Is Grammarly Premium Worth It? A Copywriter’s Review

I’ve been using Grammarly since its inception and using Grammarly Premium for several years. My clients and copywriting course-takers ask me frequently if the price of Grammarly Premium is worth it.

Grammarly Premium isn’t a good investment for everyone. But, if it IS a good fit for you, you’ll never want to be without it.

Let’s break it down.

What is Grammarly Premium?

Grammarly Premium is the paid version of Grammarly, an AI writing tool that works as a spell checker, grammar checker, proofreading tool, plagiarism checker, and writing assistant all in one.  

While the free version of Grammarly can check for basic spelling and grammar mistakes, Grammarly Premium is a chock-full of features that can help you fine-tune your writing so that your writing is as effective as possible. 

What’s the Difference Between the Free Version of Grammarly & Grammarly Premium?

So, what do you get with the premium version of Grammarly?

Turns out, a lot. Grammarly morphs from a simple spelling and grammar checker to an all-out writing power tool for $12 bucks a month. 

Let’s compare free Grammarly and Grammarly Premium features:

Feature	Grammarly (Free Version)	Grammarly Premium
Spelling & Grammar Checking	✔	✔
Spelling consistency		✔
Punctuation consistency		✔
English language fluency		✔
Checks conciseness	✔	✔
Formatting checker		✔
Suggests full-sentence rewrites		✔
Word choice suggestions		✔
Inclusive language suggestions		✔
Word variety suggestions		✔
Tone detection	✔	✔
Tone suggestions(confident, diplomatic, friendly, constructive, formal, sincere)		✔
Auto citations	✔	✔
Citation Style		✔
Plagiarism detection		✔
Multiple roles and accounts		✔

The basic version of Grammarly is limited to about the same thing you can do in Google docs, with the addition of checking conciseness and tone detection.

Grammarly Premium, on the other hand, is feature-rich, making life easier for anyone who uses writing to communicate professionally and needs something heftier than a basic grammar checker.

Is Grammarly Premium Good for Professional Writers?

Most people use some form of written communication in their jobs, but that’s vastly different from actually writing for a living. Bloggers, content writers, copywriters, and marketers can all benefit from upgrading to Grammarly Premium, but there are limitations in what it can do–especially when it comes to copywriting. 

Should Copywriters Use Grammarly Premium?

In copywriting, conventional grammar rules often go out the window in favor of speaking to your audience in a more relatable fashion.

Remember, artificial intelligence is just that: artificial. The tool is powerful, but it’s going to pick up grammatical errors that you wrote intentionally for the purpose of slang, personality, or audience relatability. Grammarly may be able to understand tone, but it doesn’t understand nuance or customer voice. 

Copywriters can definitely benefit from using Grammarly Premium for better readability, its word variety suggestions, inclusive language suggestions, and full-sentence rewrites (especially if you tend to get a little wordy). 

At the end of the day, as a copywriter, you understand how best to speak to your audience. 

Grammarly isn’t always right, and it isn’t always good, but its functionality can definitely help you polish your writing (and pick up those pesky typos or extra commas). 

Does Grammarly Premium Make You a Better Writer?

As a byproduct of using Grammarly Premium, you’ll improve your writing skills. As you use the tool, you’ll start to recognize things like word repetition in your writing, and you’ll find yourself subbing out your go-to words for synonyms on your own. 

How Much Does Grammarly Premium Cost?

At the time of this writing, the premium version of Grammarly costs breaks down into yearly, quarterly, and monthly plans, with discounts if you pay a year or quarter in full.

You can pay $12 a month ($144 a year) to save the most money or pay $30/per month if you want to go month-to-month. Quarterly plans are billed four times a year at $60.

Where Can You Use Grammarly Premium?

Grammarly Premium is available as a desktop app, in the web browser on their website, or as a browser extension in Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Firefox, and Safari, allowing users to use the tool in real time. Grammarly is also available as an add-on for MS Word, an extension for Google Docs, and has a keyboard app for both Android and iOS.

Other Frequently Asked Questions About Grammarly (Both Free & Paid Versions)

Who is Grammarly Business For?

Grammarly Premium and Grammarly Business have the same writing functionality, but the Business version has added security features and functions for teams, such as style guides, reusable phrases, brand tones, and an analytics dashboard.

If you have multiple people on your team and want to use Grammarly for both internal and external communication, Grammarly Business might be the best choice for you.

Otherwise, Grammarly Premium does everything you need a writing assistant to do.

Is Grammarly an AI Writing Tool?

By definition, yes, Grammarly is artificial intelligence. Remember: while artificial intelligence can be helpful, it’s fallible, and you should always double (or triple) check your work before publishing.

Does Grammarly Work for Languages Other Than English?

Right now, Grammarly only supports the English language but can recognize different spelling and grammatical rules across American, Australian, British, and Canadian English.

Is Grammarly Reliable?

For ease of use, yes, Grammarly is a reliable tool for writers who want to spell check, grammar check, or proofread their work, as well as make sure their writing is as readable and polished as possible. But Grammarly isn’t perfect. It does its best, but it’s still software, and anything you run through Grammarly still needs the human touch.

What are the Cons of Using Grammarly?

As much as I love Grammarly Premium, like I’ve said a few times in this post, it’s not perfect. It does have a few bugs and nuances that can really screw up your writing process if you don’t know how to avoid them. 

For example, I find that the Google Docs add-on isn’t as extensive as using their desktop app or their web browser. And if you paste from a Google Doc or Word document into Grammarly to check it, it can totally screw up your formatting when you paste the edited version back in your original doc.

Not to mention, its suggestions are sometimes just…wonky. For example, when I run this piece through Grammarly Premium, this is one of the suggestions I get:

I mean, it’s not WRONG that those are synonyms of “basic,” but using their suggestions would change the meaning of what I’m writing.

You definitely don’t want to just go through and accept any and all suggestions just to get the “grade” up higher. Sometimes the synonyms it suggests don’t fit with what you’re writing, and if you get to “accept suggestion” happy, it can suck the personality right out of your writing.

But, it’s a tool, it’s not a writer. You’re the writer. AI is only as useful as the person using it is knowledgeable. 

Is the Free Version of Grammarly Worth It?

If you need a tool to check for spelling errors, basic grammatical mistakes, or punctuation errors, the free version of Grammarly is all you need. 

But, if you want a grammar-checking tool to aid in vocabulary enhancement, improve sentence structure, or help you eliminate passive voice, go with the premium plan. 

Bottom Line: Is it Worth Paying for Grammarly Premium?

If all you need is a basic writing assistant, no.

But, if you’re a professional writer, your income depends on delivering a good product. Grammarly Premium will enhance your writing and help you create polished, publish-ready pieces. 

If you write because you have to, save your money. If you write because it’s what you do and you want it to be as good as possible, invest in Grammarly Premium yesterday.

*Note: this post was NOT sponsored by Grammarly, even though it totally should be. Hit me up, duuuuudes.