Grammarly vs Hemingway Editor for Blog Editing in 2026

Two Editing Philosophies

Grammarly and Hemingway Editor both improve your writing, but they focus on different aspects. Grammarly catches grammar, spelling, punctuation, and tone issues. Hemingway focuses on readability — eliminating complex sentences, passive voice, and unnecessary adverbs. For bloggers, both serve important but distinct roles.

Feature Comparison

Feature	Grammarly	Hemingway Editor	Winner
Grammar checking	Comprehensive AI	Basic only	Grammarly
Spelling	Advanced with context	No spell check	Grammarly
Readability score	Basic score	Grade-level scoring	Hemingway
Sentence complexity	Flags some issues	Color-coded highlights	Hemingway
Passive voice	Detects	Highlights prominently	Hemingway
Adverb overuse	Limited detection	Highlights all adverbs	Hemingway
Tone detection	Detailed tone meter	Not available	Grammarly
AI rewriting	Sentence-level rewrites	AI editing mode	Grammarly
Browser extension	Works everywhere	Web app only	Grammarly
Desktop app	Yes	Yes ($19.99 one-time)	Tie
Price	Free / $12 mo	Free (web) / $19.99	Hemingway

Grammar and Correctness

Grammarly is vastly superior for grammar checking. It catches subject-verb agreement, comma splices, dangling modifiers, and contextual spelling errors. Hemingway Editor has minimal grammar checking — it’s not designed for that purpose.

Readability and Clarity

Hemingway Editor excels at readability. It color-codes your text: yellow for hard-to-read sentences, red for very hard sentences, blue for adverbs, green for passive voice, and purple for simpler word alternatives. This visual approach makes it immediately clear where your writing needs simplification.

For bloggers, readability is critical. Most successful blogs target a grade 6-8 reading level. Hemingway’s grade-level scoring gives you a clear target.

Blog-Specific Value

Blog posts need to be scannable, clear, and engaging. Hemingway’s readability focus directly addresses this. Grammarly ensures correctness. Using both produces blog posts that are both error-free and easy to read.

Best Blog Editing Workflow

1. Write your draft without editing (get ideas down first)
2. Paste into Hemingway — simplify complex sentences, remove passive voice, cut adverbs. Aim for grade 6-8.
3. Run through Grammarly — fix grammar, spelling, punctuation, and tone
4. Final read-through — read aloud to catch anything tools missed

Pricing Comparison

• Hemingway Web: Free forever — sufficient for most bloggers
• Hemingway Desktop: $19.99 one-time purchase — offline editing
• Grammarly Free: Basic grammar and spelling
• Grammarly Premium: $12/month — full editing suite with tone and style

Best budget option: Hemingway Web (free) + Grammarly Free = $0/month for solid blog editing.

Our Recommendation

Use both tools together for the best blog editing workflow. Hemingway for readability, Grammarly for correctness. The combination produces cleaner, more engaging blog posts than either tool alone.

If you can only choose one: Grammarly for grammar-heavy writing. Hemingway for readability-focused content.