Tool profile
Scribbr: cost, fit and limits
Scribbr is an online academic support service based in the Netherlands that sells per-document plagiarism checks for students, with a free preliminary report, a premium similarity report, a self-plagiarism check and a free AI Detector included with premium checks.
What to know first
Scribbr charges by document size rather than by subscription: $19.95 for up to 7,499 words, $29.95 for 7,500 to 49,999 words and $39.95 for 50,000 words or more. A free report flags plagiarism risk and top sources, while the paid report shows a similarity percentage and every matching source. The AI Detector and AI Proofreader are included with a premium check. Orders are deleted from the server after 12 months.
Scribbr at a glance
| Maker | Scribbr (legal entity name not stated on the pages read), Netherlands |
|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes |
| Entry price | $19.95 per check (up to 7,499 words) |
| API access | No |
| Category | Best AI Plagiarism Checkers in 2026, rank 6 of 13 |
| Website | scribbr.com |
Who Scribbr is best for
Thesis writers
One large document check at $39.95 covers a full thesis of 50,000 words or more, with no monthly commitment after submission.
Students who reuse earlier work
The self-plagiarism check compares a paper against previous assignments the student uploaded, which helps catch accidental overlap with an earlier course.
Writers who want a quick risk read
The free report needs at least 300 words and flags potential plagiarism with top sources, so a student can decide whether a paid report is worth it.
Users who work in Google Drive
Import from Google Drive plus Word and PDF upload means a student does not have to reformat a document before checking.
Scribbr plans and pricing
| Plan | Price | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Small document | $19.95 per check | One premium check for documents up to 7,499 words, including the AI Detector and the AI Proofreader at no extra charge. |
| Regular document | $29.95 per check | One premium check for documents from 7,500 to 49,999 words, with a precise similarity percentage and the complete list of matching sources. |
| Large document | $39.95 per check | One premium check for documents of 50,000 words or more, such as a full thesis, with the same report content as the smaller tiers. |
| Volume | Custom quote | Volume pricing on request for institutions that buy more than 50 plagiarism checks, arranged through a contact form rather than a public price list. |
Checked November 2026.
What Scribbr does
- Free plagiarism report
- The free report assesses plagiarism risk and lists top matching sources for documents of at least 300 words, but it holds back the percentage and full source list.
- Premium similarity report
- The paid report gives a precise similarity percentage and the complete list of matching sources, so a student can see where every flagged passage came from.
- Self-plagiarism check
- A paper can be compared against the student's own earlier uploads, which surfaces overlap with a previous assignment that a web-only scan would miss, such as a paragraph reused from last term.
- AI Detector and Proofreader
- A premium check includes the AI Detector, described as spotting AI-generated content such as ChatGPT output, plus an AI Proofreader that corrects spelling and grammar.
- Corrections in Word
- Spelling and grammar corrections come back in a Word document that can be downloaded, so changes can be reviewed and accepted in a familiar editor.
- Google Drive import
- Documents can be pulled in from Google Drive as well as uploaded as Word or PDF files, which saves a manual export before every check.
How Scribbr handles your data
The privacy policy says original and edited versions of a document are saved for 12 months on the secure server and then deleted automatically. Users can delete orders earlier from the account, and the terms say deleting an order is irreversible and removes the document from the server. An SSL connection is named. The pages read do not name a hosting region, a certification or any training use of documents, so the vendor's policy was not checked for those points.
Where Scribbr falls short in practice
- Pay for every check. Premium checks are bought one at a time, so a student who revises a draft three times pays for three reports instead of reusing a subscription.
- Free report is partial. The free report flags risk but hides the source details and the similarity percentage, so it works as a teaser, not as a usable check.
- No API or team tools. The pages read show no API, integration or team workspace, so a department that checks many documents has only the volume quote route, which needs a conversation with the vendor first.
Works with
Alternatives to Scribbr
Scribbr: common questions
How much does a Scribbr plagiarism check cost?
The pricing page lists $19.95 for documents up to 7,499 words, $29.95 for 7,500 to 49,999 words and $39.95 for 50,000 words or more. A currency switch exists and USD amounts are shown first. Institutions buying more than 50 checks can request volume pricing.
Is the Scribbr AI Detector free?
The page says the AI Detector and the AI Proofreader are included free with a premium plagiarism check. The homepage describes the detector as spotting AI-generated content such as ChatGPT output. Accuracy figures were not published on the pages read, so treat the result as a signal for review.
What does the free Scribbr report show?
The free report gives a plagiarism risk assessment and the top matching sources, and it needs at least 300 words. It does not show the precise similarity percentage or the full list of sources, which sit behind the paid premium report.
How long does Scribbr keep my document?
Original and edited versions are saved on the secure server for 12 months and then deleted automatically. You can delete an order earlier in your account, and the terms say that deletion is irreversible and removes the document from the server.
Can Scribbr compare my paper to my earlier work?
Yes. A self-plagiarism check compares the document against previous assignments that the student uploaded. It only works against files you uploaded to the service yourself, so it will not see work you wrote elsewhere unless you add it first. Keep that in mind for older coursework.