Similarities & Differences of Autobiography vs Biography

By: Cathy A.

6 min read

Reviewed By: Jacklyn H.

Published on: Jan 4, 2023

Autobiographies are a great way to share your story with the world. It can be tough, funny and emotional all at once!

Biography is usually more about telling facts than it is about writing in a third-person voice like an autobiography does but both have their own unique qualities that make them worth reading for anyone.

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Do you enjoy reading autobiographies or biographies? Are you unsure of the difference between these two? In this blog post, we will explore the key differences between these two types of books.

Keep reading to find out more!

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Autobiography vs Biography - Definition

Biography	Autobiography
The life events of a person are written by someone else.	The person himself writes a biography.
The writer of this type often uses third-person narration throughout to make it more interesting for readers.	Autobiographies are written in ‘first-person’ narrative to write down their story.
Aims to narrate all the achievements and turning points of someone else.	Its purpose is to self-narrate all successful moments and downfalls.

Key Elements of a Good Autobiography

These are the main characteristics of an autobiography:

It always presents the facts in a 1st-person narrative.
More detailed & subjective than a biography.
Discusses the life of the character in much detail.
It also tells the reason behind the actions of the main character.

Popular Examples of Autobiographies and Biographies

Here are many examples that you can read and use samples for writing your stories:

Autobiographies

The famous autobiographies include:

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank
The Story of My Life by Helen Keller
I Am Malala by Malala Yousafzai
Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain
Long Walk to Freedom by Nelson Mandela
Born a Crime by Trevor Noah
M Train by Patti Smith
Not Yet by Wayson Choy
This Is Happy by Camilla Gibb
My Prizes by Thomas Bernhard

Biographies

The famous biographies include:

The Life and Times by Ronald William Clark
His Excellency: George Washington by Joseph J. Ellis and Einstein
A Beautiful Mind by Sylvia Nasar
Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo" by Zora Neale Hurston
Churchill: A Life by Martin Gilbert
E=mc²: A Biography of the World's Most Famous Equation by David Bodanis
Enrique's Journey by Sonia Nazario
Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo by Hayden Herrera
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

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Main Differences between & Autobiography

There are many key differences between autobiography and biography, some of them are:

Biography is the story of someone’s life written by some other writer. Autobiographies are usually written by the subjects themselves.
Biographies can be an interesting read whether or not you have permission to use the subject's life story. Autobiographics are self-written accounts, so they do not require any form of legal clearance before publication.
The information in a biography is based on the information collected from various sources. On the other hand, the information is narrowed down in an autobiography.
Autobiography uses first-person pronouns, whereas biographies use third-person pronouns.
Biography aims to provide readers with an in-depth look into the life experiences of a person, whereas in an autobiography, the author simply writes about themself.

Autobiography vs Biography vs Memoir

The story of one's life is an interesting and captivating read, but how can we not put it in writing? Memoirs are just like autobiographies and they are also written by the person himself.

Memoirs are a great way to explore your life and memories from every angle. You can go back in time with these written accounts, or look at how you felt about certain events when they happened because there is no limit on what type of memory an author could choose for their memoir.

Memoirs are a unique form of literature that offers the reader an immersive and detailed look into one person’s life. On the other hand, biographies provide more information about someone than just their story; they often include background details to help paint context for what you're reading.

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Comparison Chart-Autobiography vs Biography vs Memoir

Biography	Autobiography	Memoir
Narrates the account of a person’s life	Tells about life of one’s own self.	Talks about specific times and events of a person.
Uses third-person point of view	Person’s life story written in first-person point of view	Person’s life written with a first-person point of view
Objective in nature	Subjective in nature	Subjective in nature
Information is collected from sources	Tells motivation behind their actions	Memoir focuses on the exploration of the emotions
Restricted to only feelings and thoughts of the subject	Aims at feeling and personal thoughts	Focus on feelings, thoughts, reactions & reflections
It can be written at any time period	Mostly written in the latter years of life	It can be written any time period

The difference between an autobiography and a biography is often unclear. The two genres tend to be interchangeable, but there are some key differences you should know if your goal is writing of these.

When writing your own life story, it's important to take the time and make sure that you are telling a compelling tale in which readers can feel like they're right there alongside you.

We hope that this guide is helpful for you. In case, you need help writing these kind of books you can contact professional writers who provide writing help for these books.

Cathy A.

Natural Sciences, Life Sciences

Cathy has been one of our most reliable authors for more than five years. With extensive knowledge in mass communication gained from her Master's degree, she always produces high-quality work that meets the needs of her clients. In fact, they often leave her 5-star reviews for being an outstanding writer who is very passionate about her craft.