Free tool
Headline analyzer for landing page and ad headlines
Convertica's free headline analyzer checks a landing page headline, a Google search ad headline, a meta title or an email subject line against nine rules a conversion copywriter can defend. It runs in your browser with no sign-up, shows how the score is calculated and does not pretend to predict clicks.
Short answer
A headline analyzer checks a headline against a set of rules and returns a score and a list of fixes. Convertica's free headline analyzer is built for landing page and ad headlines: it runs nine rule-based checks in your browser, shows how the score is calculated, and takes its length limits from Google's and Mailchimp's own documentation.
- Each check returns pass, review or fix with a reason and a suggestion. Fix is kept for what the rules measured for certain.
- Length is judged by placement: 30 characters for a Google Ads headline field, 9 words and 60 characters for an email subject line, and no character limit for a meta title, because Google publishes none.
- There are no points for power words or emotional words. Hype and vague words are flagged instead.
- The score is a rubric. It does not predict clicks, opens or conversions.
- Only an A/B test tells you which headline wins on your traffic.
Analyze your headline
Free to use, no sign-up. It runs in your browser: nothing you type is sent anywhere. The result updates as you type.
Headline score, out of 100
56
2 pass, 5 to review, 1 to fix, across 8 scored checks.
66 characters, 10 words.
Reading grade (Automated Readability Index): 9.9.
Placement: landing page hero. No platform limit. The analyzer asks for a second look above 12 words, which is Convertica's own line.
The score is a rubric, not a prediction of clicks or conversions.
The nine checks
Enter a headline to see the checks.
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Pass Fits the placement
10 words and 66 characters. No platform limits a hero headline.
Read it on a phone and check the button is still on the first screen under it.
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Review Says what is offered
Found "payroll"; missing "software".
Decide whether the missing words matter to a reader who sees only this line. If they do, work them in.
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Review Names the audience or the outcome
"for all your business needs" names no one, and no outcome wording was found.
Say who it is for ("for Shopify stores") or what they get ("without spreadsheets", "in 10 minutes"). A word list can miss an outcome, so judge this one yourself.
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Review Is specific
No number, time or named thing was found.
Add one real specific: a count, a timeframe, a price or the name of the tool or audience. Never invent one to pass this check.
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Review Opens with substance
The first 3 words ("We offer world-class") include no content word.
Move the offer, the audience or the result to the front.
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Not scored Survives being cut short
A hero headline is shown in full on the page, so the half test is not scored for it.
Choose meta title or email subject line to run the half test.
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Review Talks to the reader
Starts with the company ("We") and reaches the reader later ("your").
Lead with the reader's side of the sentence: what they get, then who provides it.
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Fix Avoids hype and vague words
Hype word: "world-class". Vague words: "solutions", "needs".
Replace each one with the fact that would make it true: a number, a named customer, a guarantee or what the product does.
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Pass No shouting
No headline in capitals, no stacked punctuation.
Nothing to change here.
How the score is calculated
score = (passes * 1 + reviews * 0.5 + fixes * 0) / scored checks * 100What is a headline analyzer?
A headline analyzer is a tool that checks a headline against a fixed set of rules and reports what it finds, usually as a score with suggestions. Most were built for blog titles. Convertica's headline analyzer is built for the lines that sell: a landing page headline, a search ad headline, a meta title and an email subject line.
It is rule based on purpose. There is no AI model behind it, so the same headline always gets the same result, and every rule is written out on this page where you can check it. That also sets its limit. A rule can count characters and find a hype word, but it cannot read meaning. Where a rule can only suspect a problem, the analyzer says review, not fix.
How to use the headline analyzer
- Paste one headline. The line as a visitor will see it, not a description of it.
- Choose where it will be used. The placement sets the length limit and decides which checks are scored.
- Add your key words if you can. What you sell, or the search term the headline has to carry. With them, the offer check and the half test become exact.
- Read the checks, not only the score. Start with anything marked fix, then look at each review and decide for yourself.
- Rewrite and compare. Write several versions. The headline generator further down drafts a few from named formulas.
- Test the finalists. The analyzer can tell you which headline trips fewer rules. Only your visitors can tell you which one works.
How is the headline score calculated?
The headline score is the share of points earned across the scored checks, times 100. A pass earns 1 point, a review earns 0.5 and a fix earns 0. Every check weighs the same, and a check that does not apply to the placement is left out. The weights are Convertica's own choice, not taken from research.
score = (passes * 1 + reviews * 0.5 + fixes * 0) / scored checks * 100For the example in the tool, "We offer world-class payroll solutions for all your business needs", that is 2 passes, 5 reviews and 1 fix across 8 scored checks: 4.5 points, and 4.5 / 8 × 100 = 56.25, shown as 56.
The three results mean different things:
- Fix is kept for what the rules measured for certain: over a hard platform limit, a word on the hype list, a headline in capitals, stacked punctuation, none of your key words, or nothing concrete left.
- Review means the rule can only suspect a problem, so a person should look.
- Pass means the rule found nothing to flag. That is not the same as a good headline.
| Check | What the rule looks at | Why it is on the list |
|---|---|---|
| Fits the placement | Characters and words against the limit for where the headline will run | A headline that is cut off or rejected is never read as written |
| Says what is offered | With key words: whether they are in the headline. Without: what is left once function words, vague words and hype words are removed | A visitor has to see what they clicked for before anything else on the page matters |
| Names the audience or the outcome | A "for [audience]" phrase, or outcome wording such as "without", "free", "done" or a verb like "save" at the start | Once a visitor knows what it is, the next questions are "is it for me?" and "what do I get?" |
| Is specific | A number, a time or a named thing | A specific claim can be checked, which makes it easier to believe, as long as it is true |
| Opens with substance | The first 3 words: at least one content word, and no greeting or wind-up | The first words are the ones every reader sees |
| Survives being cut short | Meta titles and subject lines only: whether a key word sits in the first half | Search results and inboxes cut long lines to fit the screen |
| Talks to the reader | "We" and "our" counted against "you" and "your", and whether the headline starts with the company | Readers care about their own problem before they care about the company |
| Avoids hype and vague words | Three word lists: hype, vague and filler | Words any competitor could use unchanged tell the reader nothing |
| No shouting | A headline in capitals, words in capitals, stacked punctuation, and emoji in a Google Ads headline | Emphasis should come from what the headline says, and Google Ads policy rules some of this out |
The word lists
These are the lists the analyzer checks a headline against. A hype word is a fix; a vague or filler word is a review.
- Hype: revolutionary, world-class, best-in-class, industry-leading, state-of-the-art, groundbreaking, unparalleled, unrivaled, unmatched, mind-blowing, jaw-dropping, insane, epic, ultimate, amazing, incredible, unbelievable, awesome, turbocharge.
- Vague: solution, innovative, innovation, quality, excellence, success, powerful, robust, premier, leading, best, great, advanced, comprehensive, holistic, synergy, one-stop, effortless, things, stuff, everything, anything, journey, future, possibilities, potential, needs, unlock, unleash, elevate, empower, transform, reimagine, reinvent, redefine, and more, like never before.
- Filler: very, really, truly, simply, totally, absolutely, literally, actually, extremely, highly, incredibly.
- Greetings and wind-ups (for the opening check): Welcome, Hello, Hi, Hey, Here at, In today's, In a world, It's time, Learn more, Click here, Check out, Discover, Explore, Experience, Say hello to, Get ready, Thank you.
The hype list also holds the 10 words Convertica bans from its own copy: "agentic" in headlines, and 9 others that are not printed here, because the site's own build check fails any page that contains one of them, this page included.
What the analyzer measures but does not score
The result shows a reading grade from the Automated Readability Index, a formula published by R. J. Senter and E. A. Smith in 1967 (the original report, archived). It was chosen because it works on characters per word, which a browser can count exactly, where better-known formulas need syllables, which software can only estimate.
reading grade = 4.71 * (letters and digits / words) + 0.5 * (words / sentences) - 21.43The example headline has 56 letters in 10 words and 1 sentence: 4.71 × 5.6 + 0.5 × 10 - 21.43 = 9.95, shown as 9.9. The grade is reported and not scored, because readability formulas were built for passages of text and one line is a small sample. "Accounting software for freelancers who hate accounting" comes out at grade 15.0 only because its words are long, although every one of them is familiar.
The analyzer also gives no points for "power words" or "emotional words", which several headline tools reward. A word list cannot tell whether a claim is true, and the words on those lists overlap with the ones this analyzer flags as hype.
Headline analyzer examples: one offer, three results
The examples below run two headlines for the same made-up payroll product through the headline analyzer, then move one of them into a Google Ads headline field. They show what the checks catch and how the placement changes the result. The headlines are illustrations of the rubric, not client copy and not a benchmark.
| Check | "We offer world-class payroll solutions for all your business needs" (hero) | "Payroll for small teams, done in minutes" (hero) | The same line in a Google Ads headline field |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fits the placement | Pass | Pass | Fix |
| Says what is offered | Review | Review | Review |
| Names the audience or the outcome | Review | Pass | Pass |
| Is specific | Review | Pass | Pass |
| Opens with substance | Review | Pass | Pass |
| Survives being cut short | Not scored | Not scored | Not scored |
| Talks to the reader | Review | Pass | Pass |
| Avoids hype and vague words | Fix | Pass | Pass |
| No shouting | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Score | 56 | 94 | 81 |
- The first headline starts with the company, leans on "world-class" and "solutions", names no one ("for all your business needs") and gives no figure. It earns 4.5 of 8 points: 56.
- The second is the example from Convertica's conversion copywriting guide. It opens with the offer, names the audience and states an outcome with a time. One check stays at review: the word "software" from the key words is missing, which is a judgment call, not an error. It earns 7.5 of 8 points: 94.
- In a Google Ads headline field the same line is 40 characters, 10 over the limit of 30, so the length check becomes a fix and the score drops to 81. Cut to "Payroll for small teams" it fits at 23 characters, but the time is gone, so the specific check moves to review and the score is 88. That is the trade a short field forces: the detail has to move to a second headline or the description.
The second headline scores higher because it trips fewer rules. Whether it would beat the first on a real page is a different question, and not one a score can answer.
The half test on a meta title
For a meta title or an email subject line, the analyzer cuts the line to its first half and looks for your key word. With the key word "payroll", the title "Acme | Home | The easiest way to run payroll" reads "Acme | Home | The" when cut, so the check says review. "Payroll software for small teams | Acme" reads "Payroll software", so it passes. The half test is the analyzer's own device, not a platform's cut-off; it is a quick way to see whether the words that matter come first. Acme is a made-up name.
How long should a headline be?
How long a headline should be depends on where it runs. A Google Ads headline field supports up to 30 characters. Mailchimp recommends email subject lines of no more than 9 words and 60 characters. Google publishes no character limit for a meta title, and no platform limits a landing page headline.
| Placement | What the platform says | Source | What the analyzer does |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google search ad headline | Headline fields in a responsive search ad support up to 30 characters and description fields up to 90. A character in a double-width language such as Chinese, Japanese or Korean counts as 2 | Google Ads Help | Fix above 30 characters |
| Meta title (title tag) | There is no limit on how long a title element can be. The title link in search results is truncated as needed, typically to fit the device width | Google Search Central | No length score. Runs the half test |
| Email subject line | Mailchimp recommends no more than 9 words and 60 characters, no more than 3 punctuation marks and no more than 1 emoji | Mailchimp Help | Review above any of these. Runs the half test |
| Landing page hero headline | No platform sets a limit | None | Review above 12 words, which is Convertica's own line |
Platforms change their limits, so follow the link before a large launch. A recommendation is also not a rule: Mailchimp's figures describe what tends to work across its users, which is why the analyzer says review, not fix, when a subject line runs over them.
Why the analyzer has no character limit for a meta title
Many guides quote a character count for title tags. Google's own documentation does not. It says there is no limit on the length of a title element and that the title link is truncated as needed, typically to fit the device width. Width depends on the letters used and on the device, so a character count can only be a rough guide. Google's advice is to keep titles descriptive and concise, and the analyzer adds the half test: put the words that matter first, so a cut costs you the least.
Google Ads rules beyond length
A Google Ads headline can fit the field and still be disapproved. Google's editorial policy does not allow punctuation or symbols repeated consecutively, excessive or gimmicky capitalization, or emoji, though it may allow common abbreviations in capitals, such as ASAP. The analyzer applies these in the "No shouting" check when you choose the Google search ad placement. Google Ads also needs at least three headlines for a responsive search ad and can show them in any order, so each one has to make sense alone.
How to check headline length in Excel or Google Sheets
To check a column of ad headlines at once, put each headline in column A and count its characters with =LEN(A2). To flag the ones that are too long for a Google Ads headline field, use =IF(LEN(A2)>30,"Over by "&(LEN(A2)-30),"Fits"). For a word count, use =IF(TRIM(A2)="",0,LEN(TRIM(A2))-LEN(SUBSTITUTE(TRIM(A2)," ",""))+1). LEN counts every character once, so it undercounts double-width characters for Google Ads.
How to write a headline for a landing page
To write a headline for a landing page, start from the click that brought the visitor, say what the offer is in their words, name who it is for or what they get, add one true specific, and cut everything that only sounds good. Write many versions, keep the clearest, and test the top two if the page has the traffic.
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Start from the click
Put the ad, email or search result next to the page. The headline should repeat its promise in the same words, so the visitor knows they are in the right place. Convertica's anatomy of a landing page calls this message match, and it is the reason the analyzer asks for your key words.
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Say what it is
Name the product or the offer in plain words. A headline that could sit on any company's homepage has not said anything yet. If the strip test in the analyzer leaves nothing behind, this is the step that was skipped.
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Name who it is for or what they get
"Bookkeeping for Shopify stores" filters in the right readers. "Payroll for small teams, done in minutes" adds the result. Use the outcome your customers ask for, in the words they use in reviews, surveys and sales calls.
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Add one true specific
A number, a timeframe, a price or a name gives the reader something to check. It works only when it is true and the page proves it. An invented figure is worse than none.
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Cut the hype, the greeting and the company
Delete "Welcome to", the adjectives a competitor could use unchanged, and sentences that start with "we". What is left is usually shorter and says more.
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Write ten, keep the clearest
The first version is rarely the best one. Draft ten or more, run them through the analyzer to catch the weak ones, and choose the line a customer could repeat to a colleague. The clear version usually beats the clever one.
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Make the button keep the promise
If the headline offers a free trial, the button under it should say so. The guide to call to action buttons covers the wording.
The subheadline carries what the headline cannot: the detail, the proof and the terms. If you are still working out what to promise, start with the value proposition template and come back to the headline after.
Headline generator: drafts from named formulas
The headline generator below fills 7 named headline formulas with your own words: what you sell, who it is for, what they can do with it, how long it takes and what they want to avoid. It uses no AI model, so it cannot invent a claim. The output is a set of starting drafts, not finished headlines.
Draft headlines from your own words
Type in lower case unless a word is a name. Leave a field empty and the formulas that need it are skipped.
Drafts from your words
7
Starting drafts, not finished headlines. A formula cannot know whether a claim is true: keep a number or a timeframe only if you can prove it.
Starting drafts
Fill in the fields above to see drafts.
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Payroll software for small teams
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Payroll software for small teams: run payroll in 10 minutes
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Run payroll in 10 minutes
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Run payroll without spreadsheets
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How to run payroll without spreadsheets
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Who else wants to run payroll in 10 minutes?
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Want to run payroll without spreadsheets?
The headline formulas and where they come from
Five of the formulas come from John Caples's Tested Advertising Methods, whose fifth edition (revised by Fred E. Hahn, 1997) lists 35 headline formulas drawn from print and direct mail advertising. The other two have no single origin. Caples wrote for a different medium, which is one more reason to treat the drafts as a place to start.
| Formula | Pattern | Origin |
|---|---|---|
| Offer for audience | [what you sell] for [who it is for] | John Caples, Tested Advertising Methods, formula 33: address the headline to a specific person or group. |
| What it is, who it is for, the result | [what you sell] for [who it is for]: [what they can do] | The structure taught in Convertica's conversion copywriting guide. No single origin. |
| Outcome in a timeframe | [what they can do] in [how long] | John Caples, Tested Advertising Methods, formula 35: offer benefits through facts and figures. |
| Outcome without the objection | [what they can do] without [what they want to avoid] | A long-used direct response pattern. No single origin could be traced. |
| How to | How to [what they can do] | John Caples, Tested Advertising Methods, formula 16: begin the headline with the words "How to". |
| Who else | Who else wants to [what they can do]? | John Caples, Tested Advertising Methods, formula 20: begin the headline with the words "Who else". |
| The question | Want to [what they can do] without [what they want to avoid]? | John Caples, Tested Advertising Methods, formula 34: have the headline ask a question. |
A formula arranges what you already know about the customer. It does not replace knowing it: a formula filled with guesses is still a guess. For the structures that carry the rest of the page, such as problem, agitate, solution, see the formulas section of the conversion copywriting guide.
Does a higher headline score mean more conversions?
No. A headline score counts how many rules a headline trips. It cannot see your visitors, your offer or where your traffic comes from, so it cannot predict clicks or conversions. A rubric is good at catching weak headlines. Only an A/B test on your own traffic can tell you which of two sound headlines wins.
What a rule-based headline analyzer can do well:
- Catch a headline that is too long for the place it will run.
- Point at hype, greetings and sentences about the company.
- Show whether the words that matter come first.
- Give the same answer every time, so two drafts can be compared fairly.
What it cannot do:
- Read meaning. A slogan made of ordinary words can pass every rule and still say nothing about the product.
- Know your audience. The right headline for a returning customer is the wrong one for someone who has never heard of you.
- Check the truth. The analyzer rewards a specific claim. It has no way of knowing whether the claim is real.
- Predict a result. No list of rules knows what your visitors will do. That takes a test.
How to test a headline
An A/B test shows the current headline to part of your traffic and a new one to the rest, then compares what each group did. For a landing page headline:
- Pick two headlines that differ in one idea. If they differ in three, you will not know which one mattered.
- Work out the sample before you start. The A/B test sample size calculator turns your conversion rate and the smallest lift worth finding into visitors per variant.
- Run it to that sample. Stopping the day one headline pulls ahead is how false winners are made.
- Read the result properly. Use the statistical significance calculator to see whether the difference is larger than chance would explain.
- Judge it on orders or leads. A headline that wins clicks from the wrong readers has not helped.
The A/B testing guide covers the whole method. For an ad headline or a subject line, where the first result is clicks, the CTR calculator tests whether the gap between two click-through rates is more than chance. Two platforms do part of this for you. Google Ads tests combinations of the headlines in a responsive search ad and learns which perform best, and Mailchimp's own help pages draw the same line this page does: its subject line helper applies general tips, while an A/B test shows what your own contacts prefer.
If the page does not have the traffic for a test, show the first screen to a few people from your audience for five seconds and ask what you sell. And remember the headline is one line: the free landing page analyzer checks the whole page it sits on, and the first of the eight checks in Convertica's free CRO audit is whether a visitor can tell what you offer without scrolling.
Related tools and guides
A headline is the start of the page's argument. These pages cover what comes before it and what comes after.
See all free tools and how they fit together.
Headline analyzer FAQ
What is a headline analyzer?
A headline analyzer is a tool that checks a headline against a fixed set of rules and reports what it finds, usually as a score with suggestions. Convertica's headline analyzer is built for landing page and ad headlines: it runs nine checks, marks each one pass, review or fix, and shows how the score is worked out.
Is this headline analyzer free?
Yes. The headline analyzer is free, with no sign-up and no limit on how often you use it. It runs entirely in your browser, so the headline you type is not sent to a server or stored anywhere.
How is the headline score calculated?
A pass earns 1 point, a review earns 0.5 and a fix earns 0. The score is the points earned divided by the number of scored checks, times 100, rounded to a whole number. Every check weighs the same, and a check that does not apply to the placement is left out. The weights are Convertica's own choice, not taken from research.
What is a good headline score?
There is no universal good headline score. On this analyzer a higher score means fewer rules were tripped, so use it to find what to fix and to compare your own drafts. A headline with no flags can still lose a test to one with a review, because the score does not measure whether your visitors want the offer.
How long should a headline be?
It depends on where the headline runs. A Google Ads headline field supports up to 30 characters. Mailchimp recommends email subject lines of no more than 9 words and 60 characters. Google publishes no character limit for a title tag and truncates the title link to fit the device width. No platform limits a landing page headline.
Does a higher headline score mean more clicks or conversions?
No. The score counts how many rules a headline trips. It cannot see your visitors, your offer or where your traffic comes from, so it cannot predict clicks, opens or conversions. Use it to catch weak headlines, then run an A/B test to find out which of your good ones wins.
Does this headline analyzer use AI?
No. It is a set of written rules and word lists that run in your browser, with no AI model and no network requests. The same headline always gets the same result. It also means the analyzer cannot judge meaning, which is why findings it cannot be sure of are marked review, not fix.
Can I use it for Google Ads headlines and email subject lines?
Yes. Choose Google search ad headline and the analyzer applies the 30 character limit and Google's rules on repeated punctuation, capitals and emoji. Choose email subject line and it applies Mailchimp's recommended 9 words and 60 characters and runs the half test. Each limit comes from the platform's own documentation.
What is the difference between a headline analyzer and a headline generator?
A headline analyzer checks a headline you have already written; a headline generator drafts new ones. This page has both. The generator fills seven named formulas with your own words and uses no AI model, so its output is a set of starting drafts to edit and then check in the analyzer.
Why does this analyzer give no points for power words?
Because a word list cannot tell whether a claim is true. Words such as ultimate or amazing describe every product and prove nothing about yours, so this analyzer flags them as hype. It looks for what a reader can check: what is offered, who it is for, the outcome and a real specific.
How do I test which headline works best?
Run an A/B test: show the current headline to half of your visitors and the new one to the other half, and measure orders or leads, not only clicks. Work out the visitors you need before you start with a sample size calculator, and read the result with a significance test.