County websites that are hard to read

Of the 2,317 fully scanned U.S. county sites we tested, 886 (38%) read above an 8th grade level. Hard text slows people down. Some give up before they find what they need. We score the text on each homepage with the Automated Readability Index (ARI). It estimates the U.S. school grade a reader needs. Another 126 had too little text on the homepage to score. They get no pass or fail, and the map shows them in their own color. Among states with at least 10 tested sites, New Hampshire has the highest share (60%). Nebraska has the lowest (15%). This page uses the Reading level check. It passes when the homepage text reads at or below an 8th grade level. That means an ARI score of 8.5 or lower. We need at least 100 words to score a page.

• Above 8th grade (863)
• Too little text to score (105), no pass or fail
• At or below 8th grade (1,410), or no site on our list (347)
• Not fully scanned or no result for this check (416)

We could not place 82 of the 2,876 sites on the map, 23 of them failing this check. They are in the table.

The 886 county sites that read above an 8th grade level

Sorted by state, then name. Each site links to its readability report and shows its readability and overall grades from the same scan. ARI and Flesch-Kincaid (FK) are the two reading grades from that scan. Both show a U.S. school grade.

About this check

Reading level is one of the readability checks. The homepage text reads at or below an 8th grade level.

Why it matters

Plain text helps people get what they need the first time. Hard text leads to more calls, more errors, and more visits.

Risk

Users struggle to understand your content.

Guidance

• Reading level standard, with how to fix it
• 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act (IDEA)
• Automated Readability Index (ARI)
• Flesch–Kincaid readability tests
• U.S. Federal Website Standards
• Plain Writing Act of 2010
• County readability rankings