Readability analysis is a collection of assessments that check how easy to read a text is. Some of the readability assessments are language-independent (e.g. paragraph length, subheading presence, and distribution), but many are language-specific (e.g. passive voice, transition words) and are made available for different languages on a case-by-case basis. For more information on each language, you can check the documentation on which language-specific assessments have been adapted to which languages.
| Individual Score | Rating | Individual penalty points |
|---|---|---|
| 0 (if it is not explicitly set as a score) | Feedback (gray traffic light) | - |
| 0-4 | Bad (red traffic light) | 3 (partial support: 4) |
| 5-7 | Ok (orange traffic light) | 2 |
| 8-10 | Good (green traffic light) | 0 |
| Sum of penalty points | Total score | Divide by 10: |
|---|---|---|
| 6 (partial: 4) | 30 | 3 |
| 4 (partial: 2) | 60 | 6 |
| <4 (partial: < 2) | 90 | 9 |
Below is a detailed overview of how scores for the readability assessments are calculated, as well as the feedback that each assessment returns. Note: some of the assessment criteria are different for texts marked as cornerstone; these will be indicated when applicable. Also, some assessment criteria (e.g. recommended sentence length) differ depending on the specific language. These are not specified below for the sake of space-saving.
What it does: Checks whether long texts are divided by subheadings.
When applies: When the (sanitized) text has more than 50 characters.
Name in code: SubheadingsDistributionTooLong
Title URL: https://yoa.st/34x (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
Call to action URL: https://yoa.st/34y (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
| Traffic light | Score | Criterion | Feedback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 2 | Default: A text with more than 300 words (cornerstone: 250) and no subheading is present. Japanese: A text with more than 600 characters (cornerstone: 500) and no subheading is present. | Subheading distribution: You are not using any subheadings, although your text is rather long. Try and add some subheadings. |
| Red | 3 | Default: There is subheading(s) in the text and it is followed and preceded (if applicable) by more than 350 words (cornerstone: 300). Japanese: There is subheading(s) in the text and it is followed and preceded (if applicable) by more than 700 characters (cornerstone: 600). | DEFAULT: Subheading distribution: X sections of your text are longer than the recommended number of words (X) and are not separated by any subheadings. Add subheadings to improve readability. JAPANESE: Subheading distribution: X sections of your text are longer than the recommended number of characters (X) and are not separated by any subheadings. Add subheadings to improve readability. |
| Red | 3 | Default: There is subheading(s) in the text in which the first one is preceded by a text longer than 350 words (cornerstone: 300). And the texts following the subheading(s) is less than 300 words (cornerstone: 250). Japanese: There is subheading(s) in the text in which the first one is preceded by a text longer than 700 characters (cornerstone: 600). And the texts following the subheading(s) is less than 600 characters (cornerstone: 500). | DEFAULT: Subheading distribution: The beginning of your text is longer than X words and is not separated by any subheadings. Add subheadings to improve readability. JAPANESE: Subheading distribution: The beginning of your text is longer than X characters and is not separated by any subheadings. Add subheadings to improve readability. |
| Orange | 6 | Default: Subheading followed by 300-350 words (cornerstone: 250-300). Japanese: Subheading followed by 600-700 characters (cornerstone: 500-600) | DEFAULT: Subheading distribution: X sections of your text are longer than the recommended number of words (X) and are not separated by any subheadings. Add subheadings to improve readability. JAPANESE: Subheading distribution: X sections of your text are longer than the recommended number of characters (X) and are not separated by any subheadings. Add subheadings to improve readability. |
| Orange | 6 | Default: There is subheading(s) in the text in which the first one is preceded by a text between 300-350 words (cornerstone: 250-300). And the texts following the subheading(s) is less than 300 words (cornerstone: 250). Japanese: There is subheading(s) in the text in which the first one is preceded by a text between 600-700 characters (cornerstone: 500-600). And the texts following the subheading(s) is less than 600 characters (cornerstone: 500). | DEFAULT: Subheading distribution: The beginning of your text is longer than X words and is not separated by any subheadings. Add subheadings to improve readability. JAPANESE: Subheading distribution: The beginning of your text is longer than X characters and is not separated by any subheadings. Add subheadings to improve readability. |
| Green | 9 | Default: A text with 300 or less words and no subheading is present. Japanese: A text with 600 or less characters and no subheading is present. | Subheading distribution: You are not using any subheadings, but your text is short enough and probably doesn't need them. |
| Green | 9 | Default: There is subheading(s) in the text and it is followed and preceded (if applicable) by less than 300 words (cornerstone: 250). Japanese: There is subheading(s) in the text and it is followed and preceded (if applicable) by less than 600 characters (cornerstone: 500). | Subheading distribution: Great job! |
What it does: Checks whether the paragraphs exceed the recommended maximum length.
When applies: When the (sanitized) text has more than 50 characters. This is tied to the TextPresenceAssessment.
Name in code: ParagraphTooLongAssessment
Title URL: https://yoa.st/35d (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
Call to action URL: https://yoa.st/35e (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
| Traffic light | Score | Criterion | Feedback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 3 | > 200 words | Paragraph length: X of the paragraphs contain more than the recommended maximum of X words. Shorten your paragraphs! |
| Orange | 6 | Between 150 and 200 words | Paragraph length: X of the paragraphs contain more than the recommended maximum of X words. Shorten your paragraphs! |
| Green | 9 | ≤ 150 words | Paragraph length: none of the paragraphs are too long. Great job! |
What it does: Checks whether the sentences exceed the recommended maximum length (default: 20 words, IT: 25 words, RU: 15 words, HE: 15 words, TR: 15 words).
When applies: When the (sanitized) has more than 50 characters. This is tied to the TextPresenceAssessment.
Name in code: SentenceLengthInTextAssessment
Title URL: https://yoa.st/34v (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
Call to action URL: https://yoa.st/34w (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
| Traffic light | Score | Criterion | Feedback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 3 | > 30% (cornerstone: 25%) | Sentence length: X of the sentences contain more than X words, which is more than the recommended maximum of X. Try to shorten the sentences. |
| Orange | 6 | Between 25 and 30% (cornerstone: 20-25%, Turkish: 20-25%, Polish: 15-20%) | Sentence length: X of the sentences contain more than X words, which is more than the recommended maximum of X. Try to shorten the sentences. |
| Green | 9 | ≤ 25% (cornerstone: ≤ 20%; Polish: ≤ 15%) | Sentence length: great! |
What it does: Checks whether there are more than 3 sentences in a row that start with the same word.
When applies: When the (sanitized) text has more than 50 characters (this is tied to the TextPresenceAssessment), and the research has a result.
Name in code: SentenceBeginningsAssessment
Title URL: https://yoa.st/35f (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
Call to action URL: https://yoa.st/35g (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
| Traffic light | Score | Criterion | Feedback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 3 | 3 or more consecutive sentences start with the same word | Consecutive sentences: the text contains X consecutive sentences starting with the same word. Try to mix things up! |
| Green | 9 | Less than 3 consecutive sentences start with the same word | Consecutive sentences: there is enough variety in your sentences. That's great! |
What it does: Checks whether the number of sentences containing passive voice exceeds the recommended maximum amount.
When applies: When the (sanitized) text has more than 50 characters (this is tied to the TextPresenceAssessment), and the assessment is supported in the specific language (the researcher has a research).
Name in code: PassiveVoiceAssessment
Title URL: https://yoa.st/34t (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
Call to action URL: https://yoa.st/34u (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
| Traffic light | Score | Criterion | Feedback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 3 | > 15% of sentences | Passive voice: X of the sentences contain passive voice, which is more than the recommended maximum of X. Try to use their active counterparts. |
| Orange | 6 | Between 10 and 15% of sentences | Passive voice: X of the sentences contain passive voice, which is more than the recommended maximum of X. Try to use their active counterparts. |
| Green | 9 | ≤ 10% of sentences | Passive voice: you're using enough active voice. That's great! |
What it does: Checks whether there are enough sentences containing transition words.
When applies: When there is at least 200 words in the text
Name in code: TransitionWordsAssessment
Title URL: https://yoa.st/34z (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
Call to action URL: https://yoa.st/35a (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
| Traffic light | Score | Criterion | Feedback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 3 | No transition words found | Transition words: None of the sentences contain transition words. Use some. |
| Red | 3 | < 20% of sentences | Transition words: Only X of the sentences contain them. This is not enough. Use more transition words. |
| Orange | 6 | Between 20 and 30% of sentences | Transition words: Only X of the sentences contain them. This is not enough. Use more transition words. |
| Green | 9 | ≥ 30% of sentences | Transition words: Well done! |
What it does: Checks how easy to read the text is according to the Flesch Reading Ease test
When applies: When the (sanitized) text has more than 50 characters (this is tied to the TextPresenceAssessment), and the assessment is supported in the specific language (the researcher has a research).
Name in code: FleschReadingEaseAssessment
Title URL: https://yoa.st/34r (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
Call to action URL: https://yoa.st/34s (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
| Traffic light | Score | Criterion | Feedback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 3 | < 30 | Flesch Reading Ease: The copy scores X in the test, which is considered X to read. Try to make shorter sentences, using less difficult words to improve readability. |
| Red | 3 | Between 30 and 50 | Flesch Reading Ease: The copy scores X in the test, which is considered X to read. Try to make shorter sentences, using less difficult words to improve readability. |
| Orange | 6 | Between 50 and 60 | Flesch Reading Ease: The copy scores X in the test, which is considered X to read. Try to make shorter sentences to improve readability. |
| Green | 9 | > 60 | Flesch Reading Ease: The copy scores X in the test, which is considered X to read. Good job! |
What it does: Checks whether there is enough text in the copy
Name in code: TextPresenceAssessment
Title URL: https://yoa.st/35h (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
Call to action URL: https://yoa.st/35i (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
| Traffic light | Score | Criterion | Feedback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 3 | < 50 characters | Not enough content: please add some content to enable a good analysis. |
What it does: Checks whether the text contains complex words. Word forms from the keyphrase are excluded.
When applies: When the (sanitized) text has more than 50 characters
Name in code: WordComplexityAssessment
Title URL: https://yoa.st/4ls (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
Call to action URL: https://yoa.st/4lt (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
| Traffic light | Score | Criterion | Feedback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orange (cornerstone: red) | 6 (cornerstone: 3) | If the complex words are more than 10% in the text | Word complexity: X% of the words in your text are considered complex. Try to use shorter and more familiar words to improve readability. |
| Green | 9 | If the complex words are less than 10% in the text | Word complexity: You are not using too many complex words, which makes your text easy to read. Good job! |
What it does: Checks whether there is an over-use of center-alignment in the text.
When applies: When the (sanitized) text has more than 50 characters and at least one paragraph or heading with center-alignment.
Name in code: TextAlignmentAssessment
Title URL: https://yoa.st/assessment-alignment (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
Call to action URL: https://yoa.st/assessment-alignment-cta (link placement is in bold in the feedback strings)
| Traffic light | Score | Criterion | Feedback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Red | 2 | There is one element with .has-text-align-center that is over 50 characters long |
LTR: Alignment: There is a long section of center-aligned text. We recommend making it left-aligned. |
| RTL: Alignment: There is a long section of center-aligned text. We recommend making it right-aligned. | |||
| Red | 2 | There are multiple elements with .has-text-align-center that are over 50 characters long |
LTR: Alignment: There are X long sections of center-aligned text. We recommend making them left-aligned. |
| RTL: Alignment: There are X long sections of center-aligned text. We recommend making them right-aligned. |
Notes:
- LTR: The feedback shown for languages written from left to right.
- RTL: The feedback shown for languages written from right to left.