Grammarly Review (2025): Is It Still the Best Writing Assistant?

In an age dominated by AI tools like ChatGPT, the question is more relevant than ever: is Grammarly still worth it? Launched in 2009, Grammarly became the go-to tool for millions to fix grammar, spelling, and punctuation. It was the undisputed king of writing assistants.

But the game has changed. With generative AI now able to write entire articles, does a tool focused on correcting writing still hold its value?

This comprehensive Grammarly review for 2025 puts the platform to the test. We’ll dive deep into its core features, analyze its new generative AI assistant GrammarlyGO, compare the Free vs. Premium plans, and give you a clear verdict on whether it’s still a must-have tool for your digital toolkit.

Quick Verdict & Scorecard

For those short on time, here’s our 2025 scorecard for Grammarly Premium.

• Accuracy & Suggestions: 4.8/5
• Ease of Use & Integrations: 5/5
• GrammarlyGO (Generative AI): 4.2/5
• Value for Money: 4.5/5
• Overall Rating: 4.6/5

Bottom Line: Grammarly remains an essential tool for anyone who writes professionally. Its real-time corrections and style suggestions are more accurate and context-aware than generic AI chatbots. While GrammarlyGO is a helpful addition, the core value still lies in its powerful proofreading engine.

What is Grammarly & How Does It Work?

Grammarly is a cloud-based writing assistant that uses artificial intelligence to improve your writing. It goes beyond the basic spell check found in word processors to analyze your text for a wide range of issues.

It works across multiple platforms through:

• Browser extensions (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge)
• A desktop app for Windows and Mac
• The Grammarly Editor (web-based)
• Microsoft Office add-in
• Google Docs integration
• A mobile keyboard for iOS and Android

As you type, Grammarly underlines potential errors and provides one-click suggestions for improvement, making the editing process seamless and educational.

Hands-On Test: Core Features Reviewed

We tested Grammarly Premium to evaluate its key functionalities.

Grammar, Spelling, and Punctuation

This is Grammarly’s bread and butter. It excels at catching everything from simple typos to complex grammatical errors.

• Spelling: Catches misspellings and common confusions (e.g., “there” vs. “their”).
• Punctuation: Correctly identifies missing commas, apostrophe misuse, and run-on sentences.
• Grammar: Flags issues with subject-verb agreement, inconsistent tenses, and incorrect sentence structure.

Our Take: The accuracy is outstanding. It catches mistakes that standard checkers in Google Docs and Word miss, making it an indispensable first line of defense in the editing process.

Clarity, Tone, and Style Suggestions (Premium)

This is where Grammarly Premium starts to justify its cost. It moves beyond simple correctness to improve the overall quality of your writing.

• Clarity: Suggests rewrites for wordy, hard-to-read sentences to make them more concise.
• Tone Detection: Analyzes your word choice to tell you how your writing might sound to a reader (e.g., Confident, Formal, Friendly, Analytical).
• Engagement: Flags repetitive words and suggests more vivid vocabulary.
• Formality Level: Helps you maintain a consistent level of formality (formal, informal, or neutral).

Our Take: The tone detector is a game-changer for professional communication. Ensuring an email sounds “confident” instead of “unsure” can make a real difference. The full-sentence rewrites are a massive time-saver for simplifying complex ideas.

The Plagiarism Checker (Premium)

Grammarly’s plagiarism checker compares your text against billions of web pages and academic databases to detect unoriginal content.

Our Take: It’s a crucial feature for students, academics, and content creators. The checker is reliable and provides source links for any flagged text, making it easy to add proper citations and ensure your work is original.

The Game-Changer? GrammarlyGO (Generative AI)

Introduced to compete with tools like ChatGPT, GrammarlyGO is Grammarly’s built-in generative AI assistant. It’s available on both Free and Premium plans (with higher usage limits for Premium users).

GrammarlyGO can:

• Compose: Draft outlines, emails, and paragraphs based on a prompt.
• Rewrite: Instantly rephrase text to be more formal, casual, shorter, or more detailed.
• Ideate: Brainstorm ideas for a blog post, social media update, or project.
• Reply: Generate quick replies to emails.

How it works: You highlight text or click the GrammarlyGO icon and give it a command, like “Make this more professional” or “Generate three ideas for a blog title about this.”

Our Take: GrammarlyGO is incredibly convenient for quick writing tasks. Its biggest advantage is context—it works within the document or email you’re already writing. However, for complex, long-form content generation, dedicated tools like ChatGPT or Claude still have the edge. Think of it as a powerful assistant, not a full-blown ghostwriter.

Grammarly Free vs. Premium: What’s the Real Difference?

Feature	Grammarly Free	Grammarly Premium
Spelling, Grammar, Punctuation	✅	✅
Conciseness	✅	✅
Tone Detection	Basic	Advanced
GrammarlyGO Usage	100 prompts/month	1000 prompts/month
Full-Sentence Rewrites	❌	✅
Word Choice & Vocabulary	❌	✅
Plagiarism Detection	❌	✅
Formality Level	❌	✅

The free version is excellent for basic proofreading. However, Grammarly Premium is what transforms your writing from merely “correct” to “effective.” The full-sentence rewrites and plagiarism checker alone are worth the upgrade for any serious writer.

Grammarly Pricing

Grammarly offers three subscription tiers for its Premium plan. All plans offer the same features; the only difference is the billing cycle and cost.

• Monthly Subscription: $30.00 USD per month
• Quarterly Subscription: $20.00 USD per month (billed as one payment of $60)
• Annual Subscription: $12.00 USD per month (billed as one payment of $144)

The annual plan offers the best value by a significant margin.

Grammarly Alternatives

While Grammarly is the market leader, several other tools offer unique features.

Tool	Key Feature	Best For	Annual Price (Approx.)
Grammarly	All-in-one proofreading, style, & AI	Professionals & general users	$144 / year
ProWritingAid	In-depth writing reports (20+ types)	Fiction & long-form writers	$120 / year
QuillBot	Advanced paraphrasing tool	Students & content rewriters	$99 / year
Hemingway Editor	Focus on clarity & sentence structure	Writers focused on concise prose	$19.99 (one-time)

• ProWritingAid is Grammarly’s closest competitor, offering more detailed reports that are especially useful for authors.
• QuillBot excels at paraphrasing and summarizing text, making it a powerful tool for academic writing and content repurposing.
• Hemingway Editor is a simple, no-frills tool for making your writing bold and clear. Its one-time purchase price is very appealing.

Our Expert Verdict: Is Grammarly Worth It in 2025?

After extensive testing, the answer is a resounding yes, for most people.

While free tools like ChatGPT can spot grammar errors, they lack the real-time, context-aware integration that makes Grammarly so powerful. Grammarly acts as an over-the-shoulder editor everywhere you write, preventing mistakes before they happen and teaching you to become a better writer along the way.

Who is Grammarly Premium for?

• Professionals and Business Users: For clear, confident communication in emails, reports, and presentations, it’s a career investment.
• Students: The plagiarism checker and citation help are invaluable for academic integrity.
• Non-Native English Speakers: It’s an exceptional tool for gaining fluency and confidence in written English.
• Bloggers & Content Marketers: Ensures all published content is polished, professional, and easy to read.

Who might not need Grammarly Premium?

• Creative Writers & Poets: Authors who intentionally bend grammar rules for stylistic effect might find the constant suggestions distracting.
• Casual Users: If your writing is limited to short social media posts and texts, the free version is more than sufficient.

Ultimately, Grammarly remains the gold standard for a reason. It’s an accurate, user-friendly, and comprehensive tool that actively strengthens your writing, making it a worthy investment for anyone who takes their words seriously.

Frequently Asked Questions