What is the Flesch Reading Ease score?

It ranges from 0 to 100. Scores of 60-70 are considered plain English, suitable for most adults. Scores below 30 are very difficult (academic); scores above 80 are very easy (children's books).

What does the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level mean?

It maps to US school grades. A score of 8 means the text is appropriate for an 8th-grader. Most general-audience writing targets grades 6-9.

How is the Gunning Fog Index different?

The Fog Index focuses on the proportion of complex words (3 or more syllables). A score of 12 corresponds to a high school senior. Scores above 17 indicate academic or technical writing.

How accurate is the syllable counter?

The tool uses a vowel-group heuristic — it counts vowel sequences, subtracts silent "e" endings, and guarantees at least 1 syllable per word. This approximation is accurate for most common English words but may be off by ±1 on unusual or foreign-origin words.

Is my text sent to a server?

No. All analysis runs entirely in your browser using JavaScript. Your text never leaves your device.

Why do the scores sometimes disagree?

Each formula weights different features of the text. A passage with short sentences but many polysyllabic technical terms will score easier on Flesch-Kincaid than on the Fog Index.

Readability Grade Checker

Name: Readability Grade Checker
Availability: InStock
Author: Nham Vu

Paste your text and instantly get Flesch Reading Ease, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, and Gunning Fog Index scores with audience interpretation.

Your Text

Paste any English text — at least one complete sentence for accurate results.

Words

Sentences

Syllables

Syllable count uses a vowel-group heuristic (approximate — may be off by ±1 on unusual words).

Paste your text on the left and click Analyze.

Summary

Paste your text and instantly get Flesch Reading Ease, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, and Gunning Fog Index scores with audience interpretation.

How it works

Paste or type your text into the input area.
The tool counts words, sentences, and syllables automatically.
Flesch Reading Ease is calculated using the standard 206.835 formula — higher scores mean easier reading.
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level maps the text to a US school grade (e.g., 8 = 8th grade).
Gunning Fog Index counts complex words (3+ syllables) to estimate years of formal education required.
Each score card shows an interpretation and the target audience for that reading level.

Use cases

Check whether blog posts or articles suit your target audience.
Simplify legal, medical, or technical documents for a general readership.
Verify that student essays meet a required grade-level benchmark.
Optimize marketing copy to keep it clear and concise.
Evaluate government or public-health communications for accessibility.
Compare readability before and after editing to measure improvement.
Help ESL writers gauge the complexity of their English prose.
Audit UX microcopy to ensure it is easy to understand at a glance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Last updated: 2026-06-11 · Reviewed by Nham Vu