All you want to do is check your grammar and spelling, but many grammar tools now are so full of useless and over-the-top AI suggestions.
Instead of making it easy to spot grammar mistakes, spelling errors, and typos, some try to rewrite your entire sentence or replace your style like a mind-reading robot.
It’s really frustrating when all you want is a quick and simple check, and you get hounded by an overblown AI writing assistant.
I have used Grammarly for years, but finally, I got fed up with all the added extras that do nothing and started looking for practical and usable alternatives.
I’ve Been Paying For What I Don’t Need Or Want
For years, I paid for Grammarly Premium because I believed it was helping me to correct and polish my writing.
At first, I found it very useful for cleaning up basic grammar problems, catching typos and spelling errors, and warning of passive voice use.
It was also practical for me because it worked happily with the WordPress editor and my word processor.
But then came the upgrades in the last couple of years. Do I really need tone detectors, rewrite suggestions, AI rephrasers, and a growing list of features I never asked for or need?
Instead of making things easier, it is now bloated and distracting. I feel like I’m fighting with the tool instead of getting help from it.
To add to my chagrin, I recently discovered that Grammarly was rapidly draining my laptop battery when the browser extension or desktop apps were running.
Even when I quit the app, the desktop editor had a “helper app” continually running in the background.
And I was paying for all this? I canceled my subscription and looked for alternatives.
My hunt began to find practical alternatives to check my writing without all the AI bloat.
What Most Writers Need From A Writing Tool
I guess I’m like most writers. All I need is a quick way to double-check when I’m in a hurry.
My grammar knowledge is pretty good, but like all writers, I can make mistakes.
Sure, I could proofread more meticulously, but a decent writing tool can save me hours of work.
In my case, the essentials are a reasonably accurate grammar, punctuation, and spellchecker that makes error correction easy.
One-click correction is a real time saver.
However, AI grammar tools have the habit of making more errors with this feature.
Sometimes they duplicate words or sentences, add line breaks, or suggest repeated and rotating corrections to their corrections.
The other requirement is that a tool works with the WordPress editor and my word processor.
After using Grammarly and also ProWritingAid for years, my search began, but it was not as easy as I thought it would be.
My first thought was to use the free version of Grammarly.
While it’s satisfactory with the WordPress editor and some other online applications, it doesn’t work with Apple Pages, which is my preferred word processor.
Like most word processors, Pages has a very limited default grammar and spell checker, and it misses a lot of errors. But there is the option now to use Apple Intelligence, which I have turned off because it’s, well, just more AI.
Sure, there’s always the option to use copy-and-paste solutions, such as with ChatGPT or Gemini, but it’s time-consuming and a bit laborious.
There had to be a better way.
The Best Solution I Found
Many grammar checkers now describe themselves as AI-powered. However, in their free versions, the basic grammar and spelling corrections are still largely traditional proofreading features.
The AI components are generally focused on optional rewriting, paraphrasing, or text generation rather than core error detection.
If you simply want grammar and spelling correction without an AI assistant constantly rewriting your work, the free versions of several grammar checkers can still do that very well.
It’s rather ironic that I discovered one of the best ways to avoid AI-heavy writing assistants by asking ChatGPT for suggestions.
One recommendation surprised me: LanguageTool.
I had come across LanguageTool a few times over the years, but only as a basic online checker, so I never gave it much thought. What I didn’t know was that it also offers a browser extension and a free desktop app.
As a Mac user, I can use it with Apple Pages, Mail, and Messages, but it also supports Windows, Linux, and a wide range of browsers and word processors.
LanguageTool now describes itself as an AI-based grammar checker, and some of its newer features do use AI. However, for everyday proofreading, I find that its core grammar and spelling corrections focus on identifying and correcting errors rather than rewriting or generating text.
Another advantage for me is that the browser extension and desktop app are lightweight and don’t noticeably affect my laptop’s battery life.
Compared with Grammarly’s free version, I find it every bit as capable for grammar and spelling checks.
Naturally, the premium versions of both products include many more advanced features, but for straightforward proofreading, the free version of LanguageTool does everything I need.
But I Needed More Options
Even with a lightweight tool like LanguageTool, I kept running into the same issue. While it handled the basics well, it didn’t help with the things that affect how writing reads.
It wouldn’t flag repeated or echo words sitting too close together. It didn’t care about filler phrases or weak adverbs.
And it certainly didn’t help tighten a sentence without rewriting it.
After a while, that became frustrating. I didn’t want more AI suggestions. I didn’t want my sentences rewritten.
All I wanted was a simple way to spot the small issues that make writing feel flat or repetitive. So I stopped looking for a single tool to do everything.
Instead, I started breaking the problem down into smaller checks, and, eventually, I built a few simple tools for myself to do exactly that.
If you’re curious, you can try these simple tools for things like repetition, adverbs, show and tell, and echo words.
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Nothing complicated. No AI rewriting. Just quick, focused checks for the kinds of problems most grammar tools ignore.
And that turned out to be a far more effective way to improve my writing.
5 Grammar Checkers Without AI
If you want to check your writing, grammar, punctuation, and spelling without the distractions of AI, these are the best options I’ve found for handling the basics.
None of them are perfect, but they will help you clean up obvious errors without constant rewriting suggestions getting in the way.
For me, though, grammar tools are now just the first step.
They’re useful for fixing technical issues, but not the subtle ones that affect how your writing reads.
That’s why I follow up with a few quick, focused checks for things like adverbs, repetition, filler words, and weak phrasing.
For example, I’ll run a quick pass with an adverb checker, scan for repeated words that sit too close together, and use a simple filler word finder to tighten everything up.
With that in mind, here are the grammar checkers that work well without the AI overload.
1. Scribens
The online version corrects the basics. If you are happy to copy and paste, it’s a reliable alternative. It has a generous 20,000-character limit, which equates to around 3,000 – 3,500 words. This is plenty for most writers.
2. LanguageTool
Another online checker, but it has the advantage of a desktop app that works quite well. The free version has a 20,000-character limit.
3. QuillBot
The free online version has a generous word limit, and the grammar check is quite reliable. It also has one-click corrections to fix your grammar, punctuation, and spelling very quickly.
4. Grammarly (Free Chrome Extension)
After canceling my subscription, I tried the free version, and it works well for online writing. If you ignore the ads and prompts to upgrade, it catches grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors only. But disable it when not in use to save your battery.
5. ProWritingAid
If you only use the “Grammar and Spelling” tool, there are no style or rephrasing suggestions.
This Is Not An Ad Or Promotion
I need to make it clear that this article is not a promotion or advertisement. That’s why I haven’t included any links.
If you want to investigate, you’ll need to do a search for the tools I have mentioned.
It’s purely about my little struggle to find a practical way to check my writing without the intrusion of AI suggestions and paying for them.
You might find better solutions for your needs because they may be very different from mine.
Conclusion
You shouldn’t pay for what you don’t need, and I have been doing so for far too long.
Artificial Intelligence is everywhere now, and in many ways is becoming increasingly intrusive.
As a writer, my needs from a writing app are simple. Basic grammar, spelling, and punctuation suggestions are all I require.
Tone, style, and sentence structures are my domain, and I prefer to keep it that way.
If you are still paying for a writing checker, maybe it’s time to reconsider.
Sure, there are lots of benefits, and for some writers, the added help might be worthwhile.
However, in my case, it wasn’t only about correction features.
The discovery that an app could adversely and severely affect the performance of my laptop was an eye-opener.
It should never be the case that an app reduces my battery time by over 60%.
Well, that’s my little grammar checker story and how I resolved it.
Related Reading: Never Trust Grammar Checkers To Check Your Writing
English teacher, writer, and author. Passionate about grammar, creative writing, and self-publishing. Always exploring new tools and tech to help writers succeed.
