Result
It depends on the style guide and on how "after" is used. As a preposition ("Life after College"), it is five letters long: AP, APA, AMA, and Bluebook capitalize it, while Chicago and MLA keep it lowercase. As a subordinating conjunction that starts a clause ("What Happens After You Publish"), Chicago and MLA capitalize it too, so every guide writes "After."
"After" (as a Preposition) by Style Guide
| Style guide | "After" mid-title | Why |
|---|---|---|
| AP | Capitalize | Prepositions of four or more letters are capitalized |
| APA | Capitalize | Words of four or more letters are capitalized |
| Chicago | Lowercase | Prepositions are lowercase at any length |
| MLA | Lowercase | Prepositions are lowercase at any length |
| AMA | Capitalize | Prepositions longer than three letters are capitalized |
| Bluebook | Capitalize | Prepositions longer than four letters are capitalized ("after" has five) |
The Same Headline in Four Styles
| Style | "life after college" |
|---|---|
| AP | Life After College |
| APA | Life After College |
| Chicago | Life after College |
| MLA | Life after College |
| Style | "the morning after the launch" |
|---|---|
| AP | The Morning After the Launch |
| APA | The Morning After the Launch |
| Chicago | The Morning after the Launch |
| MLA | The Morning after the Launch |
"After" as a Conjunction
When a subject and verb follow "after," it is a conjunction: "What Happens After You Hit Publish." Chicago and MLA capitalize subordinating conjunctions, so this "After" is capitalized in every guide. The converter treats "after" as a preposition, so capitalize it yourself in Chicago or MLA when a clause follows.
Related Words
"Before", "since", and "until" can also be prepositions or conjunctions and follow the same pattern. For the full rules, see title case prepositions.
Real Titles With "After"
- After Hours (1985 film): first word
"After" in Sentence Case
APA reference lists, many news sites, and most UI text use sentence case instead of title case. There, only the first word and proper nouns get capitals, so "after" is lowercase unless it starts the title: "Life after college." Pick one of the two styles for a whole set of headings rather than mixing them.
Quick Answers
Should "after" be capitalized in a title?
In AP, APA, AMA, and Bluebook, yes. In Chicago and MLA, only when it starts a clause, or is first or last.
Is "after" capitalized in APA?
Yes. "After" has five letters, and APA capitalizes words of four letters or more.
Is "after" capitalized in Chicago style?
As a preposition, no. As a conjunction ("After You Leave"), yes.