Writing can be extremely time consuming depending on how documents are reviewed at an organization. Most organizations have a editorial style which writers have to follow. Fortunately, there’s software which helps writers achieve a consistent tone and style which reduces the time it takes for the review process to be completed.
This type of software is known as a prose linter. It checks your text for errors helping to identify common issues such as excessive use of jargon, language errors, incorrect capitalization, and much more.
This roundup picks our favourite linters. All of the software is published under an open source license.
Here’s our verdict captured in a legendary LinuxLinks-style ratings chart.
Let’s explore the 10 tools. For each program we have compiled its own portal page, a full description with an in-depth analysis of its features, together with links to relevant resources.
| Linters | |
|---|---|
| LanguageTool | Style and grammar checker for 30+ languages |
| Vale | Write with a consistent tone and style |
| ALE | Asynchronous Lint Engine |
| textlint | Pluggable linting tool for text and markdown |
| Harper | English grammar checker designed to be just right |
| proselint | As the name suggests, this is a linter for prose |
| alex | Catch insensitive, inconsiderate writing |
| write good | Linter for English prose |
| Eloquent | Works fully offline, powered by the LanguageTool standalone server |
| RedPen | Provides both a simple standalone command line tool and a server |
This article has been updated to reflect the changes outlined in our recent announcement.
 Explore our comprehensive directory of recommended free and open source software. Our carefully curated collection spans every major software category.This directory is part of our ongoing series of informative articles for Linux enthusiasts. It features hundreds of detailed reviews, along with open source alternatives to proprietary solutions from major corporations such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk. You’ll also find interesting projects to try, hardware coverage, free programming books and tutorials, and much more. Know a useful open source Linux program that we haven’t covered yet? Let us know by completing this form. |