Writing & Text
Reading Level Calculator
Paste your text for instant readability scores from five formulas, a grade spectrum, and sentence-level highlighting of the hard parts.
How it works
Behind the numbers
Scoring starts with counting: words, sentences, syllables, and letters. Syllables use the standard vowel-group heuristic with silent-e trimming, which is an estimate stated as such. From those counts, each formula applies its published equation: Flesch-Kincaid and ARI lean on word and sentence length, Gunning Fog and SMOG on polysyllabic words, Coleman-Liau on letters per hundred words.
The five grade-level results are averaged into a consensus grade, and each is plotted as a marker on the grade spectrum from 0 to 20. The spectrum's rough guide puts elementary reading near 5, general news around 7 to 9, and college material from 13 to 16. Markers that spread widely mean the text mixes short and long constructions.
Every sentence gets its own Flesch-Kincaid grade, and sentences at grade 12 or above are highlighted in the text view with their scores. The hardest sentences are listed separately. Shorten those sentences or swap in simpler words and watch the consensus move in real time.
FAQ
Questions, answered
What is a good Flesch-Kincaid grade level?
For general audiences, grades 7 to 9 match typical news writing; most style guides suggest staying under 10 for the public. Academic writing often lands at 13 to 16. Match the grade to your readers, not to a universal ideal.
What is the difference between Flesch Reading Ease and Flesch-Kincaid grade?
Both use sentence length and syllables per word. Reading Ease scores 0 to 100, where higher is easier; the grade formula converts the same inputs into a US school grade level. This page shows both.
Why do the five formulas disagree?
They weight different things: Fog and SMOG punish long words, Coleman-Liau counts letters instead of syllables, ARI uses characters per word. A spread of a grade or two is normal; the consensus average smooths it out.
How accurate is automatic syllable counting?
The standard heuristic gets most common words right but can miss unusual ones, which moves scores slightly. For typical prose the effect is small, usually well under a grade level.
Is my text uploaded anywhere?
No. All counting and scoring runs in your browser with JavaScript. Close the tab and it is gone.