Software advice
Best AI Grammar Checkers and Paraphrasers in 2026
AI grammar checkers and paraphrasers are software products that find spelling, grammar and punctuation errors in text you already wrote and offer corrected or reworded versions. They run as browser extensions, desktop apps or editor add-ins. They differ from AI writing generators, which produce new drafts from a brief, and from translation tools, which change language rather than wording.
Quick answer
Scribens is the pick for free, explained corrections. Sapling suits support teams that want published prices and an API, LanguageTool suits multilingual writers, and DeepL Write suits non-native writers who care about natural phrasing.
A person buying a grammar checker is choosing between catching mistakes and changing sentences, and the two are priced differently. Rule-based checkers explain each fix and suit learners and proofreaders. Paraphrasers rewrite for tone and fluency and tend to meter rewrites per day. This ranking judges fit for the proofreading job, how much of that job the free tier covers, what the paid tier costs per person, and what each vendor says about keeping and training on your text. Prices were read from vendor pages on 27 October 2026. QuillBot was left out because its site refused our requests, so nothing could be checked.
The 11 best AI grammar checkers and paraphrasers in 2026, ranked
There is no score. Vendors can pay for more visibility on this website, for example a higher place in a ranking or more room on a page. Commercial relationships can also affect which products we feature and how prominently. How we rank.
| # | Tool | Best for | Free plan | Entry price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Scribens | Students and occasional writers who want free correction with a written reason for every flagged mistake | Yes | Quoted |
| 2 | Sapling | Customer-facing teams and developers who want grammar checks plus an API and autocomplete snippets | Yes | Pro at $12 per month billed annually ($25 monthly) |
| 3 | Linguix | Individuals who want a mid-priced grammar and rewriting extension with typing shortcuts | Yes | Pro at $11.67 per month, billed $140 annually |
| 4 | LanguageTool | Multilingual writers, especially German, French, Spanish and Dutch, who want checks that do not train on their text | Yes | Quoted |
| 5 | DeepL Write | Non-native English and German writers who care about tone and phrasing more than rule explanations | Yes | Write Pro add-on at €6.99 per user per month, billed annually |
| 6 | Ginger | Users who want desktop, mobile keyboard and browser correction from one older, grammar-first product | Yes | Quoted |
| 7 | Hemingway Editor | Writers who want readability highlighting on long sentences and passive voice instead of exhaustive grammar rules | Trial | Quoted |
| 8 | ProWritingAid | Fiction and book authors who want line editing reports and story feedback next to grammar checks | Yes | Premium at €10 per month, billed yearly at €120 |
| 9 | Wordtune | Writers who mainly want sentence rewrites and summaries, with spelling and grammar included free | Yes | Advanced at $4.89 per month billed annually |
| 10 | Grammarly | Professionals who want one checker in the browser, desktop and mobile with plagiarism and AI detection on Pro | Yes | Pro at €12 per month |
| 11 | Paperpal | Researchers and students polishing manuscripts, citations and English before submitting to a journal. | Yes | Quoted |
- 1
Scribens
Scribens takes first place because the free edition is complete enough to judge on its own: it checks grammar in more than 40 languages and explains each mistake, which teaches as it corrects. Premium adds paraphrasing in 20 tones and a higher monthly capacity. It ranks above the household names on openness of the free tier, not on depth of style advice.
Strong on
- Free edition explains every flagged mistake with a rule, useful for learners
- Covers more than 40 languages from the same editor
- Extensions for Word, Google Docs, Gmail and browsers are listed on the homepage
Weak on
- Free use stops at 8,000 characters per day and the site carries advertising
- Premium price and company details were not visible on pages we could open
Skip it if: Companies that need a team dashboard, a shared style guide or a named legal entity and security documents. Free is capped at 8,000 characters daily; Premium allows 5 million monthly, price not shown.
- 2
Sapling
Sapling is second because it is one of the few checkers priced openly for both an individual and a ten-seat team, and it sells an API for embedding grammar checks. Pro adds advanced suggestions, rephrasing and unlimited snippets. It is aimed at support and sales writing more than at essays, which is why it does not sit higher for general users.
Strong on
- Published prices for Pro, Enterprise and API on one page
- Snippets and autocomplete suit repetitive customer replies and canned answers
- Works in Chrome, Google Docs, Outlook and Word, per the pricing page
Weak on
- Policy says content is stored and used to improve the service, with no retention period stated
- Chat assist is reserved for the Enterprise plan, not Pro
Skip it if: Long-form authors and students, who get little from support-oriented snippets and have cheaper free options. Pro is for individuals; Enterprise starts at 10 seats at $15 per seat per month; API usage is metered.
- 3
Linguix
Linguix sits third as a mid-priced alternative that keeps core checks in a free tier and gates advanced style, clarity and tone suggestions behind Pro. It also offers shortcuts for repeated phrases and a grammar API. The vendor's pages gave little about data handling or its location, which keeps it behind tools that publish more.
Strong on
- Free tier keeps grammar and spelling checks with a browser extension
- Pro adds clarity and tone suggestions plus unlimited typing shortcuts
- Ten-day refund window for new purchases is stated on the pricing page
Weak on
- Free paraphrasing and AI suggestions are described only as limited, without numbers
- Security and privacy pages could not be opened for this review
Skip it if: Buyers who need documented security controls or a clear data policy before a team rollout. The annual figure is billed once a year; no monthly rate appeared in the page text.
- 4
LanguageTool
LanguageTool ranks fourth for multilingual proofreading. Premium adds more than 20,000 extra checks for English, German, French, Spanish, Dutch, Polish and Portuguese, 150,000 characters per field and a custom style guide. Learneo's policy says it does not train on LanguageTool inputs. The missing price in our fetch and a general policy that allows training elsewhere hold it below the first three.
Strong on
- Language coverage is the main draw, with extra rule sets in seven languages on Premium
- Policy states LanguageTool inputs are not used for model training
- Add-ons for browsers, Word, Google Docs, LibreOffice and mail clients
Weak on
- Team style guide and dictionary need a Teams plan
- Premium price was not readable on the page we fetched
Skip it if: Writers who mainly want AI drafting or heavy rewriting rather than rule-based proofreading across languages. The Premium page loaded without prices in our fetch, so the amount is not given here.
- 5
DeepL Write
DeepL Write earns fifth place for people who write in a second language and want phrasing that reads naturally. Write Pro costs €6.99 per user per month on annual billing, and the vendor states that Pro data is never used for model training. It offers fewer explanations of why a change was made than rule-based checkers, so it suits rewriting better than teaching.
Strong on
- Pro text is excluded from model training, per DeepL's own FAQ
- SOC 2 Type II is listed on its security page
- Priced as a low add-on rather than a standalone subscription
Weak on
- Free-tier limits for Write were not stated on the pages we read
- Legal entity and headquarters were not named on the security page
Skip it if: Learners who want a grammar rule shown next to every correction, or teams that need a style guide. Write Pro is an add-on to Individual and Team plans, included in Business; VAT included.
- 6
Ginger
Ginger is sixth as a long-standing checker with more surfaces than most: Windows and Mac apps, Chrome and Edge extensions, iOS and Android apps and a grammar API. It also has a sentence rephraser and a translation tool. Prices and the privacy policy could not be read on the pages we reached, so it cannot be ranked above tools with documented terms.
Strong on
- Desktop, browser and mobile keyboard apps cover most places people type
- Includes a rephraser and a translation feature beside the grammar check
- API, business and education offers are listed separately
Weak on
- Plan prices were not shown on the homepage
- The privacy policy link did not load during our check
Skip it if: Buyers who must compare per-seat prices or review a data policy before purchase. The homepage advertises a 50 percent lifetime flash sale on Premium but showed no plan prices.
- 7
Hemingway Editor
Hemingway Editor ranks seventh because it does a narrower job than the others: Editor Plus highlights issues, checks grammar and adjusts tone, while the classic editor focuses on readability. It is quick to try, with a two-week trial and no card. The limited feature set and the absence of readable pricing or privacy pages put it mid-table.
Strong on
- Two-week Editor Plus trial needs no credit card
- Separate free grammar, paraphrasing, proofreading and readability tools are linked from the site
- Simple editor with little setup and no account needed for the basics
Weak on
- Paid price and privacy policy were not available at the URLs we tried
- Works as a standalone editor; integrations were not listed on the homepage
Skip it if: Teams that need extensions in mail and documents, shared style guides or an API. Editor Plus has a free two-week trial with no card; the paid price was not on pages we could open.
- 8
ProWritingAid
ProWritingAid sits eighth for general proofreading because its site now leads with a storytelling toolkit: planning, critique and manuscript analysis. The grammar checker and 25-plus writing reports remain, and a lifetime option exists. Business writers will find much of the plan aimed at novelists, and the free tier checks only 500 words at a time.
Strong on
- Premium offers a custom style guide and dictionary with unlimited line editing reports
- Lifetime and yearly options give a clear path to a low monthly cost
- Story-level critique and manuscript analysis go beyond sentence correction
Weak on
- Free plan checks 500 words at a time
- Much of the product now targets creative writing, not office documents
Skip it if: Office workers who mostly check emails and reports, since the added tools aim at novel planning and critique. Monthly billing is €30; a lifetime Premium licence is €399; Premium Pro is €12 monthly on a yearly plan.
- 9
Wordtune
Wordtune is ninth in a grammar-first ranking because its center of gravity is rewriting: Basic allows 10 rewrites a day, Advanced 30, and Unlimited removes the cap. Spelling and grammar checks are unlimited even on the free plan. The policy allows content to be used to improve AI21's services, which sets it behind vendors that exclude training.
Strong on
- Spelling and grammar checks are unlimited on the free Basic plan
- Annual prices start below $5 a month for the Advanced plan
- Business plans list SAML SSO and centralized billing
Weak on
- Policy lets AI21 use submitted content to improve its services; the opt-out described covers aggregated data only
- Rewrite counts are capped daily below the Unlimited plan
Skip it if: Privacy-sensitive writers and teams that need a guarantee that documents are excluded from model improvement. Unlimited is $6.99 per month on annual billing; monthly billing is $6.99 for Advanced and $9.99 for Unlimited.
- 10
Grammarly closes the ranking only because the biggest brands sit below challengers in this list, not because the product is weak. Pro adds full-sentence rewrites, tone adjustment, plagiarism and AI-text detection and 2,000 AI prompts, against 100 on Free. Its settings let you opt out of training on your content, and Enterprise adds data loss prevention and BYOK encryption.
Strong on
- Largest set of checks on the page: tone, rewrites, inclusive language, citations
- Opt-out of training is a documented account setting
- Enterprise lists custom roles and data loss prevention
Weak on
- Content may be used for training unless the Product Improvement and Training setting is switched off
- Free plan caps AI prompts at 100 a month
Skip it if: Buyers who want training excluded by default or who need a flat price with no prompt metering. The plans page showed €12 for Pro without stating the billing period; Free includes 100 AI prompts a month.
- 11
Paperpal
Paperpal is an academic writing assistant made by Cactus Communications that combines a grammar checker, paraphraser, citation tools, plagiarism checks and an AI detector for researchers. It ranks eleventh because its tuning for manuscripts is useful to a narrow group, while general writers get a heavier research-oriented toolset, and prices could not be read from the pricing page, which weakens comparison.
Strong on
- Pairs grammar and paraphrasing with citation styles, reference checks and pre-submission checks for papers.
- States that work is never used to train AI and that deleted files are not retained.
Weak on
- Plan prices and free-plan limits did not appear on the pricing page text opened.
- Works through Word, Chrome and Edge add-ins; no public API was found.
Skip it if: Business writers or marketers who want tone suggestions for emails rather than manuscript and citation support. The site offers a free start; paid plan prices were not readable on the pages opened.
How these AI grammar checkers and paraphrasers were judged
How accurate is an AI grammar checker on real text?
Accuracy depends on the language and the kind of error. Rule-based tools such as LanguageTool and Scribens flag fixed mistakes like agreement, homonyms and punctuation, and explain them. Rewriters such as Wordtune and DeepL Write change phrasing, so the test is whether your meaning survives. Vendors rarely publish comparable error-detection rates, and Scribens' claim of catching over 90 percent of mistakes is the vendor's own figure. Run the same three paragraphs, including one with technical terms, through two free tiers and count how many suggestions you would accept.
What does a grammar checker cost per person per month?
As of October 2026, prices run from free to about €12 a month for an individual. Wordtune Advanced is $4.89 on annual billing, DeepL Write Pro €6.99, ProWritingAid Premium €10, Linguix Pro $11.67 and Grammarly Pro €12. Sapling Pro is $12 annually or $25 monthly. ProWritingAid also sells a €399 lifetime licence. LanguageTool, Ginger, Scribens and Hemingway did not show readable paid prices in our fetches, so their cost is unknown here. Annual billing is the usual route to the lowest rate, and monthly billing can run two to three times higher.
Do grammar checkers store or train on the text I paste in?
Policies differ. DeepL says Pro text is never used for training, and Learneo says LanguageTool inputs are not used to train its models. Grammarly may use content for training unless you switch off Product Improvement and Training. Wordtune's policy lets AI21 use content to improve services. Sapling says content is stored and used to improve the service. Scribens says no text is saved on its servers. The remaining vendors' policies were not readable for this review, so check them before pasting contracts or client files.
How hard is it to switch from one grammar checker to another?
Switching costs are low because the product is a layer over your text, not a store of it. What you lose is a custom dictionary, a style guide and saved snippets. ProWritingAid, LanguageTool, Grammarly and Linguix each keep those on the account, and Sapling stores snippets, so export or rewrite them before cancelling. A lifetime licence such as ProWritingAid's €399 deal is the one case that ties money to a vendor. Most plans renew automatically, so note the renewal date when you buy annual.
Which grammar checker fits a student, a team or a non-native writer?
Students and occasional writers can start with Scribens or the free tiers of Wordtune and Grammarly. Non-native English writers get the most from DeepL Write, whose phrasing suggestions go beyond rule fixes. Writers in German, French or Spanish should test LanguageTool first. Support and sales teams that need snippets and an API should look at Sapling, and novelists at ProWritingAid. Anyone who only wants to make long sentences easier to read can try Hemingway Editor for two weeks without a card.
How to choose an AI grammar checker in three steps
- Decide whether you need corrections or rewrites. Write down what you do most. If you mostly fix typos, agreement and punctuation, pick a rule-based checker that explains each change, such as Scribens or LanguageTool. If you mainly reword sentences for tone, test DeepL Write or Wordtune. Many people use one of each. Knowing the job first stops you paying for rewrite quotas when a free grammar pass would do, or the reverse, and it also tells you which price cap, daily rewrites or characters, will limit you.
- Test the free tier on your own documents. Paste the same three real documents into each shortlisted tool: a plain email, a technical paragraph and a text in your second language if you write in one. Count suggestions you would accept and the ones that changed your meaning. Note the limits you hit, for example 8,000 characters a day at Scribens, 500 words at ProWritingAid or 10 rewrites a day at Wordtune. A tool that stops you halfway through a normal workday will not survive the trial, and a free tier that suits your volume tells you the paid tier may be unnecessary.
- Read the data policy before the first client file. Open the privacy or trust page of each finalist and look for three things: whether text is stored, whether it is used to train models, and how to opt out. Grammarly's opt-out is a setting, DeepL excludes Pro data, and Wordtune's opt-out covers aggregated data only. If a page is missing or unreadable, treat that as an answer and keep confidential material out until the vendor replies in writing. Ask the same three questions of every vendor so the answers can be compared side by side.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best AI grammar checker in 2026?
For free, explained corrections, Scribens is first in this ranking. Sapling is the pick for teams that want published seat prices and an API, LanguageTool for multilingual writers, and DeepL Write for non-native writers who want natural phrasing. The best choice depends on whether you want rule fixes, rewrites or team features.
Is there a free grammar checker with no sign-up?
Scribens lets you paste text and check it in the editor on its homepage, with a free allowance of 8,000 characters per day and advertising on the site. Sapling's free plan and Wordtune's Basic plan need an account. Check the current terms on each vendor page before relying on any free limit.
What is the difference between a grammar checker and a paraphraser?
A grammar checker finds errors against language rules and explains them. A paraphraser rewrites a correct sentence in different words, tone or length. Wordtune and DeepL Write lean toward paraphrasing, while Scribens and LanguageTool lean toward correction. Several products, including Scribens Premium and LanguageTool Premium, combine both.
Which grammar checker is cheapest for one person?
Among tools with readable prices in October 2026, Wordtune Advanced at $4.89 a month on annual billing and DeepL Write Pro at €6.99 are lowest. ProWritingAid Premium costs €10 on a yearly plan. Scribens, LanguageTool, Ginger and Hemingway did not show paid prices in our fetches, so compare them on their own pages.
Does Grammarly train on my writing?
Grammarly says it may use your content to train its models and improve its product unless you opt out. The opt-out is the Product Improvement and Training setting in your account. Enterprise customers should read the contract terms. Other checkers, including DeepL Write Pro and LanguageTool, state that inputs are not used for training.
Which grammar checker works best for languages other than English?
LanguageTool lists extra checks for German, French, Spanish, Dutch, Polish and Portuguese on Premium, and Scribens says it covers more than 40 languages. DeepL Write focuses on English and German phrasing. Test each with your own text, because vendors do not publish per-language accuracy figures.
Can a grammar checker be built into my own app?
Sapling sells a metered API, Linguix lists a grammar check API, Ginger offers a grammar API, and Scribens and LanguageTool list API products too. Grammarly, Wordtune and Hemingway did not show a general API on the pages we read. Compare per-request pricing and data retention before embedding anything.
Are AI grammar checkers safe for confidential documents?
Only if the vendor's policy says so for your plan. DeepL says Pro texts are not used for training, Scribens says it saves no text, and Grammarly offers an opt-out. Sapling stores content to improve the service. For contracts or client files, ask for written terms or use a tool that excludes training by default.