How to Improve Flesch and Kincaid Readability Score

When it comes to content writing, the goal is to communicate effectively with your audience.

However, if your writing is difficult to read or understand, you may struggle to get your message across. This is where readability scores come in.

Two of the most popular readability formulas are the Flesch Reading Ease and Kincaid Grade Level.

In this article, we’ll focus on discussing how to improve your Flesch and Kincaid readability scores.

What is the Flesch and Kincaid Readability Score?

The Flesch Reading Ease score measures how easy it is to read a piece of text. The higher the score, the easier it is to read.

The formula takes into account the average number of words per sentence and the average number of syllables per word. The score ranges from 0 to 100, with a higher score indicating that the text is easier to read.

Here is the formula to calculate your Flesch and Kincaid Readability score:

Here is the score interpretation.

Source: Wikipedia

Why is Readability Important?

Readability is important for content writers because it affects how easily the reader can understand the message. If your text is difficult to read, your audience may become frustrated and give up on reading it altogether.

On the other hand, if your text is easy to read, your audience is more likely to engage with your message and retain the information you’ve shared.

However, it isn’t necessary to keep your score near to 100. It actually depends whom you’re writing for. If you’re writing for business personas like CEO and CXOs, you can keep your score between 30-50.

How to Improve Your Flesch and Kincaid Readability Scores

• Use shorter words
• Use bullet points
• Try to assign numbers to your headings
• Don’t use a colon; use a dash instead
• Don’t use complex sentences
• Avoid using commas

Let’s go deeper into understanding how to improve the Flesch and Kincaid readability score.

1. Simplify Sentence Structure

Complex sentence structures can negatively affect readability scores. To improve your scores, try using shorter, simpler sentences. Break up long sentences into shorter ones, and avoid using too many clauses or conjunctions in a single sentence.

For example, instead of writing, “Although he was tired, he decided to go to the gym and work out, but he didn’t have enough time,” you could write, “He was tired but decided to go to the gym. He didn’t have enough time to work out.”

2. Use Simpler Vocabulary

Using complicated vocabulary can also negatively affect readability scores. To improve your scores, try using simpler words. Instead of using jargon or technical terms, use everyday language that your audience is likely to understand.

For example, instead of writing, “The telecommunications device experienced a malfunction,” you could write, “The phone broke.”

3. Break Up Longer Paragraphs

Long paragraphs can also negatively affect readability scores. To improve your scores, break up longer paragraphs into shorter ones. This will make your text easier to scan and read.
Use subheadings

Subheadings can improve readability scores by breaking up your text and providing visual cues to help your audience navigate through your content. Use descriptive subheadings that accurately reflect the content of each section.

4. Use Active Voice

Passive voice can negatively affect readability scores by making your text more difficult to understand. To improve your scores, try using active voice instead of passive voice. This will make your text more direct and easier to follow.

For example, instead of writing, “The cake was eaten by the dog,” you could write, “The dog ate the cake.”

5. Use Bullet Points and Lists

Bullet points and lists can help break up your text and make it easier to read. Use them to present information in a clear and concise manner.

For example, instead of writing a paragraph of text outlining the steps of a process, use bullet points to make the steps stand out.

Go, And Improve the Score

Improving your Flesch and Kincaid readability scores is important for effective communication with your audience. By simplifying your sentence structure, using simpler vocabulary, breaking up longer paragraphs, using subheadings, and using active voice, you can make your text easier to read and understand.

This will also help you improve your SEO score for content writing.