Behind the scenes: the rules we follow when writing headlines
A good headline is accurate, specific and fair to the story beneath it. Here are the house rules our editors use.
The short version
- Every headline must be supported by the story beneath it, including any uncertainty.
- We avoid clickbait, rarely use question headlines and always label opinion.
- Worked examples show how a weak headline is rewritten to meet the rules.
Headlines carry a lot of weight. Many readers see only the headline, so it has to be right on its own. It appears on our home page, in search results, in previews when a story is shared and sometimes in a notification. In each of those places it may be the only part of the story a person ever reads.
That is why our editors treat a headline as a factual claim, not a piece of decoration. It is checked with the same care as the story itself, and it is usually read by a second editor before publication. The rules below are short enough to remember, and we apply them to every section of the site.
Our rules
- The headline must be supported by the story. If the article hedges, the headline hedges too.
- Be specific. “Council approves new bus lanes on High Street” tells you more than “Big changes coming to town”.
- No bait. We do not withhold the point of the story to make you click.
- Questions are rare. If the honest answer to a question headline is “no”, we rewrite it.
- Label opinion. Opinion headlines appear in the Opinion section and carry the writer’s name.
The rules in practice
The examples below are invented for illustration, but they reflect the kind of edits our editors make every day.
Matching the evidence. Suppose a reporter writes about a single small study suggesting that a habit may be linked to better sleep. A draft headline reads “This habit will fix your sleep”. That goes well beyond the story, which describes one study and a possible link. A better version is “Small study suggests a link between evening walks and better sleep”. It is less dramatic, and it is accurate.
Being specific. A draft reads “Shake-up at the town hall”. The story is about two senior officers leaving and a reorganisation of the planning department. A specific headline says exactly that, so a reader knows immediately whether it concerns them.
Avoiding bait. A draft reads “You won’t believe what the council decided about parking”. We would rewrite it to state the decision, such as “Council raises town centre parking charges from January”. If the news is worth reading, the headline does not need tricks.
Questioning questions. “Is your water supply at risk?” invites alarm and leaves the answer unclear. If the story says the risk is low, the headline should say so. If the story genuinely cannot answer the question, we usually rethink the headline altogether.
Other things we watch for
- Quotation marks. If a headline puts words in quotation marks, those words were said by the person named, not paraphrased.
- Loaded words. We avoid words such as “slams” or “destroys” that dramatise an ordinary disagreement.
- Numbers. Any figure in a headline must appear, with its context, in the story.
- People’s names. We think carefully before naming individuals in headlines, particularly people who are not public figures.
When we get it wrong
Sometimes a headline turns out to be inaccurate or unfair even after these checks. When that happens we change it and, if the error was factual, add a note explaining what changed, in line with our Corrections Policy. We do not swap headlines silently to hide a mistake.
Why it matters
A misleading headline can spread further than the correction to it. Getting it right the first time is part of being fair to readers and to the people we write about. The wider principles behind these rules are set out in our Editorial Policy.
If you ever think one of our headlines falls short of these rules, tell us. We read every message.
We check our facts after publication too. If you spot an error, please tell us. Any correction will be noted here, as set out in our corrections policy.
