You’ve chosen your approach, moved through several drafts, and editing sessions to ensure that content, structure, and style are shining through. Before your masterpiece is ready for submission, it’s time for proofreading.  

According to The Writing Center and the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, “Proofreading is the final stage of the editing process, focusing on surface errors such as misspellings and mistakes in grammar and punctuation.”  

Here are three tools (all with robust free options) to take your work over the top.  

1. Grammarly  

Grammarly is one of the most popular online proofreading software platforms on the market. Over 40 million people polish their work with and its easy-to-use features for catching spelling and grammar mistakes. 

2. ProWriting Aid 

ProWritingAid also looks for grammatical and punctuation errors while also checking for repetition, cliches, and variety in sentence length. 

3. Hemingway  

Yes, Hemingway is indeed named after the author. In his spirit, this software focuses on writing “with power and clarity by highlighting adverbs, passive voice, and dull, complicated words.” 

  P.S. These are great tools to take with you to college, too!