How can I edit my writing for free?

Wretify is a clean, minimalist writing app for nonfiction writers, built for focus — with an AI that has read everything you've written and refuses to write it for you.

The short answer

You can edit your own writing well without paying anything, in three steps:

  1. Put the draft away first. The University of North Carolina’s Writing Center suggests setting it aside for a few hours, days or weeks before you edit.
  2. Read it slowly, out loud. Reading aloud forces you to say every word, so you hear the missing, doubled and clumsy ones your eyes skip.
  3. Then run a free checker for what is left: the one built into Word, Google Docs or your browser, or the free version of Grammarly, Hemingway Editor, LanguageTool or ProWritingAid.

Why is it hard to see mistakes in your own writing?

Because you know what you meant to say, you tend to read that instead of what is on the page. A 1993 study found people caught fewer errors in their own essays than in essays by others (Daneman and Stainton, 1993); a 2022 study did not find a significant effect (Burgoyne and colleagues, 2022). Both agree on one thing: a real word used wrongly — their for there — is among the hardest errors to catch, and it is exactly the kind a spellchecker cannot see. That is why reading aloud still matters.

Which free editing tools are there?

  • Your browser’s spellchecker. Free in every text box. In Chrome’s basic mode your text is not sent to Google; enhanced mode sends it for better suggestions.
  • Microsoft Editor in Word, Outlook and the Edge browser: spelling and grammar free; clarity and conciseness suggestions need Microsoft 365.
  • Google Docs: spelling underlined in red, grammar in blue, in six languages, free with a Google account.
  • Grammarly Free: spelling, grammar and tone, plus 100 AI prompts.
  • Hemingway Editor: the web editor is free and highlights long sentences, passive voice and wordy phrases.
  • LanguageTool: the free web editor checks up to 2,000 characters at a time, in more than 30 languages.
  • ProWritingAid Free: grammar and style reports, 500 words per check.

What else can I do without software?

Print the page and mark it up with a pen. Change the font, size or spacing so the text looks unfamiliar. Edit in short blocks rather than all at once. Read the last sentence first and work backwards, so you see sentences instead of the story. Trace a pencil under each line. And ask someone else to read it. These come from the writing centres at the University of North Carolina and Purdue.

What should I check before pasting my writing into a free tool?

Where your text goes. Most online checkers send what you paste to their servers. Some say they never use it to train AI (ProWritingAid, Hemingway, LanguageTool); Grammarly’s policy says it may, with a control to switch that off. For an unpublished book, read the privacy page first — or use a checker that runs on your own device, such as Chrome’s basic spellcheck or Hemingway’s desktop app.

Is Wretify free?

No. Wretify is a writing app for nonfiction, with one plan at $7 a month or $45 a year; the first 1,000 writers get three months free. Its grammar pass fixes only what is broken, leaves your style alone and names each mistake so you learn it. Compare the editing tools →

Sources

  1. UNC Writing Center — Editing and proofreading — writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/editing-and-proofreading/
  2. Purdue OWL — Proofreading for errors — owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/the_writing_process/proofreading/proofreading_for_errors.html
  3. Daneman & Stainton (1993), Reading and Writing 5(3) — link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF01027393
  4. Burgoyne et al. (2022), Psychological Research — doi.org/10.1007/s00426-022-01699-3
  5. Chrome spell check — support.google.com/chrome/answer/12027911?hl=en
  6. Microsoft Editor — support.microsoft.com/en-us/word/microsoft-editor-checks-grammar-and-more-in-documents-mail-and-the-web
  7. Google Docs spelling and grammar — support.google.com/docs/answer/57859?hl=en
  8. Grammarly plans — www.grammarly.com/plans
  9. Grammarly (Superhuman) privacy policy — superhuman.com/legal/privacy-policy
  10. Hemingway Editor — hemingwayapp.com/
  11. Hemingway desktop app — hemingwayapp.com/desktop
  12. LanguageTool Premium (free limits) — languagetool.org/premium
  13. ProWritingAid pricing — prowritingaid.com/pricing
  14. ProWritingAid data safety — help.prowritingaid.com/article/14-is-my-data-safe-with-prowritingaid

Updated . Prices and features of other apps are taken from their own websites on that date and can change. Wretify is our product, so we have tried hard to be fair to the others. If something here is wrong or out of date, tell us and we will correct it.