Our readability target is 5th to 8th grade. This might feel low, but it helps customers understand complex financial content faster and easier. It also supports our writing guidelines on shorter sentences, simple tenses, and familiar words.
Clear content also makes localization and translation easier. And it benefits our customers who speak English as a second language.
To score content, the best numbers to look at are the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level and the Gunning Fog Index. The Flesch Reading Ease score is also interesting—a high number (close to 100) is better than a low number.
Use readability tools to test your content and learn what grade level or years of education is needed for someone to understand it. Writer has readability scores built in.
Tip: Microsoft Word’s spelling and grammar preferences show readability statistics when you do a spell check. It has both Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level and Flesch Reading Ease scores.
