Readability Checker for Website Copy

Paste the text of a web page and get six standard readability scores, word and sentence counts and reading time. The annotated view highlights sentences over 20 and 25 words, phrases that look like passive voice, adverbs ending in -ly and words of three or more syllables, so you can see what to shorten. The tool cannot fetch web pages, so copy the text from your page and paste it in. Everything runs in your browser. Nothing you type is sent to We.Inc or anyone else.

How it works

  1. Paste your copy into the box, or press Load example to see a sample paragraph.
  2. The tool splits the text into sentences and words and estimates syllables with a vowel-group rule (accurate for most English words, off by one on some).
  3. Read the scores: Flesch Reading Ease (higher is easier), and five grade-level scores (lower is easier).
  4. Compare them with the targets for web copy shown next to each score.
  5. Scroll the annotated view: long sentences, possible passive voice, adverbs and complex words are highlighted in different colours.
  6. Edit the text in the box and watch the scores update as you rewrite.

The formulas

Flesch Reading Ease = 206.835 - 1.015 x (words / sentences) - 84.6 x (syllables / words). Flesch-Kincaid grade = 0.39 x (words / sentences) + 11.8 x (syllables / words) - 15.59.

Gunning Fog = 0.4 x ((words / sentences) + 100 x (complex words / words)), where complex words have three or more syllables. SMOG = 1.043 x sqrt(polysyllables x 30 / sentences) + 3.1291.

Coleman-Liau = 0.0588 x L - 0.296 x S - 15.8, where L is letters per 100 words and S is sentences per 100 words. ARI = 4.71 x (characters / words) + 0.5 x (words / sentences) - 21.43.

Why readability matters on websites

Visitors scan web pages rather than read them word by word. Short sentences, common words and one idea per paragraph let them find what they came for. Readability scores are a quick check on the first two; they cannot tell you whether the page answers the visitor's question, so read it aloud as well.

When your copy reads well, the brief at the bottom takes it into the We.Inc builder so the new page keeps the plain wording you worked on.

Tips

Frequently asked questions

What is a good Flesch Reading Ease score for a website?

For general web copy, 60 or above is a common target (roughly plain English), and 70+ reads easily. Specialist or legal pages often score lower, which is acceptable if the audience expects it.

What grade level should web copy be?

Many style guides suggest grade 8 or lower for pages the general public reads. That is about how easily text reads, not how clever the reader is: skilled readers also prefer text that is quick to scan.

How are syllables counted?

By a heuristic: count groups of vowels, drop a silent final e, handle -le and -ed endings, and treat every word as at least one syllable. Dictionary-based counters can differ by a point or two on the scores.

Why do the scores disagree?

Each formula weighs different things: Flesch and SMOG use syllables, Coleman-Liau and ARI use letters per word, Gunning Fog counts words of three or more syllables. Look at the trend across all of them rather than one number.

How does it spot passive voice?

It looks for a form of "be" (is, was, were, been, being, are) followed within a word or two by a word ending in -ed or a common irregular past participle. It is a guess to review, not a grammar check.

Is my text stored?

No. It stays in this browser tab. Nothing is uploaded.

Related: Headline Analyzer, Landing Page Copy Generator, Email Subject Line Tester, Website Checker, Website builder, Business website templates.

Turn this result into your website or see the We.Inc website builder. The free plan gives you up to 3 template sites on a we.inc address, with no AI credits and no custom domain. Paid plans are Starter at $20 a month, Pro at $50 and Max at $99. See pricing.

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