Types of camel case
- Lower camel case: the first word is lowercase, as in
firstName. Common in JavaScript. - Upper camel case (Pascal case): every word is capitalized, as in
FirstName.
Where it matters for marketing
- Hashtags: #SmallBusinessTips is easier to read than #smallbusinesstips, and screen readers can read the words separately.
- Brand names: such as YouTube or PayPal.
Camel case in URLs
Don’t use camel case in URLs. URLs can be case-sensitive, so /LocalSeo and /localseo may be treated as different pages, which creates duplicates and broken links. Use lowercase words separated by hyphens, such as /local-seo/.
Camel case example
A marketing team posts “#smallbusinesstips” and a screen reader reads it as one long unclear word. They change it to “#SmallBusinessTips” and it is easier to read for everyone. On their developer’s side, a JavaScript variable named pageTitle follows the same style. On their website, the URL stays lowercase: /small-business-tips/.
When to use camel case
- Hashtags: capitalise each word.
- Code: variable and function names in many languages, such as JavaScript and Java.
- Brand names: only if that is how the brand is officially written.
Camel case mistakes
- Using capitals in a URL, which can create two versions of one page.
- Writing every hashtag in lowercase and making it hard to read.
- Mixing styles in the same codebase.
Camel case FAQs
What is the difference between camel case and snake case?
Snake case joins words with underscores, like page_title. Camel case uses capitals instead. For web addresses, hyphens in lowercase are recommended. See URL.
Does camel case matter for SEO?
Only in URLs, where it can cause duplicates. See hashtags for social use.
Camel case in social media and accessibility
Capitalising each word in a hashtag helps people with dyslexia and users of screen readers, because assistive tools can read the separate words instead of one long string. It also avoids unfortunate misreadings of joined words. Check a hashtag with a quick search before you use it.