How to Use Grammarly & Microsoft Editor to Fix Grammar Fast

Nothing undermines your credibility faster than a simple typo. Whether you’re a student submitting an essay, a professional sending an important email, or a blogger publishing a new article, grammar mistakes can make your work seem careless. While a thorough manual proofread is always a good idea, it’s easy to miss errors, especially when you’re short on time.

This is where AI-powered writing assistants come in. Tools like Grammarly and Microsoft Editor act as a second pair of eyes, catching everything from misplaced commas to complex stylistic issues. They offer real-time suggestions to help you polish your writing, making it clear, correct, and impactful.

If you’re looking for a reliable grammar checker to improve your writing, you’ve come across Grammarly and Microsoft Editor. Both are powerful proofreading tools, but they have different strengths. This guide will walk you through what each tool offers, how to use them, and how they can help you fix grammar errors quickly.

What is Grammarly?

Grammarly is one of the most popular writing assistants available today. It goes beyond basic spell-checking to offer comprehensive feedback on grammar, punctuation, style, and tone. It’s available as a browser extension, a desktop app, a mobile keyboard, and an add-in for Microsoft Word, making it easy to use across different platforms.

Grammarly provides suggestions as you write, underlining potential errors in red (for spelling and grammar), blue (for clarity), green (for engagement), and purple (for tone). This color-coded system helps you quickly identify and fix different types of issues.

Grammarly Features and Pricing

Grammarly offers several plans to suit different needs:

• Free Plan: The free version is a powerful grammar checker that covers the basics. It catches spelling mistakes, grammar errors, and punctuation issues. It also provides a tone detector, which analyzes your word choice and phrasing to identify the tone of your message (e.g., confident, friendly, or formal).
• Premium Plan: Starting at $12/month, the Premium plan unlocks advanced features. These include suggestions for improving clarity, sentence variety, and vocabulary. It also includes a plagiarism checker, which is particularly useful for students and content creators.
• Business Plan: Designed for teams, the Business Plan includes everything in Premium, plus features like a style guide, brand tones, and analytics. Pricing starts at $15 per member/month.

What is Microsoft Editor?

Microsoft Editor is Microsoft’s answer to Grammarly. Built directly into Microsoft 365 apps like Word and Outlook, it also has a standalone browser extension for Chrome and Edge. As a native Microsoft product, its integration with Word is seamless, providing a smooth user experience for those who primarily work within the Microsoft ecosystem.

Editor checks for grammar, spelling, and style issues, providing suggestions to help you write with more confidence. It gives your document an “Editor Score” based on the number and type of suggested corrections, making it easy to see where your writing can be improved.

Microsoft Editor Features and Pricing

Microsoft Editor’s features are tied to your Microsoft 365 subscription:

• Free Version: If you have a Microsoft account, you get free access to basic spelling and grammar checks in Word for the web and through the browser extension.
• Microsoft 365 Subscription: A Microsoft 365 subscription (starting at $6.99/month for Personal or $99.99/year for Family) unlocks Editor’s premium features. These include advanced checks for clarity, conciseness, formality, and vocabulary. It also provides a similarity checker (powered by Bing) to help you avoid plagiarism.

How to Use Grammarly

Getting started with Grammarly is a straightforward process. Here’s how you can set it up and begin improving your writing.

Installing Grammarly

You can use Grammarly in several ways, but the browser extension and Microsoft Word add-in are the most common.

To install the browser extension:

1. Visit the Grammarly website and click the button to add it to your browser (Chrome, Safari, Firefox, or Edge).
2. You will be redirected to your browser’s extension store. Click “Add to [Browser]” and follow the prompts.
3. Once installed, you’ll see the Grammarly “G” icon in your browser’s toolbar. Sign up or log in to your Grammarly account.

To install the add-in for Microsoft Word:

1. Go to the Grammarly for Microsoft Office page on their website.
2. Download the installer and run it. Make sure Word and Outlook are closed during installation.
3. Once installed, open Word, and you’ll see a new “Grammarly” tab in the ribbon. Click “Open Grammarly” and log in.

Using Grammarly to Improve Your Writing

Once Grammarly is active, it will automatically check your text.

1. Review Suggestions: As you type, Grammarly will underline potential issues. Click on an underlined word or phrase to see the suggestion.
2. Accept or Dismiss: A pop-up will explain the error and offer a one-click correction. You can accept the change by clicking on it. If you disagree with the suggestion, you can dismiss it by clicking the trash can icon.
3. Understand the “Why”: For many suggestions, Grammarly provides a brief explanation of the grammar rule. This helps you learn from your mistakes and improve your writing skills over time.
4. Set Goals: With Grammarly Premium, you can set writing goals based on your audience, formality, and intent. This customizes the feedback to suit your specific needs better.

How to Use Microsoft Editor

If you’re already a Microsoft 365 user, using Editor is incredibly simple.

Installing Microsoft Editor

For Word and Outlook users, Editor is already built in. For web use, you’ll need the browser extension.

To install the browser extension:

1. Go to the Microsoft Editor page in the Chrome Web Store or Microsoft Edge Add-ons store.
2. Click “Add to Chrome” or “Get” for Edge.
3. Sign in with your Microsoft account to sync your settings and access premium features if you have a Microsoft 365 subscription.

Using Microsoft Editor to Improve Your Writing

Using the Editor within Microsoft Word is the most common experience.

1. Open the Editor Pane: In a Word document, go to the “Home” tab and click the “Editor” button, or look for the Editor icon in the bottom status bar. This will open the Editor pane on the right side of your screen.
2. Check Your Editor Score: The pane displays an overall Editor Score, with categories for Corrections (spelling, grammar) and Refinements (clarity, conciseness).
3. Address Suggestions: Click on a category, such as “Grammar,” to see the list of suggestions. Word will navigate you to each error in the document.
4. Accept or Ignore: For each suggestion, you can click on the suggested change to apply it or choose to “Ignore” it. The editor also provides a “Read Aloud” option to hear the sentence, which can help you catch awkward phrasing.

Supercharge Your Proofreading

Both Grammarly and Microsoft Editor are excellent writing assistants that can help you produce clean, professional content. Grammarly offers more extensive integrations and in-depth style feedback, making it a favorite among professional writers and content creators. Microsoft Editor provides a seamlessly experience for those who live in the Microsoft ecosystem, with powerful features available through a Microsoft 365 subscription.

The best proofreading tool is the one that fits your workflow. Why not try both? The free versions of Grammarly and Microsoft Editor are robust enough to catch most critical errors. Install their browser extensions today and see how a reliable grammar checker can transform your writing from good to great.