Comparison
ESL Humanizer vs Grammarly: which is better for non-native English writers?
By ESL Humanizer editorial team · Prices and limits checked September 2026
Short answer
Grammarly is the better all-day grammar checker, and its free humanizer is fine for polishing AI drafts. If you wrote the text yourself and want it to sound natural without changing your meaning — and to see every change — ESL Humanizer is built for exactly that job.
Grammarly is a grammar and writing assistant that also offers a free AI humanizer for rewriting AI-generated drafts. ESL Humanizer rewrites English that non-native speakers wrote themselves so it reads naturally, without changing the meaning. ESL Humanizer is our product, so we’ve kept its row to verifiable facts; Grammarly’s details come from its own website and can change — check before you pay.
At a glance
| ESL Humanizer | Grammarly | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | ESL writing editor | Grammar & writing assistant |
| Built for | Polishing English you wrote yourself | Correcting grammar and tone as you write; its humanizer rewrites AI-generated text |
| On AI detectors | Shows an estimate, never a guarantee | Says its humanizer is “not intended to bypass AI detectors” |
| Shows each change | Yes — word by word, plus a meaning score | Inline suggestions for grammar; the humanizer returns a rewritten version |
| Free option | 1 rewrite a day (2 when signed in), up to 1,500 characters (~250 words) each | Grammar and spelling checks, 100 AI prompts a month, basic free humanizer |
| Paid from | $24.95/month or $89 for 4 months | Pro from $12/month |
What Grammarly does well
- Works everywhere you type through browser and desktop extensions
- Excellent at spelling, punctuation and basic grammar
- Clear about responsible AI use: it does not market its humanizer as a way around detectors
Where Grammarly falls short for non-native writers
- Its humanizer is designed for AI-generated text, not for a non-native writer's own draft
- Sentence rewrites and the AI detector sit behind the Pro plan
- Accepting many small suggestions can still leave phrasing that sounds translated
What ESL Humanizer does differently
- ESL Humanizer rewrites your own paragraph as a whole, so word order and idiom get fixed — not just individual errors.
- Every rewrite comes with a word-by-word diff and a meaning score, so you can check nothing was invented.
- Our AI-detection check is shown as an estimate before and after, never as a promise.
Which should you choose?
Choose Grammarly if…
- You want real-time grammar help in email, Docs and every browser field
- You mostly need spelling and punctuation fixes rather than natural phrasing
Choose ESL Humanizer if…
- Your English is correct but sounds non-native, and you worry about being flagged as AI
- You need to prove to yourself that the meaning of your essay or letter didn't change
A note on AI detectors
No tool can guarantee how an AI detector will score your text. In a peer-reviewed Stanford study, seven detectors labeled 61% of human-written TOEFL essays as AI-generated on average, and independent tests have found detectors disagree with one another. Natural English you wrote — plus drafts that show your process — is the most reliable protection. Read more about why detectors flag ESL writing.
Wrote it yourself? Make it sound natural.
Paste a paragraph. ESL Humanizer fixes non-native phrasing, keeps your meaning and highlights every change — free for up to ~250 words.
Quick answers
Is Grammarly's AI humanizer free?
Yes — Grammarly offers a basic AI humanizer for free on its website. Full-sentence rewrites inside the editor and its AI detector are part of Grammarly Pro.
Does Grammarly's humanizer get past AI detectors?
Grammarly itself says the tool is not intended to bypass AI detectors. No humanizer can guarantee a detector result, and different detectors disagree with each other.
Can I use Grammarly and ESL Humanizer together?
Yes. A common workflow is to rewrite a paragraph for natural phrasing with ESL Humanizer, check the diff, then run Grammarly for final spelling and punctuation.