Check Readability vs Readability Analysis Tool (RAT)
Check Readability
checkreadability.comReadability Analysis Tool (RAT)
github.comSide by side
| Figure | Check Readability | Readability Analysis Tool (RAT) |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Readability Checkers | 8.6 (#2) | 7.6 (#17) |
| License | The reviewed pages do not state an open-source license or publish source code. | The project lists its license as GPLv3. |
| Purpose | CheckReadability analyzes pasted text and returns nine readability scores plus a consensus grade level. | RAT detects readability anomalies in text based on readability rules, similar to bug patterns in static code analysis. |
Plans
Readability Analysis Tool (RAT)
- Readability Analysis Tool (RAT)Free
In their own words
Check Readability
Check Readability analyzes pasted text and returns nine readability scores alongside a consensus grade level. The formulas include Automated Readability Index, Flesch Reading Ease, Gunning Fog, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, Coleman-Liau, SMOG, LINSEAR Write, FORCAST and New Dale-Chall. The web analyzer gives feedback on complexity, sentence length and word choice. A Chrome extension adds a native Side Panel, full-page or selected-text extraction and interactive formula breakdowns; scoring happens locally without transmitting page content or selected text. Text submitted to the website is sent over an encrypted connection and kept in memory only while scores are calculated. The site says analyzed text is not logged or stored, while Google Analytics is used for page visits and browser-related information. Check Readability is free, requires no account and permits personal and commercial use. The product says readable content can support accessibility and search rankings. Its scores are statistical estimates and cannot determine whether writing is accurate, logical, appropriate or well argued. The extension supports System, Light and Dark interface modes.
Readability Analysis Tool (RAT)
Readability Analysis Tool (RAT) checks German text for readability anomalies using configurable rules. It accepts .docx files and marks detected issues as comments in a separate copy with a -rat.docx suffix, leaving the original intact. RAT also creates an HTML report with statistics, readability formulas, anomalies, and a quality gate indicating whether text may be too trivial or difficult. Its documented formulas are Flesch and Wiener Sachtextformel. Report details can include reading and speaking time, sentence and word counts, average word and sentence measures, common parts of speech, and configured keyword percentages. Users can adjust anomaly rules and thresholds; the report records anomalies they reject as false positives or mark as incorporated. RAT runs from the command line using a Java JAR, with configuration and output-directory options. The project lists performance of 40 seconds for 10,000 words, or 50 pages. It runs on Linux and Windows, uses Java, UIMA, and DKPro Core, and is licensed under GPLv3.