Overview

Hemingway Editor is a readability-focused editor that scores writing and flags passages that may weaken or complicate a message. It suits writers who want to improve clarity, while Editor Plus adds AI editing and document feedback for individuals and teams. Choose it for focused readability guidance; choose Classic if keeping work offline matters more than AI features.

Key features

Readability feedback: Scores and highlights give writers a way to spot difficult passages and revise them directly. The focus is clarity, not an all-purpose writing suite.
Editor Plus AI editing: It can rewrite wordy sentences and passive voice, fix grammar, and adjust tone, length, and style. This can speed up revision, though AI editing uses a monthly sentence allowance on the paid plans.
Document review and files: Editor Plus offers document feedback, insights, and suggestions, and can import and export Word, Markdown, and HTML files. That makes it better suited to ongoing document work than Classic's offline-focused workflow.
Classic publishing and offline use: Classic works without an internet connection and keeps writing on the computer. It can publish to WordPress with one click and export HTML or Markdown for a blog platform or CMS, but it does not include AI features.
Privacy and hosting: Hemingway says it does not retain document content after processing or use customer writing to train AI models. For AI analysis or rewriting, content is sent through Hemingway to an LLM provider—currently OpenAI, Google, or Anthropic—and discarded afterward. Editor Plus is hosted on Render, with servers and storage in the United States, and uses AES-256 encryption for communications and database data at rest. It does not yet have SOC 2 or ISO certification, a relevant limitation for organizations with formal compliance requirements.

Pricing

Hemingway offers a free plan, paid Editor Plus subscriptions, and a separate one-time desktop purchase. The annual individual plans are the clearest fit for regular users who want AI editing and document review:

Individual 5K (annual): $8.33 USD per month, billed $100 annually, for one user and 5,000 AI sentences per month. It includes unlimited grammar fixes, document review, synonyms, and readability highlights.
Individual 10K (annual): $12.50 USD per month, billed $150 annually, for one user and 10,000 AI sentences per month, with the same unlimited features. It suits heavier AI use; the higher quota costs more, while the other listed benefits are the same.
Team 10K (annual): $12.50 USD per month per user, billed $150 annually per user, for up to 50 users. Each user gets 10,000 AI sentences per month, with shared billing and admin roles. It is the team option for shared communications and proposals, but the per-user price makes seat count important.
Individual 5K (monthly): $10.00 USD per month, billed monthly, for AI-assisted editing through Editor Plus. It costs more per month than the annual 5K plan and is the listed monthly-billing option.
Enterprise: Custom pricing, unlimited users, 20,000 AI sentences per user per month, optional SSO, and priority email support. It is aimed at larger organizations that need scale or SSO.

The free plan gives readers a way to start without a subscription, but the published free-plan terms do not establish a quota or feature cap. A 14-day trial is also offered. Hemingway Editor 3 desktop costs $19.99 USD per once as a one-time purchase for Mac and Windows; Hemingway Editor Classic is also priced at $19.99 USD per once for a Mac OS or Windows license. Both are offline desktop options without AI features, so they suit writers who value local, disconnected editing over Editor Plus revisions and document review. Support is handled by email at support@hemingwayapp.com.

Platforms

Hemingway Editor is available on the web and for macOS and Windows. Classic is the offline desktop edition; Editor Plus provides the AI editing and document-review features.

Who it's for

Hemingway is a good fit for people who need to make their writing clearer, from individual writers to teams working on mass or internal communications, grants, and sales proposals. Editor Plus is the stronger choice when AI revisions and document feedback justify a recurring subscription and sending text to an LLM provider. Classic is better for writers who want offline desktop editing and a one-time license. Organizations requiring SOC 2 or ISO certification should look elsewhere.

Pros and cons

Pro: Readability scoring and highlights keep the product centered on finding passages that could be clearer.
Pro: Editor Plus combines rewriting, grammar fixes, tone controls, document review, and common file formats, with unlimited grammar fixes, reviews, synonyms, and readability highlights on annual individual plans.
Pro: Classic supports offline writing, WordPress publishing, and HTML or Markdown export without a subscription.
Con: Editor Plus sends content through Hemingway to an external LLM provider for AI processing, which may not suit every document or organization.
Con: AI sentence quotas distinguish the paid plans, so frequent use may require a higher tier.
Con: Editor Plus does not yet have SOC 2 or ISO certification, which can rule it out for organizations that require either.

Alternatives

For a different kind of readability tool or a broader writing workflow, these options may fit better:

Text Inspector may suit readers looking for a web or API option with a free 250-word plan that automatically deletes data after six hours; its paid Standard plan is billed £9.96 monthly or £59.76 yearly for 10,000 words.
ProWritingAid is another freemium writing tool, offered as an extension, with a free plan that limits report runs and rephrases.
Readability Formulas may be preferable for readers seeking free online readability calculators and scoring, with extension, macOS, web, and Windows platforms.
TextGears may fit readers looking for API or web access and a PRO plan from $2.48 per month with unlimited checks, translations, and paraphrases of long texts.
ApyHub Readability Scores Documents API is an API alternative, including a free Starter plan with 3,000 atoms per month.
Botoi Readability API may suit developers seeking API access, with a free plan that includes 1,000 requests per day.
Check Readability is a free web and extension option with no account required or usage fees, including for personal and commercial use.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability & Grade Level Analyzer is a free web tool for instant analysis without signup.
The Readability Checkers list can help compare more tools in this category.
The AI Readability Checkers list is a category option for readers exploring AI-based readability tools.
The Writing Style Checkers list is another place to compare writing feedback tools.
The AI writing assistants list may help readers seeking a broader AI writing workflow.

Verdict

Choose Hemingway Editor if clearer prose is the priority and you want either focused readability feedback or, with Editor Plus, AI revisions and document review. Its main advantage is that clarity-centered editing spans both subscription and offline desktop options. Look elsewhere if your organization requires SOC 2 or ISO certification, or if sending text to an LLM provider for AI processing is not acceptable.

	Hemingway Editor	textlint
Free plan		Yes
Free trial	Yes
Paid from	$0.69/mo	Free
Platforms	macOS, Web, Windows	api, extension, Linux, macOS, Web, Windows
Free plan	Yes
Paid from	8.33 /user/mo
Desktop app	Yes
Editor support		Atom, Sublime Text, Vim, Visual Studio Code, micro, NetBeans, Emacs
API access		Yes

Hemingway Editor vs textlint

Hemingway Editor

textlint