the desktop width, not a number Google publishes. The SERP snippet preview shows the full result.
What the clarity flags catch
- Vague filler: things, stuff, amazing, awesome, very, really, ultimate. They take space without telling the reader anything.
- Clickbait patterns: "you won't believe", "what happened next", "this one trick", "will shock you". They hide the point instead of stating it.
- ALL CAPS words (acronyms of two to four letters, like SEO or GA4, are allowed).
- Stacked punctuation such as "!!" or "?!".
Google's guidance for titles points the same way: write descriptive, concise text and avoid keyword stuffing and boilerplate (Google Search Central).
What the score cannot tell you
No rule-based score knows your audience, the search someone typed, what competing results say or whether your page delivers on the headline. A plain headline can beat a high-scoring one because it matches what the reader wanted. This page does not quote click-through statistics, because the commonly repeated ones trace back to vendor data that has not been published for checking. Treat the score as a checklist, then test: an A/B test on email, social posts or ads tells you more than any analyzer.
Tips for writing a better headline
- Say what the reader gets. "Cut your build time in half" beats "Thoughts on build performance".
- Be specific. A true number, a year or a named audience makes the promise concrete.
- Front-load the topic so it survives truncation in search results and feeds.
- Use one strong word, not five. Stacked power words read as an advert.
- Write ten, compare three. Paste them into Compare and look at what changes, not just the total.
Privacy
Everything is calculated in your browser. Nothing you type is sent to a server. Compare-mode drafts are saved only in your own browser storage, and clearing the box clears them.
Last checked and updated: . Everything on this page runs in your browser; nothing you enter is sent anywhere.