Salesforce Style Guide for Documentation and User Interface Text

About This Guide
Styles A-Z
A
B
C
Can, Could, May, Might, Must, Should
Canceled, Canceling, and Cancellation
Capitalization
Captions
Caution
Cellular
Checkboxes
Cliches
Click
Code Samples
Compound Words
Contractions
Copyright
Customer Support
Cursor
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
Glossary
PDF

Capitalization

Don't capitalize words in generic usage: Unless a word is a proper noun, use lowercase. For example, "Refer to the style guide for capitalization standards." Don't use all caps for emphasis. If a sentence begins with a code element, consider rewriting so that the element is not the first word.

Title Capitalization

Use title capitalization in titles and headings, including column headings in tables.
  • Capitalize:
    • Nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, and subordinate conjunctions
    • The first and last words of titles, no matter what the words are
    • The first word after the colon in titles that include subtitles. For example: Flexible Pages: The Big Picture
    • The second element of a hyphenated compound in a title when it's a feature name, proper noun, or adjective: Real-Time Quotes, Third-Party Software
    • Key names, like Alt, Ctrl, Del
  • Lowercase:
    • Articles (a, an, the), coordinating conjunctions, and prepositions
    • The to in an infinitive. For example: I Want to Play Piano.
    • The second element of a hyphenated compound; for example, Real-Time Quotes, Third-Party Software
  • Exceptions
    • Some prepositions are part of a verb. Capitalize those prepositions in titles. (For example, in this button label, capitalize both words: Log In).
    • Retain the capitalization of abbreviations; for example, 1-kHz Oscillator, Start Sync at 12:00 AM
    • Retain the case of objects, calls, methods, SOAP headers, and any code element,such as the Account object or create()

Sentence Capitalization

Capitalize the first word of a phrase and any proper nouns in the phrase. Use sentence capitalization for each column entry in a table.

Acronyms, Editions, File Extensions, and Links

  • When spelling out an acronym, only capitalize the individual words if they're proper nouns. Use all capital letters for the acronym itself.
  • Use a colon to separate two clauses when the second explains the first. Capitalize the word following the colon only when it's a complete sentence or formal quotation. For example: Don't forget this point: The report is due by 9:00.
  • Always capitalize both words in an edition name, as in Enterprise Edition and Group Edition. Don't capitalize edition when it appears by itself as a common noun: Accounts are available in all editions.
  • Use all lowercase for file extensions. For example, Word adds .docx to a file name if you neglect to specify the file format when saving. Refer to the Microsoft Manual of Style for Technical Publications.
  • Capitalize link text based on context. For example, if link text includes an element that is capitalized in the UI, capitalize it in the link text too.

Referring to UI Text in Documentation

If you refer to a UI label in documentation, match the capitalization in the user interface.
  • When referring to tabs, don't capitalize tab. For example, Accounts tab.
  • Don't capitalize report unless it's part of the report name.