The World’s Best Grammar Checking Tools
I never correct anything I write. Seriously, I’m too lazy. Not condoning that, just being honest.
After spending 1234234 hours writing something the last thing I wanna do is go read it again, so I don’t. However, there is a new tool which lets you pretty much do nothing and get the result you want (finally)…
Check out the video I made below, and you’ll understand why 👇
Top Picks
- Best overall – Quillbot
- Best for actual writers – ProWritingAid
- Best for correcting tone & style – Hemingway Editor
- Best tool you didn’t know you had – Google Docs
- Honorable mention – WhiteSmoke
#1. Quillbot
Quillbot makes life easy. For years I’ve wanted Grammarly to let you correct all errors in one click, and for years they didn’t do it.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve used software only to find issues with it like that which just scream to me “the people making this software don’t f**king use it!!”. Grammarly is one of those tools. Quillbot is not.
Quillbot lets you correct all grammatical errors is one click. So nice.
You can also paraphrase parts that you don’t like and get a fresh take on the sentence / paragraph. And it’s been getting noticeably better over the time I’ve used it (~2 years).
- Recommended Reading: Quillbot Review
Hemingway Editor
I want to preface this section by saying that the Hemingway Editor should not be used as a standalone grammar checker. It features some very basic reports in terms of spelling and grammar and is mostly used as a style checker.
With that out of the way, I can safely say that this software is perfect for those who want to write better, not just more precise. The Hemingway Editor will tell you whether your sentences are difficult to read, very difficult to read, too long, or too complicated. It will highlight all sentences it deems aren’t good enough.
It also lets the writer know about the usage of passive voice which shouldn’t be overused in any text. With this software, you will be able to make clearer and shorter sentences that still explain the case in point.
Unfortunately, it does not offer advice or tips on how to improve your style. It’s up to you to change up the sentences in any way you see fit. This might not be enough for people who aren’t intricately familiar with the English language. Additionally, there are no in-depth writing reports so the feedback on your writing isn’t as detailed.
Still, this software is great as an addition to regular grammar checking software and can be used online for free. The paid version allows you to download a desktop app.
Features
- Free (Online) or $19.99 (Offline)
- Simple and clean design
- Predominantly a style checker
- Virtual writing tutor
Pros
- Cheap
- Perfect for people who want to enhance and grow their vocabulary
- Feedback on sentence structure
- Exceptional help when combined with grammar checking software
- Virtual writing tutor is very useful
Cons
- Not really an effective grammar checker
- Doesn’t have in-depth writing reports
- Copy/Paste method into the app; no formatting preservation
- The app doesn’t tell you how to fix or improve sentences; it’s up to you
WhiteSmoke
WhiteSmoke predominantly belongs to the online grammar checkers group. This is mainly due to the fact that the cheapest version only comes with web support. You’ll have to pay more if you want mobile and other format support.
Although this doesn’t sound ideal, it isn’t too big of an issue due to all the other features this software offers. Having a built-in bespoke translator with 8 (or 50+) languages is exceptionally useful for non-English writers.
It also comes with proofreading tools that will definitely aid any and all writers in their writing careers. Additionally, WhiteSmoke offers various templates that save both time and brainpower so you can focus solely on your writing. There are over 100 templates available for use.
All in all, if you’re on a tighter budget and want to use software that is relatively simple to use and helps with spelling and grammar, WhiteSmoke is the way to go. One caveat, however, is that there’s no true trial version to test out the software yourself.
Features
- Paid ($59.95 for Essentials, $79.95 for Premium, $137.95 for Business; all plans are yearly)
- Free version available on the web
- Browser support
- Mobile apps for iOS and Android
- Features a translator with 8 languages (premium has 50+)
- Various templates available for use (cover letters, thank you messages, grant proposals, etc.)
Pros
- Very affordable
- Loads of languages in the Premium version
- 100+ writing templates
- Fairly accurate
- Relatively easy to use
- Great for businesses and large-scale writers
Cons
- Somewhat slower than other grammar software
- Only 250 characters in the free version as a web app
- No monthly subscription option
- Essentials version doesn’t include mobile apps or other formats
Grammarly
Grammar checker Grammarly is the absolute classic choice of grammar software. It’s incredibly easy to set up and use, comes in two different versions (free and paid), and is very precise with its evaluations. Some ‘errors’ that it considers aren’t actual errors; this mainly happens with colloquialisms or specific writing styles.
The software itself can’t really understand context so it might occasionally offer fixes that would be grammatically incorrect. The free version is great if you’re on a tight budget and are confident in your skills, but it’s overall somewhat lackluster compared to other free grammar software.
However, Grammarly Premium is a completely different story. Purchasing the subscription enables you to use an unlimited number of plagiarism checks and that’s a pretty big deal for writers. It’s not easy pulling information you didn’t previously know and packaging it nicely so it doesn’t copy someone else’s work.
The premium version has everything you’d want from grammar software, plus it’s pretty versatile thanks to various types of integration. Still, some other grammar check apps do a better job with specific features than Grammarly which is why this free grammar checker (or paid!) is the best overall.
Features
- Free (or $11,66/month annual subscription, billed at $139,95)
- AI-Based grammar checker tool
- Personal dictionary
- Available on mobile
- Google Docs integration
Pros
- Versatile and precise
- Easy to use
- Vast network of integrations; specifically Google Docs and MS Word
- Premium version is jam-packed with features
- Ability to use human proofreading services
- Provides tips on improving vocabulary
- Finds and marks missing citations
- Infinite plagiarism checks with the premium version
Cons
- Free version is somewhat lackluster
- Suggestions to use commas where they naturally shouldn’t be
ProWritingAid
The ProWritingAid spelling and grammar software is an exceptional piece of work. Fiction and long-form writers will massively enjoy all its benefits, the main of which are the numerous writing style reports.
These reports help the writer understand certain mistakes that he made or help with improving vocabulary and writing style. Other information that can be found in these reports is grammatical errors, spelling errors, punctuation mistakes, and other detailed feedback about your text.
The free version (14-day trial) comes with certain limitations ie. the 500-word limit. Nonetheless, it can prove valuable in establishing whether you like the software or not. The premium version, however, turns into a great grammar checker app. Plus, it doesn’t cost a lot at all, especially for lifetime access.
Overall, the ProWritingAid grammar checker is a great choice and features integration with Microsoft Word. Definitely worth a try!
Features
- Paid ($20/month, $80 for a year, and $300 for lifetime access)
- Integration with Microsoft Word, Google Docs, Open Office, Scrivener, and Final Draft
- Browser plugin or standalone desktop app
- Document upload
- Free 14-day trial
Pros
- 20+ writing style reports to use and analyze your text
- Fairly cheap lifetime subscription
- Plenty of integration options
- Very accurate
- Perfect for fiction writers and Scrivener users
Cons
- Slower than other grammar software
- No mobile version is available
- Free trial features a limit of 500 words in the web app
Google Docs
Everyone knows about MS Word and Google Docs. I use Google Docs for various writing assignments thanks to its versatility and ease of use. It doesn’t have as many features as Word, but it’s still a handy little writing tool.
Both of these can help you check grammar and review the fixes offered. You can then choose to apply the suggested changes or make them yourself. It’s worth noting that none of these have detailed reports nor can detect style issues, sentence structures, or even proofreading.
Microsoft Word does offer some form of readability report but again, you’ll have to make all changes yourself. It also doesn’t highlight potential readability issues.
Still, these work best as your main writing platform. You can easily fix some basic grammatical mistakes and use a different grammar checker for everything else. Up to you!
Features
- Free (Microsoft 365 package costs $6.99/month)
- Available online or as a desktop app
- Typo detection
- Readability report (in Microsoft Word); passive voice usage, reading ease, etc.
Pros
- Well-known and respectable software
- Google Docs is free and available online
- Microsoft Word is cheap
- Easy to use
Cons
- Only basic grammar rules and mistakes are reported
- No style checking is available
- Grammar checking is limited to the software (cannot be used elsewhere)
- Can slow down writing due to constant start-stop process
- Slower than a dedicated grammar checker
GrammarChecker
This piece of software is one of the simplest grammar checkers you can find. It doesn’t come with any advanced features and isn’t really filled with them. However, it is very easily accessible and completely free.
Even with the lack of features, it’s still able to distinguish and highlight various grammar mistakes and writing improvements, although it fixes all of these automatically. The developers have said that this improves SEO although some writers might find it annoying, especially those that like to manually make edits to their work.
It can also come in handy to non-English writers since the web app has support for a couple of other languages.
There’s not much else to say about this – you can use it whenever and won’t need to worry about extra features being locked behind a paid version.
Features
- Free
- Automatic rewriting
- Multi-language support
Pros
- Free to use
- Can check grammar mistakes, spelling, punctuation, and style errors
- Supports a couple of different languages
Cons
- Not as accurate as other grammar analysis software
- Automatic rewriting isn’t as good as it sounds
- Only accessible on web
Reverso
Reverso might not be a plagiarism checker or proofreading software, but it’s a pretty great online grammar checker. This app is powered by Ginger Software, hence its support for many languages. It’s a great choice for non-English speakers who want free software to improve their writing.
Writers also have the choice of getting the Reverso mobile app which is convenient and easy to use when you’re in a rush and don’t have access to a computer. You can also install it as a Google Chrome plugin.
One inconvenience writers will face is that Reverso has a limit of 600 characters which – let’s face it – is not a lot. Nonetheless, it’s pretty useful for shorter text such as Emails or social media posts. An impressive feature of this free online grammar checker is the ability to read the definition of a word and find its synonyms.
So if you’re looking for a free grammar checker with a satisfactory number of features – Reverso is a great option. Though, you might have to have some patience with it because it isn’t one of the faster grammar analysis programs out there.
Features
- Free
- Online translation, grammar analysis, and spelling checker
- Supports a couple of different languages (Reverso is powered by Ginger software)
- Mobile app (iOS and Android)
- Word definitions and synonyms
Pros
- Mobile app is easy to use
- Great for non-English speakers
- Free!
- Based on Ginger, one of the best, if not the best grammar checker
Cons
- Somewhat slow
- Lacking in features compared to other grammar analysis software
Ginger
The Ginger grammar checker is on par with Grammarly in terms of what is offered in the free version and the paid version. Ginger was created in 2007 by an Israeli startup, and over its 14 years of existence, it has been steadily improved.
Non-English speakers and writers will be happy to know that Ginger supports more than 60 languages; not a small number by any metric. It’s also packed with various abilities to check spelling errors and other writing issues.
It also comes with a built-in translator so you can quickly and easily translate your text from and to any of the 60 supported languages. The free version is limited to 350 characters which is quite low but if you sign up for Ginger, you’ll get access to the Google Chrome extension – also for free!
Additionally, you can enhance your mobile phone or tablet writing by using the Ginger Keyboard; an app that can check for spelling mistakes in Emails, texts, and social media posts. Unfortunately, Ginger doesn’t work with Google Docs yet.
The downsides are that the free version doesn’t show detailed feedback about your errors. Also, the steps you’ll need to take to fix your text are unintuitive (hover over the highlighted text, click to accept or reject the error, and then make the edits yourself if you reject).
Features
- Free (or $13.99/month, $89.88/year, $167.76/2 years)
- Support for 60+ languages
- Mobile app available (Ginger Keyboard)
- MS Word support
- Personal dictionary
Pros
- Incredibly flexible and versatile
- Massive language support
- The free version also comes with a virtual writing tutor
- Free version is very powerful in and of itself
- Great for non-English writers
Cons
- Free version is limited to 350 characters
- Lack of support for Google Docs
- Some issues with accuracy
- Mac app is not as good
Buyer’s Guide For Grammar Checker Software
There are certain aspects of grammar checkers that you should look out for before making a definitive choice about which one to use. These will help you decide on the one that will fulfill your needs.
Paid Vs Free
The first feature you should look at is the price. Well, rather, if the grammar checker is free or not. The best grammar checker doesn’t have to be the premium version; in fact, some of the most popular ones are free.
A free grammar corrector is almost always completely focused on just one thing – grammar check, or sentence structure, or proofreading, etc. Still, these are fairly precise in what they do so they are definitely useful.
The issue with free software is that usually it doesn’t cover advanced grammar nor support multiple languages. Premium grammar checkers are packed with features and in most cases, all of this comes with the premium version.
So, if you’re unwilling to pay for one or don’t have a use for their advanced features, a free proofreading tool and grammar checker will be enough. Just keep in mind that some grammar checkers have a limited word count.
Ease Of Use
The best grammar analysis software should be simple enough to use to not take up time from the writer. They also need to be easy to install and prepare for use. Luckily, most grammar software today, especially online grammar checker tools, are a piece of cake to use.
With that said though, you shouldn’t disregard grammar checker tools that are difficult to prep simply because of that. On top of that, if you want features such as word processing software or a contextual spell checker, it might take some getting used to.
Features
Although the ‘required’ features differ from writer to writer, there are still a couple of important ones that all of the best grammar checking software must have. Here are a couple of grammar check features that are useful and a certain necessity for writers:
- Spelling checker
- Plagiarism checker
- Passive voice recognition
- Subject-verb agreement
- Grammar check
- Advanced grammar checking
Make sure to take some time to decide what you want from grammar-checking software before making a choice.
How To Use A Grammar Checker And Proofreading Software
English grammar is sometimes confusing and difficult to understand for people who don’t speak it as a native language. As such, grammar checker tools can enable people to learn and improve their skills.
Simple proofreading tools and grammar software such as MS Word or Google Docs are useful, but simply don’t have the features to be leaders in the industry. But that’s okay; that isn’t their primary purpose.
A dedicated grammar checker does much more in-depth analysis and provides an expanded view of what should be fixed, as well as how. Here’s how to use a grammar checker to fix grammatical errors and improve sentence structure:
- Write a social media post, article, blog post, essay, email as you would normally
- Fix any spelling mistakes that you yourself notice
- Put the text into a grammar checker tool (if applies)
- Set the language to US or British English (or your native language if the software supports it)
- Review the highlighted grammar and spelling errors; Review suggestions
- Use a proofreading tool and plagiarism checker
- Fix all the new issues
This concludes the grammar evaluation process. Most, if not all, grammar checkers work the same way and follow the same process of reviewing mistakes and suggesting fixes.
Frequently Asked Questions About Grammar Checker Software
Why Do You Need A Grammar Checker?
You don’t necessarily need a grammar checker but it will make your life a hell of a lot easier. Writing can often require muscle memory and thinking ahead which means you will most likely skip some of the smaller details in your text.
As such, mistakes are fairly common whether they’re grammatical or punctuation-related. A good grammar checker will aid you in the writing process by looking out for these mistakes. You can then easily find and fix them after you’re done writing (or, if you prefer, during).
My personal experience with grammar checkers is that by using them, I can focus predominantly on what I write, not how I write it. This entire article had only a couple of mistakes that I fixed in mere minutes. That is the true power of grammar checking tools.
Does Using A Grammar Checker Slow Down The Writing Process?
Not at all! In fact, it speeds it up. The reason behind this is that you would have to manually go over the entire text and find the mistakes yourself. It’s even tougher if you’re looking for stylistic errors or incorrect localization issues.
Grammar tools speed up writing because all of this is done while you’re writing so you’ll waste no time on finding errors.
What Is A Great Grammar Checker?
Most people opt for Grammarly because of its versatility and precision. Grammarly can be used as a plugin which essentially means most of what you write (on most websites) will get checked and/or highlighted. It’s especially useful in Google Docs which is the main writing medium of a large portion of online writers.
Alternatively, Hemingway Editor comes in handy as a sort of ‘personal dictionary’ and provides you with a writing style report. Because of this, the Hemingway Editor is one of the best methods of improving your writing style and expanding your vocabulary.
Can You Use Grammar Checkers For Your Native Language?
Theoretically, you can if you speak a widely-spoken language, but in actuality, it might not be possible. The ability to use grammar checkers for your native language depends on the software itself so it’s best to find out beforehand if such an ability is possible.
Are Paid Grammar Checkers Worth It?
For smaller-scale writers, a free tool will be more than enough to cover all potentially problematic avenues. A grammar checking tool doesn’t need dozens of features to be great. Still, some free choices are limited by word count or provide you with just one or two features.
Journalists and book writers will find themselves at an impasse with free grammar software as they usually don’t offer enough function nor form for large-scale assignments.
Besides, a premium version grammar checker doesn’t cost much. Almost all of them are cheaper than $20 per month or even less than that as a one-time payment. It’s well worth investing in a spell checker. After all, spelling and grammar must be near perfect at the minimum if readers are to have a great time reading.
Does Grammar Software Feature Google Docs Integration?
The great thing about Google Docs is that spell checker browser plugins integrate pretty well with it. This lets writers have plenty of flexibility with their grammar checker choices. Additionally, Google Docs has a paid version that highlights grammatical mistakes itself, without a need for other grammar checkers.
So if you prefer to write online, without too much hassle with grammar checker setup, Google Docs is a great choice (or you can just use a separate grammar checker tool in Docs).
Final Thoughts
The various writing tools in existence don’t only make writing jobs easier but also help writers sharpen their skills. In today’s world, where blog posts or articles come out lightning fast – grammar checkers thrive.
They’re handy for all types of writers thanks to creating peace of mind. You won’t have to think about finding that spelling error or fixing simple punctuation mistakes because the software will do it for you.
I’ve been using grammar checkers for years to fix accidental grammar errors or spelling mistakes and personally – I couldn’t imagine writing without them. They’ve saved me numerous times by virtue of grammar suggestions and various improvements, plus, the time saved is priceless.
Hence, using a grammar corrector tool should be your top priority if you’re a writer. All you need is a great one that fits your style and needs.
