What is it?
The Readability Checker scores how easy your English text is to read.
Who is it for?
Bloggers, website owners, teachers writing worksheets, businesses writing customer messages, and anyone who wants writing that most people understand on the first read.
How to use it
- Paste an English text, at least a few sentences long, in Your English text.
- Read the scores: the reading ease (higher is easier), the school grade level and the fog index.
- Shorten long sentences and swap long words for short ones, then watch the score change.
The scores
- Flesch reading ease (0–100, higher is easier): 60–70 is plain English. Below 30 is very hard.
- Grade level: the school grade (US) needed to follow the text. 7–9 suits most readers.
- Gunning fog index: years of education needed; below 12 is good for a wide audience.
Make your text easier
- Keep most sentences under 20 words; split long ones.
- Choose short words: use, not utilise; help, not facilitate.
- Write in the active voice: “We sent the file”, not “The file was sent by us”.
The score looks wrong
Very short texts, lists without full stops, or text in other languages give unreliable scores. Paste at least a few full sentences in English.
Worked example
Before: “In order to facilitate the process of application, candidates are requested to ensure that all documentation is submitted prior to the deadline.” (23 words, many long words: score around 10–20, very hard.)
After: “Please send all your documents before the last date.” (9 words: score above 70, easy.)
Typical scores
- Children’s stories: 90+. Popular news websites: 60–70. Government notices and legal text: often below 30.
- For blogs and help pages, aim for 60 or higher, with an average sentence under 20 words.
Quick fixes that raise the score
- Split sentences joined with “and”, “which” or “so that”.
- Replace long words: purchase → buy, approximately → about, commence → start, utilise → use.
- Use lists for steps and options.
Limits
A high score doesn’t guarantee good writing: short sentences can still be unclear. Read your text aloud as a final test. Related: Word Frequency Counter
Tool: Readability Checker
Still stuck?
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Questions, or an error not listed here?
Tell us in the comments: what you were doing, the exact message you saw, and your device and browser. We read every comment and add new fixes to this article.