Last Updated on January 20, 2023 by Alex Birkett
Writing content of any kind takes a lot of effort and energy.
If you’re a digital marketer, content writer or SEO copywriter, writing is a major part (or maybe even the only part) of your work, and grammatical errors or spelling mistakes can throw all your hard work right down the drain.
Poor grammar can damage the credibility of blog articles, how-to guides, case studies, eBooks and other marketing resources. It can cause a loss of potential customers, reduce the quality of user experience and affect the growth of a business directly.
Proper grammar is imperative to the online success of any business.
The most popular grammar checking tool on the market right now is Grammarly, but it is far from the only one.
I’ll be highlighting eight Grammarly alternatives to help you decide which one will best suit your needs.
What is Grammarly?
Founded in 2009 and used by over 30 million people daily, Grammarly is an AI-powered proofreading and grammar checking tool used to detect punctuation mistakes and grammatical errors. These errors include bad sentence structure, syntax errors, subject-verb mismatch, etc. Grammarly also provides suggestions that can help your sentences read better.
Apart from the grammar and punctuation checker, Grammarly also consists of other tools to help users write better:
- A spell checker that helps users prevent and correct misspellings.
- A plagiarism checker that compares your content to about 16 billion articles on the internet to prevent duplication.
- A writing style checker that helps improve readability and ensure that your writing style aligns with the kind of audience you are trying to reach.
Pros of Grammarly
- Grammarly is very user-friendly.
- It boasts a high level of accuracy for checking spelling, punctuation and grammar.
- It is available for both desktop (Windows and Mac) and mobile (Android, iOS and iPadOS) devices.
- It is fast and checks errors in real-time.
- Grammarly comes with autosave and recovery features.
- It has a plagiarism checker.
- It works with many variations of the English language—American English, British English, Canadian English, Australian English, etc.
- Grammarly is available as a browser extension for popular browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge and Safari.
- Grammarly integrates seamlessly with other writing software like Microsoft Word, Google Docs and Medium.
- Grammarly constantly adds features to and improves on the software.
Cons of Grammarly
- Grammarly does not offer an offline editing option.
- The premium version can seem expensive, especially to users who don’t need all the extra features.
- There can be lags when editing large amounts of text.
- Grammarly only works in English.
The 8 Best Grammarly Alternatives
- Hemingway Editor
- Readable
- Linguix
- ProWritingAid
- PaperRater
- LanguageTool
- Ginger Software
- WhiteSmoke
While Grammarly is one of the best grammar checkers on the market right now, it isn’t for everyone. Fortunately, there are lots of other grammar checking tools that writers can choose from.
Below, I’ll give an overview of the features, pros and cons of the best Grammarly alternatives on the market (including free ones and those that are great for non-native English speakers).
Note: Although I personally use (or have used) Grammarly and some other alternatives on this list, I don’t have extensive experience with most of them. So I prepared a write-up with which I conducted tests on the tools that provide free plans/trials, and am basing this article on these tests.
1. Hemingway Editor
Image source: Hemingway Editor
Ideal for: Authors, bloggers, content writers and marketers
G2 Score: 4.9/5
Pricing: Hemingway’s web version is free. The desktop app costs $19.99 (one-time fee).
The Hemingway App is a writing and editing tool designed to help writers produce concise and polished content. It analyses the writing style of a writer and identifies common grammatical errors that reduce the quality of a piece of content. Some of the grammar errors Hemingway App focuses on are:
- Excessive passive voice
- Wordy sentence construction
- Overuse of adverbs
- Complex paragraphs
- Weak words/phrasing
I use the Hemingway App just as much as I use Grammarly to analyze my content. What I love most about the Hemingway App is that it separates the writing and editing functionalities, which allows writers to focus on writing first before editing. The Writing Mode is a distraction-free environment that allows writers to write without interference. While using Hemingway, a person can easily toggle between the writing and editing modes.
Hemingway’s Writing Mode
When you switch to the Editing Mode, most of Hemingway’s features get activated. Hemingway analyzes your content and highlights potential problem areas. No matter what Hemingway suggests, it is totally up to the writer to implement or ignore the advice. The editor app works with color-coded highlights. The different colors make it easier to identify the kind of error your content has.
- Blue Highlights indicate weak words, especially qualifiers or adverbs. It suggests improvements for bolder writing sans redundancy.
- Green Highlights denote the use of passive voice. Although active voice makes for more engaging writing, passive voice is sometimes appropriate. In this case, a writer can ignore the green highlights.
- Yellow Highlights point out rambling and complex sentences.
- Purple Highlights show complicated phrases or words that might confuse a reader. Typically, a writer is supposed to replace the convoluted words or phrases with simpler ones.
- Red Highlights indicate extremely wordy and complicated sentences that negatively influence readability.
Hemingway’s Editing Mode
Hovering over these color highlights will show you the kind of problem that has been identified. However, not all error types offer hints for fixes. You can remove adverbs easily (with the click of a button), but you have to change a sentence from passive to active voice by yourself.
In the sidebar, you can find the total number of suggested improvements, the readability score (calculated according to the Automated Readability Index) and word count. The counter also includes the average reading time, and the number of letters, characters, words, sentences and paragraphs in the text.
The free online version works for both Android and iOS. The desktop version supports MacOSx for Mac users.
Key features of Hemingway Editor
- Color-coded errors
- Write and Edit Modes
- Readability score
- Formatting features
- Import from and export to other writing platforms
Pros of Hemingway Editor
- Hemingway Editor is very easy-to use. You don’t even have to log in to analyze text.
- The software has a simple, but intuitive, interface.
- It has separate modes for writing and editing.
- It gives writers the choice to implement or ignore suggestions. There are no auto-corrections.
- It provides an estimated reading time, which helps writers explore reader engagement.
- Writers have the option to write and edit in the desktop app and export it directly to WordPress as a draft.
- The offline editor helps writers edit their work anywhere they are.
- There are no word limitations in the web editor.
Cons of Hemingway Editor
- It is not a spelling or grammar checker.
- With the free version, writers cannot save or import their work.
- Most highlights don’t offer suggestions on how to fix the identified problem.
2. Readable
Image source: Readable
Ideal for: Authors, bloggers, copywriters and marketers
G2 Score: 4.5/5
Pricing: Readable offers a free trial. Paid plans start at $4/month, billed annually.
Readable is a content marketing tool that helps businesses optimize their content by scanning and scoring the readability of their web content. This score checker shows how readable your content is on a scale of 0 to 100.
Apart from businesses (marketers), Readable is also designed to help writers (including authors, accountants, marketers, copywriters, doctors, lawyers, and teachers) improve the readability of their content and boost sales. A higher score (70 and above) means that most readers would be able to easily read and understand your content. A score lower than 60 means that your text needs to be tweaked to be more readable.
Readable is powered by powerful algorithms that allow it to deliver scoring results quickly. These algorithms include Flesch Reading Ease, Automated Readability Index, Gunning Fog Index, SMOG Index, Coleman-Liau Index, IELTS and CEFR, Spache and New Dale-Chall, etc.
Readable analyzes the readability of a piece of text and suggests the best ways to improve on it so that readers would engage better. It utilizes factors like average word length, word familiarity, syllable count, sentence length, and sentence structure to calculate accurate readability scores. This software also highlights long words, long sentences, and passive voice usage, allowing writers to tweak them accordingly.
There is no limit to what you can analyze with Readable. The app has the tools you need to score text, Word docs, emails, HTML/web pages, individual URLs, PDF, eBooks, and bulk scoring. It can easily examine an entire website and identify content that needs optimization along with ways they can be fixed.
Readable does not only measure the readability of content. It also examines keyword density and text quality to show you a range of statistics that can make your content easier to understand. It also provides comprehensive reports with a breakdown of the major points.
Although Readable has a lot of strong points and features, it lacks some advanced facilities that are generally present in genuine writing tools.
Key features of Readable
- Website scoring
- Readability scoring
- Readability API
- Email scoring
- URL analysis
- Bulk scoring
- Keyword density
- Readability reports
Pros of Readable
- Readable has a clean and simple interface.
- Writers can import and export documents as different file formats like Doc, PDF, HTML or text spreadsheet.
- Readable can scan and score emails, individual URLs and whole websites.
- Because Readable is web-based, users are not required to download an app before use.
- Readable’s customer support is courteous and satisfactory.
- Readable supports web-based, Windows and Mac devices.
Cons of Readable
- With Readable, writers cannot make and save different versions of the same content.
- Readable does not have a storyboard or writing template. Users cannot create their own writing templates either.
- Readable does not allow users to share files directly from the app or collaborate with others on a project.
3. Linguix
Image source: Linguix
Ideal for: Solopreneurs, marketers and large businesses
G2 score: 4.5/5
Pricing: Linguix offers a free version for basic spelling and grammar checks. Paid plans start at $8/month, billed annually.
Developed by linguists, professional writers and language technology experts, Linguix is not your typical grammar checking tool. It is a smart writing and editing assistant that uses artificial intelligence and machine learning technology to help users adequately optimize their content. It is designed to improve the users’ writing standards and enhance their writing quality in all aspects.
Although it has the conventional spelling and grammar checkers, Linguix does more than check for spelling and grammatical errors. Its powerful AI and algorithms learn the tendencies, writing style, structure and word choices of each user. It sets the test against more than 2,000 rules on context and provides the user with smart recommendations to improve their writing. Linguix’s premium version offers tools such as templates and performance statistics, which helps users ensure that their writing is shown to the right audience.
Immediately after signing up, Linguix will ask about the purpose of your writing and will also ask you to select the areas you think you need help with when it comes to writing. This process helps you personalize your service even before you start scanning anything.
Users can set the tone of the text and utilize the Helper function to help them write a document that will sound more exciting or calming. After you have done this, you will have a list of flagged errors—redundancy, spelling mistakes, stylistic issues, etc. You can hover over the mistakes and fix them by accepting Linguix’s suggestions. You can also add words into your personal dictionary. These words are those that you commonly use but cannot be found in a conventional dictionary. Once these words are in your personal dictionary, Linguix will make an exception to them.
After scanning a document, Linguix notifies users of grammatical errors in their text and provides multiple suggestions on how to fix them. It also supplies synonyms and phrases as well as corrections of spelling mistakes and removal of typos, poor phrasing, and wrong sentence structures.
Partnering with CopyLeaks, Linguix lets users quickly check their document against its database of billions of web articles. It will show which sentences or paragraphs were copied and the source from which they were lifted.
Linguix can be used to analyze any kind of write-up, be it personal, professional or academic. It is a wonderful tool for people who write blog articles, social media posts, convincing personal opinions and essays. It’s also great for professional writers who want their expertly-crafted articles to be free of types and elementary errors.
Key features of Linguix
- AI-powered patterns
- Online handbook
- Ready-made templates
- Chrome extension
- Performance statistics
- Context-based recommendations
- Personal editor via Linguix.ai
- Team collaboration
Pros of Linguix
- Linguix’s user interface is clean, minimalistic and intuitive.
- Users get access to a wide range of writing templates.
- Users can measure the performance statistics of their text.
- Linguix is affordable.
- It provides English webinars and vocabulary tests that help writers improve their English and writing skills.
- Linguix offers integrations with browsers like Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Edge.
- It provides an Android and iOS keyboard.
Cons of Linguix
- Linguix’s plagiarism checker is not free and, if you get on the premium license, it’s not included in the license either. You have to buy credits to use it.
4. ProWritingAid
Image source: ProWritingAid
Ideal for: Bloggers, content writers, novelists and entrepreneurs
G2 Score: 4.4/5
Pricing: ProWritingAid offers a free trial. Paid plans start at $20 for monthly subscription.
ProWritingAid is a writing assistant and grammar checker that helps clean up all kinds of written content by identifying grammar and spelling mistakes, contextual errors and plagiarized content. It allows writers to erase errors, fix grammatical and punctuation mistakes, and optimize their articles.
Although ProWritingAid can be used to analyze any type of written content, it really shines when it comes to fiction writing. I write crime fiction and short stories, and use ProWritingAid to analyze my prose. Every time I use this software, I’m blown away by how it highlights vague or incorrect text and suggests a ton of improvements. It scans for vague wording, passive voice usage, repetitiveness, overuse of adverbs, complex sentence constructions, sentence length variations and many more.
ProWritingAid has a built-in Word Explorer that helps writers find the right words to convey their message clearly. This feature contains a Thesaurus, dictionary, collocation dictionary, reverse dictionary, alliteration dictionary, cliché dictionary, contextually related words, and examples from songs, poetry and prose. These functions improve readability of text and help to expand a user’s vocabulary as they explore different words and phrases.
ProWritingAid offers style and grammar check scores in real-time. It provides comprehensive explanations of flagged errors and suggests corrections to enable writers to easily learn how to improve on their content. This application is especially helpful for students in writing assignments because it has a plagiarism checker that identifies sentences that were plagiarized and the links from which those sentences were copied.
Key features of ProWritingAid
- Word Explorer
- Plagiarism checker
- Detailed explanations
- In-depth reports
- Contextual Thesaurus reports
- Seamless integrations with other writing platforms
Pros of ProWritingAid
- ProWritingAid provides accurate readability and grammar recommendations.
- It conforms to your writing style (casual, formal, academic, etc.)
- ProWritingAid suggests 20 different reports to improve the specific writing concerns of different writers.
- It comes with browser extensions for Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari, and Edge.
- It integrates seamlessly with writing software like MS Word, Google Docs, and Scrivener.
- ProWritingAid’s premium version supports both Windows and Mac devices.
Cons of ProWritingAid
- The free plan is limited to 500 words for extensive reports.
- Users need to be on the premium plan to use the plagiarism checker.
- Although ProWritingAid provides thorough insight into your work, it cannot replace a real editor or mentor.
5. PaperRater
Image source: PaperRater
Ideal for: Students, teachers, writers and online marketers
G2 Score: 4.4/5
Pricing: PaperRater offers a free plan. Paid plans start at $7.95/month, billed annually.
PaperRater is an AI-powered proofreading software that helps writers improve the quality of their text. This tool makes use of Natural Language Processing, Data Mining, Information Retrieval, Machine Learning and Computational Linguistics to check for spelling and grammar mistakes, and to scan content for plagiarism.
While PaperRater can be used to scan any type of writing including blog articles, professional documents and social media copy, it was mainly designed for students (writing assignments, academic essays, etc.).
To scan content, you can type, copy-paste or upload it into the open field on PaperRater’s website. PaperRater gives users the option to indicate the type of content submitted—articles and reviews, essays and stories, business correspondence, etc. There is also an option to indicate the educational level of the writer of the content, ranging from 1st grade to post-graduate students. These specifications allow the tool to make amendments that align with the needs of the writer.
PaperRater’s grammar and spelling checker will analyze the content, identify mistakes and suggest changes in real-time. It also instructs writers as to why it is important to tweak specific parts of their content. Because PaperRater is designed with advanced technologies (AI and data science), it can deliver results in less than 15 seconds without compromising on the proofreading.
Apart from being a writing aid and proofreader, PaperRater is also a plagiarism checker tool. This feature uses the search indexes of all major search engines to extensively scan content and identify copied work. It shows the percentage of plagiarized text and the links from which the duplicated content was lifted.
Personally, I would not trust PaperRater’s plagiarism detector. In the piece I scanned, I made sure to include some text that has already been published on another blog just to see how well the tools with free plagiarism checkers performed. As you can see in the image above, PaperRater evaluated the text and estimated that it is 100% original – which is 100% untrue. Just a heads up in case you decide to go for this tool.
There is also a premium Vocabulary Builder tool that helps users learn more complex words and how to use them properly. This feature is great for people and students who may not be very familiar with the English language.
Key features of PaperRater
- Vocabulary builder
- Automated scoring
- Unlimited total submissions
- Premium-only modules
- Grammar exercises
- Advanced plagiarism detector
Pros of PaperRater
- PaperRater delivers scan results very quickly. Grammar and sentence structure checks take 15 seconds, while plagiarism checks take about 30 seconds.
- PaperRater accurately identifies big spelling errors and tense issues.
- Since PaperRater is web-based, users are not required to download any app or software to use it.
- Users don’t need to sign up or log in to use PaperRater.
- PaperRater’s customer service is available on all work days during work hours.
Cons of PaperRater
- PaperRater’s website is filled with ads that can be misleading.
- While PaperRater is great for academic writing, it is not very good for conversational writing styles.
- PaperRater follows AP style so it might not be ideal to use if your content is written in a different grammar style.
- PaperRater can only be accessed via the website. There is no mobile or add-on function.
- Free users can perform only 10 plagiarism checks per month and each check must not be longer than 1,500 words.
- PaperRater does not allow users to export their plagiarism reports as a PDF.
6. LanguageTool
Image source: LanguageTool
Ideal for: Non-native English speakers and writers
G2 Score: 4.2/5
Pricing: LanguageTool offers a free forever plan. Premium plans start at $2.46/month, billed annually for individual users.
LanguageTool is an online grammar solution and proofreading tool used by individuals and businesses to fix grammatical problems in their text or articles.
One thing that sets LanguageTool apart from other free Grammarly alternatives is its ability to detect spelling errors, grammar mistakes and writing problems in different languages including English, French, Spanish, Dutch, German, Polish and Russian. It also considers variations of languages. For example, LanguageTool acknowledges the differences between American and British English when it scans content for grammar and spelling errors.
With LanguageTool, users can add words to a customizable personal dictionary. These words are those that are commonly used by the user but cannot be found in a conventional dictionary. Once these words are added to the dictionary, LanguageTool will exclude them from the spelling and grammar rules it applies to the text.
LanguageTool can be used as a web browser extension for Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome. It can also be used as an add-on for Microsoft Word, Google Docs and LibreOffice. This tool also provides keyboard shortcuts to help users proofread their text faster.
Key Features of LanguageTool
- Personal dictionary
- Multi-language support
- Add-on and browser extensions
- Ruled-based corrections
- Enable and disable rules
- Keyboard shortcuts
Pros of LanguageTool
- LanguageTool has a clean, easy-to-navigate interface.
- LanguageTool’s grammar checker is pointedly accurate.
- It can detect grammar and spelling errors in over 20 languages.
- The free version includes a limit of 20,000 characters per check, which is high compared to other Grammarly alternatives.
- While the free tool helps users to write more clearly, the premium plan is extra concise and precise.
- LanguageTool has developed many plugins and add-ons for programs like Android and CheckMate.
- LanguageTool has an accessible forum that is filled with helpful content.
Cons of LanguageTool
- LanguageTool does not have a plagiarism detector.
- LanguageTool does not detect the uses of passive voice.
- It does not list the style guide it uses to analyze text.
7. Ginger Software
Image source: Ginger Software
Ideal for: Non-native English speakers and writers
G2 Score: 4.1/5
Pricing: Ginger Software offers a free plan. Premium plans start at $6.99/month, billed biannually.
Ginger Software is a grammar and spell checker tool that helps writers polish their content and improve their writing style by making corrections and suggestions as the user types. This is to help them immediately fix their mistakes and save some time with the editing process.
This tool is designed with intelligent algorithms that ensure that text corrections are based on the context of the sentence rather than on individual words. Analyzing the context of a sentence before making suggestions allows Ginger Software to make accurate and precise corrections.
Ginger Software also gives users access to a tool that allows them to rephrase their sentences in different kinds of ways to avoid repetitiveness. There is also a dictionary at hand that enables writers to check whether the word they’re using in a phrase or sentence is contextually appropriate.
In addition to correcting mistakes, Ginger Software also gives users access to its learning center so that they can have tailored training to improve their English skills. Their progress is also tracked to keep them motivated in increasing their knowledge.
For users who speak a language different from English, Ginger Software makes it easy for them to analyze their content as it can translate text to over 60 languages.
Features of Ginger Software
- Grammar checker
- Punctuation checker
- Spell checker
- Dictionary
- Personal trainer
- Mistake practice
- Error analysis
- Translation
- Sentence rephrasing
- Text reader
Pros of Ginger Software
- Ginger Software is very easy to install and use.
- Unlike many other Grammarly alternatives, this tool does not impose any limits on premium users.
- Ginger Software has an abundance of language diversity as it offers its services in more than 60 different languages.
- Ginger Software can be downloaded directly into Chrome or Safari web browsers.
- It integrates well with programs like Gmail, Outlook, Microsoft Office (entire suite), Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.
- Ginger Software can be used on Android and iOS gadgets.
- It has a desktop app that can be installed on both Windows and Mac operating systems.
Cons of Ginger Software
- Ginger Software does not have a plagiarism checking tool.
- Free users are only allowed to do 14 scans per month.
- Ginger Software does not provide reports on the issues identified within a text.
8. WhiteSmoke
Image source: WhiteSmoke
Ideal for: Non-native English speakers and writers
G2 Score: 4.0/5
Pricing: WhiteSmoke does not offer a free plan or free trial. Paid plans start at $3.47/month billed triennially (for three years), and $5.00/month, billed yearly.
WhiteSmoke is a full-featured grammar, writing and plagiarism checker that is accessible on web, desktop and mobile. Widely considered to be one of the best Grammarly alternatives around, WhiteSmoke works with Natural Language Processing, an advanced technology that uses AI and algorithms to analyze text and search for grammatical and contextual errors.
The grammar checking tool and punctuation checker searches for common grammatical errors such as run-on sentences, fragments, double negatives, incomplete sentences, subject-verb disagreements, tense shifts, comma splices, capitalization, object clauses, spelling mistakes, misused words, missing words, fused sentences, and punctuation errors, amongst others.
When you paste your content into the blank form in WhiteSmoke’s interface, the system immediately begins to underline mistakes, make corrections, and tell you what types of mistakes it has identified. It uses a color-coding system to highlight each kind of mistake—red indicates spelling mistakes, green denotes grammatical error and purple shows that there is a stylistic issue.
In addition to offering suggestions and corrections, WhiteSmoke also gives text and video tutorials that explain the errors and corrections to the users. This is probably my favorite WhiteSmoke feature because it helps users to better understand the process of creating quality content. It also improves the users’ understanding of English and its applications.
WhiteSmoke also has a reporting system that gives users an outline of the mistakes and corrections in the test. If the user is a corporation, WhiteSmoke will provide custom-made applications tailored to the corporation’s specific business needs to help them improve their correspondences and project a more professional image in their markets.
Key features of WhiteSmoke
- Translation
- Dictionary
- Video tutorials
- Document and letter templates
- Text enrichment
- Error explanations
Pros of WhiteSmoke
- WhiteSmoke is available on both Windows and Mac devices.
- It has a native application available for both Android and iOS devices.
- The Pro version of WhiteSmoke’s mobile app comes with a translator that can translate 55 languages on the go.
- WhiteSmoke provides users with over 100 ready-made templates for letters and documents.
- WhiteSmoke’s plagiarism is accurate and can hold its own when pitted against Grammarly.
- WhiteSmoke works with web browsers like Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Opera and Microsoft Edge.
Cons of WhiteSmoke
- WhiteSmoke’s desktop application has a search limit of 10,000 characters. This means that if you need to scan a long piece, you have to run several scans. This, however, does not apply to the web-based application.
- Essential and premium plan users only get a license for one computer. The most expensive plan comes with only three licenses, which is very limited.
- It can be a bit difficult to find the plagiarism checker on the desktop app.
- The customer support can be really slow at times.
Did you find the best Grammarly alternative for you?
Grammarly is great, no doubt, but there are several other writing assistants that are equally as good. Depending on your specific writing needs, you might even find some of these tools to be better than Grammarly.
If you are a fiction writer like me, then you might wanna check out ProWritingAid and Hemingway Editor. These tools are great for checking for spelling and grammar errors (ProWritingAid), and refining your writing style (both).
If you’re a student, however, and you need a writing checker tool to scan your academic essays and theses, you should look into PaperRater and ProWritingAid. If you need a reliable plagiarism detector, you might want to substitute PaperRater for Linguix. ProWritingAid’s plagiarism detector is good, too.
If you’re a non-native English speaker and you need a tool that can translate and/or check your content in a different language, LanguageTool, Ginger Software and WhiteSmoke are your best bets. They’re relatively easy to use and support tons of languages. Plus WhiteSmoke has a plagiarism checking tool to boot.
Readable and Linguix are great if you’re a content writer, copywriter, blogger, or marketer. Linguix also works really well if you have a large business.
At the end of the day, the Grammarly alternative you choose should be based on the kind of text you’re analyzing, your needs/goals, and your budget.