Writing and Language
How to Summarize an Article: Step-by-Step Guide with Examples
By AIDetector365 Editorial Team · 12 min read · Published · Updated
A summary condenses a text to its main ideas, in your own words, at a fraction of the length. Students summarize readings, professionals summarize reports and meetings, and everyone summarizes when they explain an article to a friend. Doing it well is a skill: you have to decide what matters and leave the rest out.
This guide gives a step-by-step method, length guidelines, a worked example and the mistakes to avoid. When you need a fast first pass, our free text summarizer pulls the key sentences from any text without uploading it.
Key takeaways
- A summary covers the main idea and key supporting points, not examples and details.
- Aim for about 10–25% of the original length, depending on purpose.
- Write in your own words and keep your opinions out (unless asked for a response).
- Credit the original author and title.
- Extractive summarizers pick key sentences; always check them against the source.
Try it now: free Text Summarizer
Condense long text into key points. Runs in your browser, no sign-up.
Step-by-step: how to summarize an article
- Skim the article: title, headings, first and last paragraphs. Identify the topic and purpose.
- Read it fully, marking the main claim and the sentence that best states each key point.
- Write the main idea in one sentence, in your own words.
- List the 3–5 most important supporting points. Skip examples, anecdotes and repetition.
- Write the summary: open with the author, title and main idea, then the supporting points in logical order.
- Compare with the original: is anything misrepresented or missing? Did you add opinions?
- Cut to length and check the word count with the word counter.
How long should a summary be?
When an assignment gives a word limit, it wins. Otherwise, shorter is usually better: a summary that is half the length of the original is closer to a paraphrase.
| Purpose | Typical length |
|---|---|
| One-sentence summary (gist) | 20–40 words |
| Abstract or executive summary | 150–300 words |
| Summary of a news or blog article | About 10–20% of the original |
| Summary of a research paper for class | A paragraph to one page |
| Meeting notes | Decisions and action items only |
A worked example
Original (excerpt, 120 words): an article arguing that four-day workweek trials in several countries reported stable productivity and lower burnout, while noting that most participating companies were small, office-based and self-selected, so results may not generalize to shift-based industries.
One-sentence summary: “The article reports that four-day workweek trials maintained productivity and reduced burnout, but warns that the participating firms were mostly small office businesses, so the results may not apply everywhere.”
Notice what was left out: specific countries, individual company anecdotes and statistics. What stayed: the main finding and the main limitation.
Common summarizing mistakes
- Including details and examples instead of the ideas they support.
- Adding your opinion (“The author makes an excellent point…”) in an objective summary.
- Copying sentences without quotation marks — that is plagiarism even in a summary.
- Following the article paragraph by paragraph instead of organizing by idea.
- Misrepresenting emphasis, for example presenting a minor caveat as the main point.
- Forgetting the source: always name the author and title.
Extractive vs. abstractive summarizers
Automatic summarizers come in two kinds. Extractive summarizers select the most important sentences from the original and keep them unchanged. Abstractive summarizers, usually based on large language models, write new sentences.
The AIDetector365 text summarizer is extractive. It scores each sentence by how many of the text's key terms it contains, skips sentences that repeat one already chosen and returns the strongest sentences in their original order — as a paragraph or as bullet points, in short, medium or long versions. Because it never writes new sentences, it cannot invent facts. It needs at least four sentences to work with.
Summarizing for different goals
For studying
Summarize each section of a chapter in one or two sentences, then summarize the summaries. Explaining a text in fewer words is one of the best ways to check you understood it.
For work
Lead with the decision or recommendation, then the reasons. Busy readers want the conclusion first.
For research
Note the question, method, main finding and limitations. These four points let you compare studies quickly.
Frequently asked questions
What should a summary include?
The source (author and title), the main idea and the key supporting points, in your own words and in a logical order.
Should a summary include my opinion?
Not in an objective summary. If the assignment asks for a response or critique, put your opinion in a separate section.
Can I summarize a PDF with the text summarizer?
Yes. PDF, DOCX and TXT files are read and summarized directly in your browser. Nothing is uploaded.
Why does the summarizer need at least four sentences?
With three sentences or fewer there is nothing meaningful to condense, so it asks for more text instead of returning the original.
Is an AI summary accurate?
Extractive summaries use the original sentences, so they cannot invent facts, but they can miss nuance or context. Check important details against the source.
Put this into practice with the free Text Summarizer
Condense long text into key points. Runs in your browser, no sign-up.