We’ve taken all those who claim to be amazing grammar and spell checkers (bot AND human) to put them to the ultimate Editing test!

Are online editing software really better than human editors?

Let’s find out.

The importance of error-free content shouldn’t be underestimated, as humiliating typos are far more memorable than real content. So in the war between robots and humans – who actually comes on top?

Instead of giving you the answers right away, or simply boring with reason after reason to prove out point, why don’t we try something different? Let’s take a simple writing sample, and test it against all the professional editors and editing softwares out there! For this article, I have narrowed it down to the following contenders –

1. Grammarly (Free and Premium)
2. Ginger (Online)
3. Microsoft Word
4. PaperTrue

To spice things up and really drive home the point, why don’t you take a shot at editing yourself? That’s right, this time you take over the reigns! All you have to do is take a look at the original sample, and try to spot as many errors as possible.

Check yourself against the online softwares as well as PaperTrue’s editor – and you’ll have the answer to the seemingly never-ending debate.

Writing Sample –  

Editing and proofreading any and all written content that you put out there has become essential in today’s world, what with the trolls lurking at every social media platform. Be it a business pitch you’re making, an essay for college or simply an email – giving it a once over is always going to help you erase that one, potentially embarrassing mistake.

Given the rat race the world is today, however, how does one make the time to edit and proofread? Sleep deprivation, the promise of a social life and the temporary elation from actually having written something is just one of the many things that could hinder the process.

How well did you fare? How many errors did you find? Did you find more or less than the software that claim to cleanse your content of all errors?

You’ll get all your answers and more as we put the legends to test!

• Grammarly (Free)

Tracked

Clean Version

Verdict – The biggest USP for Grammarly with students and amateur writers looking for a quick fix to their content is the ‘free’ aspect of their service. Naturally, one can’t turn to it with the highest hopes.

Positioning as the ‘World’s Most Accurate Grammar Checker’, Grammarly proudly promises to identify over 150 text errors, offer synonym suggestions as well as detect plagiarism. What they don’t mention, however, is the fact that anything above and beyond a basic check will require you to dip into your wallet.

The free online app detected merely 2 language issues, and suggested replacements accordingly.

All I can say is, if this is going to be the World’s Most Accurate Grammar Checker’, we don’t need an entire article to prove why professional human editors are better.

• Grammarly (Premium)

Tracked

Clean Version.

Verdict – With plans ranging from 11 USD a year to 30 USD a month, Grammarly Premium assures you of ‘lesser stress and stronger writing skills’.

The Premium version is meant to correct complex errors such as advanced checks for sentence structure, vocabulary enhancement, and will even detect plagiarism among a million other superhuman things!

As evident in the sample above, it obviously has a better algorithm than its ‘Free’ counterpart, and detected 2 basic + 3 critical issues. However, it managed to skip out editing for sentence structure, and can easily be outdone for the amount it costs the user anyway!

• Ginger

Tracked & Clean Version (Second Panel)

Verdict – Quite like Grammarly, Ginger too markets itself as an online editing and spell-checking software that will do wonders for the language of your content.

The online version of it however, has a 600-character limit, and couldn’t even edit the entire sample. In the portion edited, it managed to find merely one issue, performing the worst on this list. People however seem to enjoy the downloaded extension better, with reviews on the editing faring a lot better than the online version.

The grammar checker is clearly not all it’s cracked up to be, and is an easy pass.

• Microsoft Word

Tracked

Clean Version

Verdict – I’ll always have a soft spot for Microsoft Word’s grammar and spell check, seeing as it was my first foray into the concept of editing ever.

Unsurprisingly though, it didn’t perform well, having detected merely 2 issues. The checker skipped other grammar issues caught by Grammarly and Ginger, but registered redundancy – something only Premium managed to catch.

I suppose you could always use this for a cursory look at your content, before layering it professional editing.

• PaperTrue’s Editor – Ariel. R

Tracked

Clean Version

Verdict – PaperTrue’s editing and proofreading services promise to provide you both editing as well as proofreading, leaving you with a completely flawless document.

We handed over the sample to an expert editor from our team, and Ms. Ariel R was able to do a much more thorough job with it than any of the online editing tools. Not just that, she also left feedback and suggestions – proving that no online tool is a replacement for the skill and expertise a professional human editor brings to the table.

To Sum It Up, The Winner Is….

*drumroll*

Having caught and corrected the most number of grammatical errors at various levels of complexity, Ms. Ariel R of PaperTrue undoubtedly wins this! Online softwares and free editing tools can only take your writing so far, and will not do much beyond correcting basic spelling and punctuation.

Furthermore, professional editors can check your document for proper nouns, fact accuracy, formatting and style, consistency and a lot more. To elaborate, if your sentence goes something like, ‘It was a grate date!’, sites like Grammarly and Ginger might not always suggest an alternative.  

In order to avail a refined and more advanced editing service, the ‘free’ tools you worship will also demand a rather pricey sacrifice from your wallet. So why not make the smarter and simpler choice?

Choose PaperTrue, and you can get your content edited and proofread for a single fee! Our editors will also provide content level feedback to your document, while being secure and quick. Head over to our website, and try it now for the perfect edit!  

The post Editing Test: Why Humans Are Better Editors Than Online Software Systems appeared first on PaperTrue Blog.