Grammarly is an English grammar checking and editing software program that can be used via a website, browser extension, or app. It helps users improve their writing skills and reduce mistakes.
It can be used by professional writers, students, and casual authors. It checks for grammatical errors, vocabulary enhancement suggestions, and other issues. It also highlights adverb usages and passive voice.
1. PerfectIt
PerfectIt is a powerful tool for fine-tuning your writing. It helps you catch spelling errors and grammatical inconsistencies, and it can even suggest corrections. It’s also a great option for checking consistency and style, such as hyphenation, capitalization, italics, number use, and headings.
For instance, it can detect hyphenation inconsistencies between spaced and em dashes and between commas and semicolons. It can also ensure that your house capitalization rules are followed (e.g. ensuring that abbreviations are defined the first time they appear).
However, it’s not as comprehensive as Grammarly when it comes to editing. It can’t fix lengthy sentences or passive voice, and it’s not as accurate when it comes to addressing gender-neutral language. It’s also not as helpful in identifying the best tone for your writing project. The software is available online or as a Word add-on. It can be used on a desktop computer, Mac, or iPad. You can download a free trial version of PerfectIt to test its capabilities before you decide to buy it.
2. CopyScape
CopyScape is one of the best plagiarism checkers on the market. It works by scanning a piece of writing against other documents and content online to identify any duplicate text. It’s an essential tool for preventing plagiarism, especially since anyone can steal your content and claim it as their own with just a few minor changes.
Using CopyScape can help you catch plagiarists before they have a chance to harm your business by stealing your content and passing it off as their own. However, the free version of this service is limited in how many searches you can run and how many words you can search for.
If you’re a serious writer, it’s worth investing in the premium version of this software. It’ll save you time in the long run by cutting down on revision requests from clients and reducing the amount of content you have to scrape from the internet. Other great plagiarism checkers include OriginalityAI, ProWritingAid, and Quetext.
3. Turnitin
Turnitin is one of the most famous writing tools that lecturers use for checking uniqueness in student submissions. It works by matching the text in an assignment to text that is already in its database (from websites, journals and other students’ assignments). It then provides a report indicating how much of the submitted text has been matched and from what sources.
The tool can be used in conjunction with Microsoft Word and is compatible with all major browsers. It will highlight spelling mistakes, grammatical errors and punctuation marks using red and green underlines. It can also help you improve your vocabulary and grammar skills by providing suggestions on the correct usage of words.
It also offers a personal dictionary where you can add exceptional words that you frequently use such as location names, person’s name or any terms to allow the tool ignore these for future check-ups. However, it is quite expensive and may not be affordable for all writers.
4. Antidote
If you’re looking for a proofreading software that can also check for plagiarism, consider Antidote. This tool is a big competitor of Grammarly and offers a variety of features to improve your writing style. It can correct spelling mistakes, suggest the right pair of words, detect misused phrases, and check for wordiness. It also helps you avoid repetition and cliches.
The program is available in both web and desktop versions and works via a plugin in your browser. Its free version is limited in features, but its premium version offers more features and higher accuracy. Another feature is its ability to create a personal dictionary so that you can ignore certain errors in future. Its subscription price is also lower than that of Grammarly. It also claims to be more secure and private than Grammarly, but it’s important to note that these details are buried in their Terms of Service, which can change frequently. This may cause some users to feel uneasy.