Style Tips for Designing Lists

How do I format my lists?

When writing lists, you have several types to consider.

You can use

• bulleted lists

• lettered lists

• numbered lists 

Within these list options, you have a variety of style options to chose from. When you write bulleted or lettered lists, there isn't a specific order you need to follow. You have some freedom when deciding how to arrange the listed items. As suggested by Quick and Dirty Tips, alphabetizing lists that don't require a specific order can be a useful tip for creating content that is easy to follow. It's a good idea to keep your formatting organized and consistent in all areas of your writing.


Another factor to consider when designing your lists is the style option you want to use for capitalizing. Regardless of writing a complete sentence or a fragment, you have the choice to capitalize the first letter after the bullet. The important thing to remember is to remain consistent with your capitalization. If you choose to capitalize the first letter, do so with all listed items.


While I was researching this topic, I came across a blog called Quick and Dirty Tips, which had an article about several formatting suggestions on lists. The writer explained that most of what she covered were a matter of style preference. I relayed her suggestions to you, but it's important to realize that you don't have to follow it exactly. It's a tool to get you started. When you do your research on the subject, you will find that many style guides have different recommendations. One thing many style guides have in common is being consistent throughout the web page. That concept is one of the only things you need to follow precisely for a website that will bring in site visitors.