The Australian Government Style Manual (Style Manual) is the definitive resource for Australian Government content.

It helps you put people’s needs at the centre of the content you create. It’s the toolkit for making information easy to read, accessible and inclusive.

The Style Manual is produced and published by the Australian Public Service Commission.

The need for an Australian Government style manual

People interact with government through content. This includes text on webpages, forms, videos or images.

A consistent approach to content makes it simpler and faster for people to get things done with government.

When to use the Style Manual

Use this manual to write, edit, review, or approve Australian Government content. The guidance applies to all government information, including:

• digital services and products
• briefs
• policy documents
• reports
• forms
• technical and specialist content
• government communications.

User research and continuous improvement

The Style Manual team continues to test the manual with people who create government content.

We will base further updates on:

• evidence and shifts in Australian style
• Australian and international standards for accessibility and readability
• insights from ongoing user research
• emerging patterns in the feedback we receive.

We welcome your thoughts on the Style Manual. You can get in touch with us by filling out the feedback form that you’ll find on every page.

Publication history

The Style Manual began with the work of 2 committees established over 60 years ago:

• Joint Select Committee on Parliamentary and Government Publications (Joint Select Committee) – established by resolution of parliament, 6/12/1962 to 13/05/1964
• Government Style Manual Committee (GSMC) – established by the Treasurer, 5/12/1962 to 10/12/1964.

In 1965, the Style Manual Committee formed to build on the work of the GSMC. The committee was chaired by a parliamentarian and its members included experts from the public service and academia.

The Style Manual Committee oversaw preparation of the manual and publication of the first edition in 1966. In his foreword, Prime Minister Harold Holt noted that the manual ‘had its genesis’ in the 1964 report of the Joint Select Committee.

That report also recommended the establishment of a parliamentary Joint Committee on Publications (JCP). Today, the JCP’s secretariat sits on the Style Manual's Governance Board as an observer.

Style Manual timeline

• First published 1966 (reprinted with corrections 1968)
• Second edition published 1972 (reprinted with corrections 1974, reprinted 1974 and 1976)
• Third edition published 1978 (reprinted with corrections 1979 and 1981, reprinted 1986 and 1987)
• Fourth edition published 1988 (reprinted with corrections 1990 and 1992)
• Fifth edition published 1994 (reprinted with corrections 1995, 1996 and 1998)
• Sixth edition published 2002 (reprinted with corrections 2003, reprinted 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008)
• Digital edition published 2020 as a minimum viable product with ongoing updates