Question 1

What is the Flesch-Kincaid grade level?

Accepted Answer

Flesch-Kincaid grade level translates your text into a U.S. school grade. A score of 8.0 means an eighth-grader can understand it. Aim for 6-8 for the general public, 10-12 for high-school readers, and 14+ for academic and professional audiences.

Question 2

Which readability formula should I use?

Accepted Answer

For everyday writing, Flesch Reading Ease (higher = easier) is the most intuitive. For matching an audience grade level, Flesch-Kincaid is standard. For business and academic prose, Gunning Fog is more strict. Use this tool to compare all six at once.

Question 3

What is a good readability score?

Accepted Answer

It depends on the audience. For general web copy and marketing, aim for Flesch 60-70 (Plain English, 8th-9th grade). For novels and consumer articles, 70-80 (Fairly Easy) is ideal. For technical documentation, 30-50 is acceptable.

Question 4

How does the SMOG index differ from Flesch?

Accepted Answer

SMOG is based purely on the count of words with 3+ syllables in a 30-sentence sample. It tends to give slightly higher grade levels than Flesch-Kincaid and is recommended by the U.S. government for healthcare materials.

Question 5

Is my text private?

Accepted Answer

Yes. All six readability formulas are computed locally in your browser using JavaScript. No text is uploaded or stored.