Grammarly vs LanguageTool: Which Grammar Checker Should You Use? (2026)
Grammarly and LanguageTool are the two grammar checkers most people end up choosing between, and in 2026 the choice has shifted: LanguageTool moved its browser extension behind its paid plan, and Grammarly now trains its AI on individual users' writing unless they opt out. This comparison sets out what each offers today — free limits, prices, languages, apps and privacy — so you can pick the right one for how you write.
A note on our own tool: SaveDelete also offers a free grammar checker, and this article used to rank it alongside these two. That was not fair to readers: at the time it was a basic rule-based checker. It now runs on LanguageTool's open-source engine — see the section below — but it is a free web tool rather than a full writing assistant, so this comparison focuses on the two services you would realistically choose between. Every fact was checked against each company's own pages in September 2026.
What Changed in 2026
- LanguageTool's browser extension is now Premium-only. Since March 2026, the add-on that checked your writing across websites needs a paid plan. Free users can still paste text into the LanguageTool website, up to 2,000 characters at a time.
- Grammarly trains on individual users' text by default. Its privacy policy, effective July 2026, says it uses the information it collects to train its AI models. Individual users can switch this off in account settings; it is off by default on Enterprise and Education accounts. Grammarly is now part of Superhuman, whose privacy policy covers it.
Quick Comparison
| Grammarly | LanguageTool | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Spelling, grammar and punctuation, 100 AI prompts a month, a few advanced suggestions a day | Website checks up to 2,000 characters, 3 AI rephrasings a day |
| Paid plan | Pro: $12/month billed annually ($144/year), or $30 month to month | Premium: list price $24.90/month or $69.90/year, often discounted; varies by country |
| Languages | Spelling and basic grammar in 23; advanced suggestions in 6 (English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Italian) | 30+ |
| Browser extension | Free — Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge | Premium only |
| Office and apps | Word, Outlook and PowerPoint on Windows and Mac; iOS and Android keyboards | Word, Google Docs, Gmail, Outlook (beta), LibreOffice, Thunderbird; Windows, macOS and iOS apps |
| Plagiarism checker | Pro and Enterprise | No |
| Trains AI on your text | Yes for individual users, unless you opt out | No |
| Self-hosting | No | Yes — open-source core, without the cloud AI rules |
| Developer API | Enterprise and Education admins only | Free public API with limits; paid plans for more |
Grammarly
Grammarly is the most polished option, especially in English. The free plan corrects spelling, grammar and punctuation, includes 100 generative-AI prompts a month and a handful of its advanced suggestions each day, and works through free extensions for Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge, including in Google Docs. Its editor checks up to 100,000 characters at a time.
Pro costs $12 a month billed annually, or $30 month to month, with a 7-day trial. It adds full-sentence rewrites, tone adjustments, unlimited personalised suggestions, a plagiarism and AI-content checker, and 2,000 AI prompts a month. Grammarly works in Word, Outlook and PowerPoint on Windows and Mac, and as a keyboard on iOS and Android.
Where it falls short: its advanced suggestions cover only six languages, and individual users' text is used for AI training unless they switch it off. Data is stored on Amazon Web Services in the US.
Best for: English writers who want polished style suggestions everywhere they type, and students who need a plagiarism check.
LanguageTool
LanguageTool's strength is breadth: it checks more than 30 languages, which makes it the natural choice for anyone writing in German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch or several languages at once. The free website checks up to 2,000 characters at a time and allows three AI rephrasings a day.
Premium removes those limits, handles much longer texts, adds unlimited paraphrasing and generative-AI suggestions, and unlocks the browser extension and the Windows, macOS and iOS apps. Its list price is $24.90 a month or $69.90 a year, though it is often discounted and priced by country — its help centre quotes €19.90 a month or €59.89 a year. It integrates with Word, Google Docs, Gmail, LibreOffice and Thunderbird, with Outlook in beta.
LanguageTool says it does not use anyone's text to train its models, and that text sent to its API is not stored, on servers in Germany. Its core is open source, so organisations can run their own LanguageTool server — although the AI-based rules are only available in the cloud version.
Where it falls short: the free plan is now limited to the website, and there is no plagiarism checker.
Best for: multilingual writers, privacy-conscious users and organisations that want to self-host.
What About SaveDelete's Grammar Checker?
Our free grammar checker runs LanguageTool's open-source engine on our own server. It checks spelling, grammar, punctuation and style, takes up to 20,000 characters at a time — ten times the LanguageTool website's free limit — and needs no account. Your text goes only to our server and is not stored.
It does not include the AI-based rules that LanguageTool keeps for its cloud service, or Grammarly's rewriting and tone features, so it misses some errors the paid services catch — commonly confused words such as "too" and "to", for example. For a quick free check of a long document, it is a good option; for polishing important writing, the paid plans above go further.
Which Should You Use?
- English writing, checked everywhere you type, for free: Grammarly's free plan and browser extension.
- Writing in German, French, Spanish or several languages: LanguageTool.
- Keeping your text out of AI training: LanguageTool, or Grammarly with training switched off in your account settings.
- Academic work that needs a plagiarism check: Grammarly Pro — and check your institution's rules on AI rewriting.
- Running a checker on your own servers: LanguageTool's open-source server.
- A free check of a long document without signing up: SaveDelete's checker, which runs LanguageTool's open-source engine and takes up to 20,000 characters at a time.
For more options, see our guides to online proofreading tools and free spell checkers, and our comparison of QuillBot and Grammarly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which grammar checker is most accurate for detecting errors?
We are not aware of an independent, up-to-date benchmark that settles it. In English, both catch everyday spelling and grammar errors; Grammarly's paid plan goes further on clarity and style. For other European languages, LanguageTool is generally the stronger choice, since its checks cover more than 30 languages while Grammarly's advanced suggestions cover six.
Can I use these grammar checkers offline?
Grammarly needs an internet connection. LanguageTool's open-source core can run as a server on your own computer or network, which works offline, but without the AI-based rules that only the cloud version has.
Which tool is best for academic writing?
Grammarly Pro, because it includes a plagiarism and AI-content checker; LanguageTool has no plagiarism checker. Whichever you use, check your institution's policy on AI rewriting before accepting generated suggestions.
Do these tools store my documents?
Grammarly stores data on Amazon Web Services in the US and uses individual users' text to train its AI unless they opt out. LanguageTool says it does not use anyone's text for training, that text checked through its add-on is usually not saved, and that API requests are not stored. SaveDelete's checker sends text only to the LanguageTool server we host ourselves and does not save it, though your browser keeps a short history of recent checks on your own device.
Which grammar checker works best with Microsoft Word?
Both integrate with Word. Grammarly works in Word, Outlook and PowerPoint on Windows and Mac. LanguageTool also offers a Word add-in, alongside its Google Docs, Gmail and LibreOffice integrations.
Are there good free alternatives among these options?
Grammarly's free plan is the most capable free option for English, including its browser extension. LanguageTool's free website handles up to 2,000 characters at a time in more than 30 languages, and our own checker runs the same open-source engine on up to 20,000 characters. The spelling and grammar checks built into Word and Google Docs are also worth using.
Which tool is best for non-native English speakers?
Grammarly explains its English corrections clearly and its paid rewrites help with phrasing. LanguageTool is useful if you also write in your first language, since it checks both. Many bilingual writers use Grammarly for English and LanguageTool for everything else.
Can these tools help improve my writing style?
Yes, on their paid plans. Grammarly Pro suggests full-sentence rewrites and tone adjustments, and LanguageTool Premium offers unlimited paraphrasing and generative-AI suggestions. Both free plans focus mainly on correctness.
Which grammar checker is best for business use?
Grammarly Enterprise suits companies that want central administration, with AI training switched off by default. LanguageTool has team plans, and its open-source server suits organisations that want to keep text on their own infrastructure.
How do these tools compare for mobile writing?
Grammarly offers a keyboard for iOS and Android that checks as you type in any app. LanguageTool has an iOS app on Premium; we could not confirm a current Android keyboard.
The Bottom Line
For English writers, Grammarly remains the easiest choice, and its free plan is genuinely useful. For anyone writing in other languages, or who would rather their text never trained an AI model, LanguageTool is the better fit — as long as a website-only free plan or a Premium subscription works for you.
Facts checked September 2026 against each company's own website. Prices vary by country and change often; check the vendor's page before you pay.