Readability
Checker
Is your prose working as hard as you are?
Paste any passage and get instant analysis of reading ease, sentence complexity, passive voice rate, adverb density, and Flesch-Kincaid grade level. Flagged sentences show you exactly where to revise.
Readability is not about writing simply. It is about writing clearly. The difference between a sentence that earns its complexity and one that just feels hard is the difference between literary fiction and difficult prose.
This tool measures Flesch Reading Ease, grade level, average sentence length, passive voice density, and adverb frequency. It flags the specific sentences that are pulling your score down so you know exactly where to revise. Used by fiction writers, memoirists, and working writers across the North Shore and Greater Boston area who train at Writers' CLC in Reading, MA.
Our fiction workshops and coaching sessions focus on sentence-level clarity, voice, and readability with real manuscript feedback.
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Everything runs in your browser. When you paste your work, it never leaves your device. We do not store, log, transmit, or read your writing. You own it completely, before and after you use this tool.
This tool uses rule-based pattern matching and established craft criteria, not a language model. That means the feedback is transparent, consistent, and based on principles you can look up and verify. If it flags something, you can see exactly why.
The criteria behind this tool draw from the foundational texts of the craft: John Gardner's The Art of Fiction, Janet Burroway's Writing Fiction, Robert McKee's Story, and the practical workshop traditions these works inform. The Writers' CLC instructors contributed to the criteria development.
These tools identify patterns. They do not make creative decisions. A flag is a prompt to look at a sentence more carefully, not a mandate to change it. The best use of any diagnostic tool is to notice patterns, then apply your own judgment about what serves the work.
Reading Ease: What the Scores Mean
Flesch Reading Ease scores your prose on a 100-point scale. Higher scores mean simpler, more accessible prose. Neither extreme is inherently better. The right score depends on your genre and intended reader.
| Score Range | Description | Grade Level | Common In |
|---|---|---|---|
| 90 to 100 | Very easy to read. Short sentences, common words. | 5th grade | Children's books, mass market thrillers |
| 70 to 90 | Easy to read. Conversational prose. | 6th to 7th grade | Commercial fiction, YA, most popular fiction |
| 60 to 70 | Standard. Plain English. | 8th to 9th grade | Mainstream literary fiction, memoir |
| 50 to 60 | Fairly difficult. Dense sentences. | 10th to 12th grade | Literary fiction, serious nonfiction |
| 30 to 50 | Difficult. Academic or complex prose. | College level | Literary fiction, experimental prose |
| 0 to 30 | Very difficult. Highly complex. | Graduate level | Dense literary or academic writing |
Frequently Asked Questions
For commercial fiction, aim for 60 to 80 on the Flesch scale. Literary fiction typically runs 50 to 70. What matters most is consistency and appropriateness to your genre. A thriller that reads at a 40 has a pacing problem. A literary novel that reads at a 90 may lack depth.
Most editors suggest keeping passive voice below 10 percent of sentences in fiction. 5 percent or under is ideal for fast-paced genres. Passive voice is not inherently wrong. It becomes a problem when it creates distance between the reader and the action in scenes that should feel immediate.
For fiction, 12 to 18 words per sentence is a reliable target. The real goal is variety. Mix short punchy sentences with longer flowing ones. Rhythm comes from variation, not from hitting an average. Long sentences slow the pace; short sentences accelerate it.
Not categorically. The problem is adverbs that modify weak verbs: "ran quickly" versus "sprinted," "said softly" versus "whispered." If your adverb is doing work a stronger verb could do, cut it. A rate above 2 to 3 per 100 words often signals a reliance on adverbs where verb choice could be doing more.
