Grammarly vs Paperpal

Two fact sheets from our own research, side by side — pricing, platforms, API access and status re-checked by us rather than quoted from the vendors.

The short answer

Free plan: Both have one
Higher Trust score: Grammarly — 94 vs 82 for Paperpal
Best fit: Grammarly: Anyone writing in a browser, Word or email who wants corrections in place · Paperpal: Researchers preparing manuscripts for journal submission
Platforms: Grammarly: Web, Chrome extension, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android · Paperpal: Web, Chrome extension
Status: Both up at our last check — Grammarly Oct 16, 2026, Paperpal Oct 29, 2026

From our own records as of each tool's last check. Anything we have not confirmed is left out rather than guessed. How we verify

GrammarlyGrammar, tone and rewriting help inside every app

PaperpalAcademic writing assistant with grammar, plagiarism, AI-detection and journal-fit checks, plus paper search and citations.

Side by side

Fact	Grammarly	Paperpal
Category	Grammar & Proofreading	Grammar & Proofreading
Pricing model	Freemium	Freemium
Starts at	$12/mo	—
Trust score	94 / 100	82 / 100
Platforms	Web, Chrome extension, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android	Web, Chrome extension
Company	Superhuman	Cactus Communications
Launched	2009	2020
Last verified	Oct 16, 2026	Oct 29, 2026

What our research says

Grammarly

Still the default for catching mistakes inside other people's software, but the free tier has quietly become an AI-prompt meter and the honest price is $30 unless you commit to a full year.

Pros

Runs inside the apps people already write in rather than as a separate editor
Free tier still covers spelling, grammar and tone detection with no time limit
Pro folds in plagiarism and AI-text detection that rivals charge for separately

Cons

The $12 headline is the annual rate; paying monthly costs $30
Free AI allowance is 100 prompts a month and depletes quickly
No public API, so it cannot be embedded in another product
Enterprise pricing is not published anywhere on the site

Paperpal

Paperpal suits non-native English researchers and graduate students who want language editing and submission checks shaped by academic publishing rather than general business writing. People writing marketing copy or casual text, or who want a free plan for heavy use, will hit its focus and its tight free limits.

Pros

Suggestions tuned to academic style rather than general prose
Pre-submission checks for plagiarism, AI text, references and journal fit in one place
Works inside Word, Google Docs and Overleaf
Research search and citation generation alongside the editor

Cons

Free plan is limited to 200 grammar edits a month and lite reports
Prices are shown only after regional detection, which makes comparing plans harder
Plagiarism checks are capped by words per month even on Pro

Which one fits

Choose Grammarly if you need

Anyone writing in a browser, Word or email who wants corrections in place
Teams enforcing a house style guide across people who are not writers
Non-native English speakers who want fluency rewrites, not just error flags

Choose Paperpal if you need

Researchers preparing manuscripts for journal submission
Graduate students writing theses who want plagiarism and reference checks before review
Non-native English academics who need tone and grammar editing in Word or Overleaf