Free Style Guides and Online Resources for Editors
A style manual or style guide lists a set of standards for writing and editing documents. It lays down guidelines on how to handle matters of style (e.g., punctuation, capitalization, use of abbreviations). Major style manuals such as the Chicago Manual of Style, AP Stylebook, APA Publication Manual, and New Oxford Style Manual require a purchase or a subscription.
This article lists style guides (and some other useful resources) you can use for free online that will help you edit documents professionally and consistently in American, British, Australian, and Canadian English (useful if you are starting out on a career in editing or simply need guidance for a one-off project).
For formal writing
Here are some free online resources on American style that you can use to edit formal texts (academic and business writing):
- For academic editing, check out these free style and grammar guidelines by the APA (American Psychological Association).
- The U.S. Government Publishing Office Style Manual provides general but comprehensive guidelines on style and punctuation that can help you edit for a US audience.
- Purdue Online Writing Lab (of Purdue University) discusses writing and citation styles of academic style manuals and is free to access. This is an extremely useful resource if you edit academic papers.
- The Nat Geo Style Manual is quite comprehensive (discussing how to use specific terms as well as matters of style and punctuation) and can help you edit consistently in American style.
And here are free online resources on British, Canadian, and Australian style:
- The OUP style guide (of the Oxford University Press) can be used as a concise and free version of the New Oxford Style Manual for British style.
- When editing for Canadian clients, I generally use the style manual of the Translation Bureau of the Government of Canada. It covers everything, including Canadian punctuation styles (very similar to American).
- And to edit for Australian clients, I use the style manual of the Government of Australia, which is also quite comprehensive and covers Australian punctuation (very similar to British).
For technical writing
For editing papers in technical fields (e.g., computer science and engineering), use the IEEE Editorial Style Manual.
For writing or editing technical documents in computer science (e.g., help documents for software applications), use the Microsoft Writing Style Guide (formerly known as the Microsoft Manual of Style). It is available for free online and, for decades now, has been the definitive guide for technical writers.
For news writing
To write or edit news copy, use the following resources.
- British style: the BBC News style guide and Guardian and Observer style guide
- Australian style: the ABC style guide
- Canadian style: the CPRS style guide (style manual of the Canadian Public Relations Society, with advice very similar to that of the Canadian Press Stylebook, which requires a purchase)
- American style (based pretty much on Associated Press style or the AP Stylebook): Tameri Guide for Writers
Blogs, newsletters, and Q&A sections of style manuals
Most questions you have on style and punctuation have already been asked and answered in the Q&A sections and blogs of major style manuals. Here is a quick list of pages you can bookmark.
- Chicago style (University of Chicago Press)
- APA style (American Psychological Association)
- MLA style (Modern Language Association)
- AP style (Associated Press)
- AP Style Blog
- AP Q&A: Ask the Editors
- AMA style (American Medical Association)
- Blog: AMA Style Insider (for medical and scientific publishing)
Consider signing up for the newsletters of these style manuals. These newsletters are free and provide many useful tips that help you stay updated on matters of style, including terminology related to the current political, scientific, and technological landscape.
See also our list of major style manuals used in academic, business, news, and book editing. Most of them require payment or a purchase, but their blogs and Q&A sections are free to browse.
The Editor’s Manual
Finally, you have a free online reference guide right here in the Editor’s Manual. We follow mainly American style but also discuss British, Canadian, and Australian styles. Take a look at our articles on punctuation, style, and usage.