Readability Checker: make every page easy to read.
Paste any text to get your Flesch Reading Ease score, grade level and five other readability formulas instantly. Long sentences are highlighted so you can see exactly what to fix before you publish.
- 100% free, unlimited use
- 6 readability formulas in one
- Built by 300+ marketing specialists
Paste your text
0 wordsPaste a blog post, landing page, email or ad copy. Scores update as you type. Separate paragraphs with a blank line.
Flesch Reading Ease
Grade-level scores
Approximate US school grade needed to follow the text. Lower is easier.
Sentence length preview
Flesch score bands
| Score | Reading level | School level |
|---|---|---|
| 90–100 | Very easy | 5th grade |
| 80–90 | Easy | 6th grade |
| 70–80 | Fairly easy | 7th grade |
| 60–70 | Plain English | 8th–9th grade |
| 50–60 | Fairly difficult | 10th–12th grade |
| 30–50 | Difficult | College |
| 0–30 | Very difficult | College graduate |
Why readability matters for SEO and conversions
Readability is how easily someone can understand your writing on the first pass. Online, people skim. If a page makes them work, they leave, and they take their enquiry with them.
Search engines want to rank pages that satisfy the searcher, and clear pages tend to do that better: people stay, scroll and find the answer. No readability score is a direct ranking factor, but readable copy supports the things that are. It also lifts conversions, because a visitor who understands your offer quickly is far more likely to act on it. Use this readability checker to spot the dense spots before your readers do.
Six readability scores, what each one measures
Each formula weighs sentence length and word difficulty a little differently. Where they agree, you can trust the picture.
| Formula | What it uses | How to read it |
|---|---|---|
| Flesch Reading Ease | Words per sentence, syllables per word | 0–100. Higher is easier. |
| Flesch-Kincaid Grade | Same inputs, scaled to school grade | US grade level. Lower is easier. |
| Gunning Fog Index | Sentence length and share of 3+ syllable words | Years of education needed. |
| SMOG Index | Words of 3+ syllables, sampled over 30 sentences | Grade level. Needs 30+ sentences. |
| Coleman-Liau Index | Letters per 100 words, sentences per 100 words | Grade level, no syllable counting. |
| Automated Readability Index | Characters per word, words per sentence | Grade level, no syllable counting. |
Syllables are counted with a rules-based estimate, so scores can differ slightly from other tools. Passive voice is a pattern-based estimate too: use it as a prompt to review, not a verdict.
What readability score should you aim for?
Write for the reader you have, not for a number. Plain English (Flesch 60–70, roughly grade 8–9) is a widely used target for public-facing copy. Use it as a starting point and adjust:
Scores are a guide. A few long words that your audience knows (like "marketing" or "software") are fine. Clarity is the goal.
6 tips to write more readable copy
The edits our content team makes first when a page scores poorly.
Split long sentences
Start with anything highlighted red. One idea per sentence. "And", "which" and "because" are good places to cut.
Choose everyday words
"Use" not "utilise", "help" not "facilitate", "start" not "commence". Short words are faster to read.
Write in the active voice
"We fixed the bug" is clearer than "The bug was fixed". It is shorter and says who did what.
Structure for skimmers
Descriptive headings, short paragraphs, bullet lists and bold key phrases help readers find what they came for.
Lead with the point
Put the answer or the benefit first, then the detail. Readers (and search snippets) reward pages that get to it.
Read it out loud
If you run out of breath or stumble, your reader will too. Rewrite that sentence until it sounds like speech.
How our SEO and content strategists use it every day
We built the Readability Checker for our own team first. Here is where it earns its place in real client work.
- 01Content briefs
Every article we write starts with a brief that covers intent, structure and readability targets.
- 02On-page reviews
We review titles, meta descriptions and copy before and after publishing.
- 03Content calendars
Topic clusters are planned months ahead, so every post supports a service page.
Clear copy that ranks and converts.
Our SEO copywriters turn dense, hard-to-read pages into clear, persuasive content that matches search intent and moves visitors to act.
- Free content and readability review
- On-page SEO and search intent check
- Rewrite recommendations for your key pages
Keep optimising with related tools
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Conversion Rate CalculatorMeasure conversion rate and see what a lift is worth.Open tool Readability Checker: common questions
Still unsure what your results mean? Our team will walk you through them for free.
Ask a specialistWhat is a good readability score?
For most public-facing web copy, a Flesch Reading Ease score of 60–70 (plain English, roughly grade 8–9) is a sensible target. Higher is easier. Technical or specialist content can score lower and still suit its audience.
How is the Flesch Reading Ease score calculated?
206.835 − (1.015 × average words per sentence) − (84.6 × average syllables per word). Long sentences and long words both lower the score.
Does readability affect SEO?
Readability scores are not a direct Google ranking factor. But clear, easy-to-scan content helps visitors find answers and stay on the page, which supports the quality and helpfulness that search engines aim to reward.
Why do readability checkers give different scores?
Tools split sentences and count syllables in slightly different ways, and each formula weighs things differently. Compare scores from the same tool over time rather than across tools.
Why does SMOG need 30 sentences?
The SMOG formula was designed around a sample of 30 sentences. With fewer, the result is unreliable, so this readability checker only shows SMOG once your text reaches 30 sentences.
Can Elite Information Tech improve my website content?
Yes. Our content and SEO team reviews your key pages for readability, search intent and conversion, then rewrites them to be clearer and more persuasive. Request your free content audit.
Get a free content audit for clearer, higher-ranking pages
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