Readability
checker

A readability checker estimates how difficult text may be to read using features such as sentence length, word length and syllable counts. It can help you spot dense marketing copy, but it does not measure factual accuracy, usefulness, tone or how well the copy will convert.

Paste plain text or HTML into the checker, upload a plain-text .txt file up to 100 KB, or import a public webpage. The checker calculates scores automatically and highlights sentences that may be harder to read. Review the flagged sentences in context before editing.

The checker reports Flesch Reading Ease, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, Gunning Fog, Coleman-Liau Index, Automated Readability Index (ARI) and SMOG. These formulas use different combinations of sentence length, syllables, characters and complex words, so their estimates can differ.

For general customer-facing copy, a Flesch Reading Ease score of 60 or higher and a reading level around US grades 7 to 9 can be useful starting points. Choose a target for your actual audience. Technical or specialist content may need more complex language, and a high score does not guarantee understanding.

Flesch Reading Ease is a score where higher values generally mean easier reading. Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level estimates a US school grade, where lower values generally mean simpler text. They use related sentence-length and syllable measures but present the result on different scales.

The formulas and syllable estimates in this tool are designed for English. Scores for other languages can be misleading. Names, acronyms, numbers and unusual spellings can also affect English syllable estimates, so treat the results as guidance.

SMOG is intended for samples of at least 30 sentences. The checker can display a rough estimate for shorter text, but it flags that estimate as unreliable. Avoid treating a short ad or email's SMOG result as a precise reading level.

The checker gives specific suggestions for long sentences, common wordy phrases and clusters of longer words. Each suggestion quotes the affected sentence, explains what to review and, for listed phrases, offers a shorter alternative. Select Review sentence to find it in your text or the sentence map for HTML input. Edit the original yourself; suggestions update as you type. Preserve important details and necessary technical terms, and check that the meaning stays the same.

A readability score is not a promise of better rankings or AI citations. Clear, direct answers can make content more useful to readers, but search visibility also depends on relevance, accuracy, crawlability and other factors. Do not remove useful detail just to lower a grade-level estimate.

The checker is free and does not require an account. Pasted text and uploaded text-file contents are analyzed in your browser rather than sent to Scale for scoring. Webpage import sends the requested public URL to our server. Sharing the tool does not share your text or results.