Archie vs Grammarly vs LanguageTool: feature-by-feature comparison (2026)
Archie, Grammarly, and LanguageTool compared feature by feature: where they run, offline support, voice dictation, languages, price, and when to pick each one.
Archie, Grammarly, and LanguageTool are three writing assistants built around fundamentally different models. Archie is a desktop app for Mac and Windows that works across every application via a keyboard shortcut (no browser extension required), with offline voice dictation included free. Grammarly is browser-and-cloud-first with the deepest English style engine, tone detection, and a plagiarism checker. LanguageTool is a browser extension that covers 30+ languages and offers a generous free tier. Key takeaways:
- Grammarly wins on English style depth, tone detection, plagiarism, and brand polish.
- LanguageTool wins on multilingual coverage and free tier generosity.
- Archie wins on cross-app desktop reach (any app on Mac or Windows), free + unlimited offline voice dictation, and Mac + Windows parity.
Why compare these three tools
Grammarly and LanguageTool are the two most recognized grammar tools, and the default choices when someone starts looking for a writing assistant. They cover the same core need but differ sharply in architecture: Grammarly is cloud-first and English-centric; LanguageTool is a browser extension with broad language support and a free tier.
Archie sits in a different lane entirely. It is a desktop app rather than a browser extension, which means it works in native apps (Slack, VS Code, Notion, Mail, Figma, terminal) where browser extensions simply cannot reach. It also ships free offline voice dictation, which neither Grammarly nor LanguageTool offers.
Comparing the three makes sense because choosing between them is genuinely consequential: they serve overlapping needs (fixing and reformulating text) but deliver them through architectures that fit different ways of working. This article lays out the differences with a full feature table and a clear "when to pick which" guide.
Full feature comparison
| Feature | Archie | Grammarly | LanguageTool |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | Desktop app, Mac + Windows: works in any app, any field | Browser extension + desktop wrapper (Electron-based); Word/Outlook add-in | Browser extension; web editor |
| Offline support | Voice dictation: fully offline (on-device Parakeet model). Correction: cloud. | No offline mode | No offline mode |
| Voice dictation | Yes: free, unlimited, on-device, typed directly into any app | No | No |
| Desktop vs browser | Desktop app: works in Slack, VS Code, Word, Notion, Mail, terminal, any native app | Works per app integration: browser extension + separate Word/Outlook add-in; limited outside those | Browser extension only; no native app reach |
| Languages | 50+ languages for correction | English (US, UK, AU, CA dialects) | 30+ languages including German, French, Dutch, Spanish, Portuguese |
| Price (starting) | Free (voice dictation); Pro at €4.90/mo (correction + reformulation) | $12/mo (Premium) | Free (browser); Premium at ~$4.99/mo |
| Open source | No | No | No |
| Style depth | Good: LLM-backed correction and tone reformulation | Excellent: deepest English style engine in the category; clarity, engagement, delivery suggestions | Good on grammar; lighter on style suggestions vs Grammarly |
| Tone detection | Tone-based reformulation presets (email, professional, casual, summary) | Yes: automated tone detector with per-sentence sentiment analysis | No |
| Plagiarism check | No | Yes (Premium+) | No |
Tool by tool
Archie: the cross-app desktop assistant
Archie is a system-wide AI writing assistant for Mac and Windows that corrects and reformulates text in any app via a keyboard shortcut, with offline voice dictation as a free secondary feature.
In practice: you select text in any app (a Slack message, a GitHub comment, a Notion page, an Excel cell, even the address bar of a browser), press a keyboard shortcut, and Archie either corrects the selection in place or rewrites it in the tone you picked. Without a selection, the same shortcut starts voice dictation: audio is transcribed locally by an on-device Parakeet model and typed wherever your cursor is. Nothing is uploaded. The model runs on your machine, which is why the feature is free and unlimited: there is no cloud bill per minute.
What Archie does not have: Grammarly's depth of English style suggestions or a plagiarism checker. Pro features (correction and reformulation) are cloud-based and require connectivity. Voice dictation is the one fully offline capability.
The full product brief is on the home page and the features section. Pricing is at the pricing section.
Archie wins when: you write across multiple native apps throughout the day, you want voice dictation without a subscription, or you want a single tool that works on Mac and Windows without browser extensions.
Grammarly: the English style coach
Grammarly is the category standard for English writing quality. Its grammar engine has been trained on a large corpus of English text and produces suggestions that go well beyond typo correction: it flags passive voice overuse, unclear sentence structure, wordiness, hedging language, and register mismatches. Its tone detector reads the emotional signal of a message and flags when the tone might land differently than intended. Its plagiarism checker compares selected text against a web index.
For English-native or English-primary writers who live in a browser, Google Docs, or Microsoft Office, Grammarly is hard to beat. Its integration with Word and Outlook via a native add-in (not an Electron wrapper) is genuinely good. The "writing goals" feature, which lets you set audience, formality, and domain, produces noticeably more targeted suggestions than a generic grammar pass.
The limits: it is English-only (dialect variants do not amount to multilingual support), it has no offline mode, the Mac/Windows desktop app is a wrapper around the same web product rather than a native integration, and $12/month is the highest entry price in this comparison.
Grammarly wins when: you write primarily in English, in a browser or in Office, and you want the deepest style coaching and a plagiarism checker. It is also the safest pick for professional contexts where English polish is a hard requirement.
LanguageTool: the multilingual browser extension
LanguageTool is a browser extension built for multilingual grammar checking. It supports 30+ languages with strong coverage of European languages, particularly German, French, Dutch, Spanish, and Portuguese, where Grammarly is weak or absent.
The free tier is generous: the browser extension works with no account, covers all supported languages, and catches a solid range of grammar and style issues. The Premium tier adds an AI-based paraphrase feature, more style rules, and a personal dictionary. At around $4.99/month it is significantly cheaper than Grammarly.
The trade-offs: LanguageTool is browser-only (extension or web editor) and does not reach native desktop apps. There is no voice dictation, and the AI reformulation layer is less capable than an LLM-backed tool like Archie or Grammarly. Style suggestions in English do not reach Grammarly's depth.
LanguageTool wins when: you write in multiple European languages, or you want a free grammar checker with no account required and spend most of your time writing in a browser.
How they compare on the things that actually matter
Where the tool runs
This is the biggest practical differentiator and the one comparison tables usually underplay.
Grammarly and LanguageTool are fundamentally browser extensions. Each integration is app-specific: Grammarly adds a Word/Outlook add-in on top of its browser extension; LanguageTool stays browser-only. When you write in a native Mac or Windows app (Mail, Calendar, Messages, Slack's desktop app, Figma comments, VS Code), these tools either do not reach at all or require copy-pasting text into a separate panel.
Archie is a desktop app, not a browser extension. It reads the text you select in any app, native or browser, and processes it via a keyboard shortcut. No extension, no context switch, no copy-paste. Because it operates at the desktop level, it works in applications that no browser extension can touch.
If your writing lives in Google Docs and Gmail, the distinction does not matter much. If you regularly write in a mix of native apps, it matters a lot.
Offline and privacy
None of the three tools is fully offline for its main correction features. All three send text to servers for AI-backed processing. The distinction is in one edge:
- Archie's voice dictation is fully offline (on-device Parakeet model, nothing uploaded). Correction and reformulation require connectivity.
- Grammarly has no offline option.
- LanguageTool has no offline option.
For anyone who wants offline transcription without a cloud subscription, Archie is the only answer among these three. For general correction, all three require connectivity.
Price
| Free tier | Paid | |
|---|---|---|
| Archie | Voice dictation, unlimited | €4.90/mo (Pro) |
| LanguageTool | Browser grammar, all languages | ~$4.99/mo (Premium) |
| Grammarly | Basic grammar, English only | $12/mo (Premium) |
Archie and LanguageTool are priced within a few dollars of each other at the paid tier. Grammarly is 2–2.5x more expensive.
When to pick which
Pick Archie if you want a single writing assistant that follows you across every app (native and browser) without installing extensions, and you want offline voice dictation as a free, unlimited feature. Archie is also the right pick if you use Mac and Windows interchangeably and want parity on both. The Pro plan at €4.90/mo unlocks AI correction and reformulation; voice is always free. Start on the home page or compare plans at the pricing section.
Pick Grammarly if you write primarily in English, in a browser or in Microsoft Office, and you want the most thorough English style coaching available. Grammarly's tone detector, engagement suggestions, and plagiarism checker are unmatched in the category. At $12/month it is the highest-priced option here, but for English-first professional writers it earns its cost. If you have been a Grammarly user and are looking for alternatives, the Grammarly alternatives in 2026 roundup covers seven tools including Archie, LanguageTool, ProWritingAid, and more.
Pick LanguageTool if you write in multiple languages, particularly European languages where Grammarly does not operate. The free tier is the most generous of the three: the browser extension works with no account and covers all supported languages. It is the natural pick if you spend most of your time writing in a browser and need solid multilingual grammar checking without a paid subscription.
Where to go from here
- See how Archie's system-wide shortcut works on the home page and features section.
- Compare Archie's plans at the pricing section. Voice dictation is free forever.
- Read the FAQ for questions on privacy, offline behavior, and supported apps.
- Browse all comparison articles on the blog.
- For a broader roundup, read the 7 best Grammarly alternatives in 2026.
- For a deeper look at Archie's offline voice, see offline voice dictation on Mac in 2026.
- For a direct head-to-head on system-wide voice assistants, see Archie vs Wispr Flow.
- For more on Archie's architecture, see how Archie works.