How to make your writing easier to read
Quick answer: To make your writing easier to read, paste your text, filter by Clarity and Style, shorten and simplify and aim for 60 or higher.
- Paste your text. The readability score and grade level appear right away.
- Filter by Clarity and Style. These show long sentences, hard sentences, wordy phrases, passive voice and adverbs.
- Shorten and simplify. Split long sentences, swap long words for short ones, and say who does the action.
- Aim for 60 or higher. A Flesch score of 60–70 is plain English that most adults read easily.
What the Flesch score means
Flesch Reading Ease rates text from 0 to 100 using average sentence length and syllables per word. 90–100 is very easy (a 10-year-old can follow it), 60–70 is plain English, and below 30 is very difficult, like academic papers. Most web pages, emails and marketing copy should aim for 60 or more.
Grade level
The Flesch-Kincaid grade estimates the US school grade needed to understand the text. Grade 8 suits a general audience, and many popular newspapers write around grade 6–9.
Hemingway-style tips
Keep most sentences under 20 words, and split anything over 30. Prefer active verbs (“we fixed it”) to passive ones (“it was fixed”). Cut adverbs and filler words like “very” and “really” when a stronger word does the job.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good readability score?
60 or higher on the Flesch Reading Ease scale is good for most writing. Technical or academic text often scores 30–50, which is fine for expert readers.
How is the grade level calculated?
With the Flesch-Kincaid formula: 0.39 × words per sentence + 11.8 × syllables per word − 15.59. Syllables are estimated from vowel groups, so treat it as a close guide.
Is this the Hemingway app?
No, but it highlights the same kind of things (long sentences, passive voice, adverbs) and adds spelling and grammar checks, for free and without uploading your text.