The summary, sometimes called the standfirst or subheadline, is one or two sentences under the headline that explain the main fact and add the most important supporting detail. A common newswire limit is 45 words. It should make the headline credible, not restate it, and it must not repeat the first paragraph word for word.
What is a press release summary for?
It is the second thing everyone reads and, for many readers, the last. On a syndicated news page the summary often sits directly under the headline in large type, and in some listings it is the only text shown. Its job is to answer the question the headline raises: how big, based on what, for whom, from when.
A headline says what happened. The summary says enough about it that a reader can decide whether it matters to them.
How is the summary different from the headline and first paragraph?
The three opening elements work as a sequence. Each one adds something the previous one did not.
| Element | Job | Length |
|---|---|---|
| Headline | States the news: company, action, market | 18 words or fewer |
| Summary | Adds the detail that makes the headline credible or useful | 45 words or fewer |
| First paragraph | Gives the full record: who, what kind of company, where, when, why, with the dateline | Around 60 to 100 words |
If the summary could be deleted without the reader losing any information, it is not doing its job.
What should go in the summary?
Pick the one or two details that matter most after the headline. Usually that means some of these:
- the scale: a figure, a sample size, a number of locations or customers;
- the basis: where a number comes from;
- the date: when it takes effect or goes on sale;
- the audience: who it is for;
- the reason: why the company did it, stated as fact.
You will not fit all five, and you should not try. Choose the ones a sceptical reader would ask about first.
What does a good summary look like?
Here are four examples, one for each common kind of news. All the companies are fictional and all the figures are invented for illustration.
A research release
Headline: Acme Plumbing Study of 4,812 Dubai Callouts Finds Flexible-Hose Failures in 31% of Water Emergencies
Weak summary: Acme Plumbing has released a new study about water emergencies in Dubai homes, with important findings for homeowners.
Strong summary: The analysis covers residential emergency visits Acme completed in 2025, based on technician records. Water-heater failures accounted for 22% of recorded emergencies and leaking valves for 18%.
The weak summary tells the reader what the headline already said. The strong one gives the period, the source of the data and the next two findings.
A launch
Headline: Acme Invoicing Launches Same-Day Payouts for UK Freelancers
Weak summary: The new feature is a big step forward for freelancers who want to be paid faster.
Strong summary: From 12 October 2026, freelancers on Acme's Pro plan can withdraw paid invoices to a UK bank account the same working day, for a fee of 1% per payout.
An expansion
Headline: Northwind Clinics Opens Third Physiotherapy Clinic in Leeds
Weak summary: Northwind Clinics continues its growth with another exciting new location.
Strong summary: The Headingley clinic opens on 3 November 2026 with six treatment rooms and four physiotherapists, and will offer sports-injury and post-surgery rehabilitation appointments seven days a week.
A new hire
Headline: ExamplePay Appoints Maria Okafor as Chief Financial Officer
Weak summary: ExamplePay is pleased to welcome Maria to the leadership team.
Strong summary: Okafor joins on 1 December 2026 from a UK payments company where she was finance director, and will lead ExamplePay's finance, compliance and investor relations teams.
In every case the strong version adds a date, a figure, a scope or a responsibility. None of them uses an adjective to do the work a fact should do.
Why must the summary not repeat the first paragraph?
Because on the published page they sit one above the other. A reader who meets the same sentence twice assumes the release has nothing more to say and stops. You also waste your 45 words.
A common mistake is to write the first paragraph, then copy its first sentence into the summary field. Do it the other way round: write the summary as the single most useful addition to the headline, then write a first paragraph that establishes the full record, including the facts the summary left out. The post on the first 100 words covers what that paragraph must contain.
Summary: The Headingley clinic opens on 3 November 2026 with six treatment rooms and four physiotherapists.
First paragraph, repeating it (weak): LEEDS, UK, 2 October 2026 — The Headingley clinic opens on 3 November 2026 with six treatment rooms and four physiotherapists.
First paragraph, building on it (strong): LEEDS, UK, 2 October 2026 — Northwind Clinics, a Yorkshire physiotherapy group founded in 2017, will open its third Leeds clinic on Otley Road in Headingley on 3 November 2026. The clinic adds sports-injury rehabilitation, a service the group previously offered only at its city-centre site.
The strong opening names the company, defines it, gives the address and explains why the clinic matters. Some overlap in facts, such as the date, is fine. Repeated sentences are not.
How do you keep it under 45 words?
Write it long, then cut. The usual cuts are:
- the company's name, if the headline already gives it: "the company" or a short form works;
- phrases such as "today announced that" or "is pleased to share";
- adjectives: "important", "exciting", "significant";
- detail that belongs in the body, such as a second quote or background history.
Count the words before you submit. Figures and hyphenated words count as one each.
Summary checklist
- Does it add at least one fact the headline does not contain?
- Would a reader who stops here know the scale, basis, date or audience?
- Is it one or two sentences and 45 words or fewer?
- Is every sentence different from the first paragraph?
- Is it free of hype words, questions and exclamation marks?
Frequently asked questions
Is a summary required?
Many newswires ask for one as a separate field, and a release without it looks unfinished on the published page. Even where it is optional, it gives you a second line of space to make the news clear, so it is worth writing.
Should the summary contain a link?
Keep links for the body, where the company name and the supporting page are linked. The links post explains which links to use and why most newswires allow only three.
The summary completes the top of the release. For how all the parts fit together, see the anatomy of a modern press release, and for the line above the summary, see how to write the headline.
media:on Editorial. Written and reviewed by the media:on editorial team, who edit every release before it files.