Can a free plagiarism checker help you tighten your writing, even when you’re covering a similar topic to someone else? Over the years, I’ve used paid plagiarism checkers of all kinds to verify everything from essays to blog posts. They can be helpful when avoiding copying content.
In an age where mass production of content is condoned, it’s incredibly tempting to copy or regurgitate someone’s work to keep up. But the last thing you want is someone to point out the plagiarized material.
Whether it’s a blog post, essay, book, or video script, don’t be one of those bottom feeders who try to capitalize on the hard work of others.
5 Free Plagiarism Checker Tools You Can Use Right Now!
It’s never a good idea to outright copy text. However, there are times when the topic is so thin that it’s easy to write something similar. For instance, there are only so many ways you can write a tutorial about installing the WPForms plugin in WordPress.
Yet, there are ways you can make it your own, differentiating it from someone else’s work.
Keep in mind that I am only showing free plagiarism checkers, not those that have free trials available. That means I’m ignoring apps that will scan your text but not provide a real report as to the problems it detects unless you pay to upgrade, such as Plagly. These are not real free detection apps.
So, what is the best online app to detect plagiarism for free?
1. Small SEO Tools
Small SEO Tools has a free plagiarism checker that has some potential. Although it slightly missed the mark in my test, it performed better than a lot of the other apps on the Internet.
For one thing, 100% of the text I scanned should have been plagiarized from a single source. Instead, Small SEO Tools said only 81% was pulled from the single source, while the rest were from five other sites. That’s not entirely accurate, but it was better than most.
What’s nice about Small SEO Tools is that the checker also comes with a citation tool, grammar checker, and AI detection function. It’s not quite an all-in-one writing app, but it has a lot of flexibility.
Small SEO Tools also has a built-in Word Statistics function. This breaks down how many unique words you’re using, reading time, average word length, and more. What would make this function even better is if it gave you the Flesch Reading Ease score as well. But alas, they overlooked that valuable feature.
Like many other “free” plagiarism checkers, Small SEO Tools limits the number of words it will scan. In its free version, Small SEO Tools limits you to 1000 words. It’s better than some of the others I’ve seen, but not very practical for those who blog or write college essays.
I would point out that there is a WordPress plugin for your blog, but it hasn’t been updated in over a year. Using it would pose a security risk to your website.
Benefits of Using Small SEO Tools:
- No account or signup necessary
- Supports more than 20 languages
- You can cite a source instead of plagiarizing it
- Paraphrasing and grammar checking built in
- A lot of writing and website development tools also available
Cost to Upgrade and Why: Small SEO Tools starts at $9.80 per month unless you pay annually. However, it has a sliding scale pay rate where you can scan more words if you pay more. In other words, you can customize your payments according to your needs.
2. Dupli Checker
When tested, Dupli Checker worked flawlessly for providing an accurate report regarding plagiarism. Even when I pasted the about page from a very low-profile blog, the tool found the right information and displayed the results.
You can either paste the text directly into the provided field, upload a file from your computer, Dropbox, or Google Drive, or input the URL of the page you wish to scan.
One of the nice things about this particular free plagiarism checker is that you don’t need an account. You can just go to the website and start using the tool right away.
Dupli Checker also has a variety of other free tools, such as a fairly decent AI detection function, checking grammar, removing plagiarized content, and a very large assortment of other free apps. These range from website management to PDF tools and conversions.
The only real downside of the free version of Dupli Checker is that it only scans 1,000 words at a time. This isn’t too bad a restriction, as you can simply add sections of your material to the plagiarism checker. It’s just a bit time-consuming.
Benefits of Using Dupli Checker:
- An all-in-one content development platform
- Download plagiarism reports as PDF or Word documents
- Available in more than 15 languages
- Breaks down word counts, character counts, sentences, syllables, and even the read time
Cost to Upgrade and Why: Dupli Checker starts at $20 per month, but has a scaling system where you pay more if you need to go beyond 25,000 words at a time. This is probably better for those who plan to write a lot of content throughout any given week.
3. EssayPro
EssayPro has one of the best online plagiarism checker functions I’ve seen from the many I have tested. Although it was slightly off during one of the tests, recording 90% instead of 100%, it worked relatively well across the board for both blog posts and uploaded essays.
What’s curious is how the detection doesn’t flag the first and last words of most sentences as copies. It could be just how the format comes out, as I am pasting directly from a WordPress page.
This is another app that you don’t need to register or create an account to use. And it has one of the largest maximum requirements I’ve seen thus far, at a whopping 10MB doc, PDF, TXT, or DOCX file. To put the size into perspective, my latest book, Shadows of Atlantic City, is 310 pages long and more than 88,000 words and comes in at an 11.5MB file.
Although the plagiarism app doesn’t have an option for scanning URLs, it works quite well for pasting content or uploading files.
EssayPro also has a long list of tools for various needs, most of which are driven by generative AI. These are functions that I have no interest in trying or promoting.
Besides, I found the AI detector isn’t the most effective from EssayPro during various tests.
Benefits of Using EssayPro:
- No account necessary to scan very large files
- Relatively accurate results, especially with direct uploads
- Comes with lots of free tools to try for a variety of purposes
Cost to Upgrade and Why: EssayPro is completely free to use. The company makes money from hiring out writers for various purposes, so there are no subscription fees for using the tools.
I am on the fence about leaving EssayPro on this list because I am not a supporter of buying your essays. So, it’ll probably get replaced when I find a better alternative.
4. PlagiarismChecker.ai
You don’t need an account to test out PlagiarismChecker.ai. You can visit the site and start plugging in your text to scan it for both plagiarism and AI usage.
Although PlagiarismChecker.ai claims it’s fast, the app is probably one of the slowest scanners I tested. Plus, it wasn’t absolutely perfect, considering I copied and pasted the text directly from the website that it says I’m plagiarizing.
The app said 7% of my content was unique, which it most certainly was not.
In the grand scheme of things, PlagiarismChecker.ai performed better than many of the checkers that fell flat. And it shows which pages have the same text as the sample, which is convenient to a degree.
The drawback is that you can only scan 1000 words at a time. And some of the “Exact Matches” are pulled from other websites, which isn’t exactly plagiarizing a single piece of content. There are only so many ways you can describe certain people, places, or things.
In one test, PlagiarismChecker.ai pulled six-word parts of sentences from 12 different webpages and labeled the article 17% Plagiarized. In fact, none of those “sources” had anything to do with the topic of the blog post.
On a side note, the AI detection tool seems to work well enough.
Benefits of Using PlagiarismChecker.ai:
- Supports more than 10 languages
- No account necessary
- Paste, upload, or use URLs to scan (beware of 1000-word limit on webpage URLs)
- Option to check for AI-written text
Cost to Upgrade and Why: If you need to scan larger files or webpages, PlagiarismChecker.ai starts at $20 per month. This includes 61,000 words at a time with the Deep Plagiarism Check function. I’m just not a fan of the false positives from taking six-word segments from sites all over the Internet.
5. PaperPal
PaperPal is another platform that incorporates several writing tools along with its free plagiarism checker. Some of these include a translator, citing sources, and direct editing of the file. It’s not a terrible system, overall.
Unfortunately, you can only scan 7,000 words per month with the free version of PaperPal. If you don’t plan on writing a lot of essays or other content, that might be enough. However, I usually write around 19,000 words per week.
I would like to point out that the AI detection portion of PaperPal is completely off the mark. According to the report, 50% of the text I tested was AI-driven. I can tell you honestly that the report is false. I never use AI to do anything more than act as a spellchecker.
Part of me takes great offense to the report, actually.
Another minor failing of PaperPal is how it doesn’t handle online sources, such as web pages, very well. When I copied something directly from Search Engine Journal (a very respectable source), PaperPal only found a 73% to 79% similarity range using sources that were in addition to SEJ.
Benefits of Using PaperPal:
- Able to research and cite sources directly using AI search
- 200 “suggestions” per month to edit language for grammar
- Integration with Word and Google Docs
- Available Chrome extension
Cost to Upgrade and Why: You can upgrade PaperPal for $139 per year, which breaks down to $11.50 per month. If you’re writing a lot of content, it might be a worthwhile investment. However, the slight inaccuracies demonstrated with the online checker is a bit of a red flag for me.
Yet, you might have a different experience. At any rate, it doesn’t cost anything to give PaperPal a try yourself to see if it’s a good fit.
5 Free Plagiarism Checker Tools to Avoid, and Why
I tested a few dozen so-called free plagiarism checkers to build this list. Most apps would scan the text but hide the report unless you paid. Others were just flat-out broken or were so limited that they wouldn’t provide a practical use.
Now, I’m sure that a lot of the plagiarism checkers I tested work well in their paid versions. But remember, we’re looking for “free” tools here. And I hate it when brands label something as free and then make it unusable.
There were a few failures that stood out to me the most during these tests.
1. PapersOwl
When I tested PapersOwl, I had high hopes. The essay came back as 100% original. But when I tested the two blog posts, the results were anything but stellar.
For one thing, PapersOwl claimed that 20.9% of the text was original, which it clearly was not. I copied the text word-for-word. It should have reported that 100% of the text was similar.
When I tested it with another post, the results were even worse, stating that 91.2% of the post was original. Since PapersOwl displayed the correct URL for both blog posts, it knew from which page the text originated. Yet, in both cases, the results were quite disappointing.
Keep in mind that these were one-to-one direct compositions. The free plagiarism checker should have recorded an absolute copy. If an app is incapable of detecting text that it scans directly, then something is terribly wrong.
2. Grammarly Plagiarism Checker
I found two variations of the Grammarly Plagiarism Checker. One “free” version was locked behind a paywall if you want to see the results. The other failed testing by stating there was “No plagiarism found.” But Grammarly was quick to point out that there were grammatical issues in the testing samples.
Now, I use the Grammarly Chrome extension while writing blog posts and other content. It’s useful as a spellchecker and grammar tool, although I disabled the AI functions. However, I would never use the plagiarism aspect of Grammarly.
What’s funny is that the checker even states that it uses “advanced AI to detect plagiarism.” I guess the AI is still in developmental stages. Either way, that’s a solid no for me.
You’d think Grammarly, of all companies, would understand the importance of good plagiarism detection.
3. ChatGPT Plagiarism Checker
You’ve probably seen ChatGPT Plagiarism Checker show up on a few lists for “free.” However, it’s anything but, and it made me laugh when I first tried it.
First, you get a logo splash screen on ChatGPT that looks like an official “Plagiarism Checker.” But when queried on how to use the tool, I got a bit less than an enthusiastic response from ChatGPT.
I should clarify that ChatGPT (and similar AI systems) doesn’t have the ability to reliably detect plagiarized content or verify originality. I can’t check or analyze text for plagiarism.
Then, the app advises using Winston AI for the plagiarism checker. However, Winston AI only has a 14-day free trial. So, no…ChatGPT does not have a free plagiarism checker.
4. Copyscape
Copyscape has been around for quite some time, and its premium services are among the most common among my private clients. However, the free version of Copyscape is extremely limited in comparison.
In fact, I got to run a single test before I apparently reached my “computer or network’s” quota for searches. Unfortunately, I can’t find a definitive answer regarding how often I can search for free, as information is sparse and contradictory in places.
I would also like to point out how Copyscape can’t understand conjunctions. If you look at the screenshot, you’ll notice that any time I used an apostrophe, Copyscape didn’t detect the word as being plagiarized.
However, I would like to point out how the free comparison tool works extremely well. This requires that you know the source and are comparing it to another. This works better if you’re working on a blog post and using the Skyscraper technique to make your content better than the competition.
As a free plagiarism scanner, Copyscape is just not worth the trouble.
5. PaperRater
Although PaperRater worked semi-well with documents and copied portions of texts from essays and reflections, it failed miserably when compared to online sources. In every instance, PaperRater declared the content was 100% original, despite being copied from some of the most popular sites on the Internet.
Something else you might want to be aware of is the terms stated by PaperRater. Pay close attention to the end, “…and will be shared on our Student Brands websites.”
From what I can tell, you’re giving PaperRater free run of the material you’re scanning. That is an instant red flag for me, and I advise students to avoid it like a vegan avoiding a KFC.
Why Check for Plagiarism?
Well, the obvious reason to check for plagiarism is to ensure your content is original. But it matters more than what some people might believe.
If you’re a blogger, Google can come down on your site for copied content if it matches too closely to another indexed page. That means losing page rank and possibly getting removed from Google search altogether. That means no traffic and no income.
Not to mention the fact that it makes you appear less reliable and reputable. Copying content can damage your online reputation for both humans and bots, ultimately discrediting your name.
Always remember, the Internet doesn’t forget.
From a scholastic standpoint, writing original works denotes to the instructor or professor that you actually learned something in the class.
A Free Plagiarism Checker Is Hard to Find!
It took me an incredible amount of time to sift through all of the plagiarism checkers online that were actually free. A lot of brands will scan the text for free, but won’t show you the results unless you pay. Others are so limited in how many words they’ll scan that it makes the app worthless.
One of them had a 300-word cap, which is absolutely pointless for anyone writing a blog post or college essay.
Then, you have the AI-driven plagiarism checkers that will pull sentences from every source on the Internet because they are written the same way. These pages could be talking about a completely different topic, but the app will flag the article as plagiarizing.
Instead of looking for free tools, you might just think of these as trials. If you like the app, then pay for it. Otherwise, you’ll have to live with the limitations many of these checkers implement.
Perhaps the biggest point to remember is that plagiarism checking is a hot business, especially today. It’s going to be exceptionally difficult to find a free tool that works in a practical sense. Most developers want to cash in on detection tools.
How to Avoid Plagiarism In Your Writing Altogether
Despite the ever-growing amount of content on the Internet, it’s not all that difficult to avoid writing a certain level of plagiarism. I say “certain level” because false positives are always going to be present. There are only so many ways you can combine words for any given topic.
Here are some of the ways that I avoid plagiarism when writing blog posts or essays.
- Always use your own words, personality, and style – grammar checkers be damned.
- Learn how to paraphrase while using synonyms and restructuring.
- Add more meat to the article than anyone else.
- Use storytelling from your perspective to add authenticity.
- Brainstorm ideas to make your content stand apart (mind mapping is great for this)
- Avoid redundancies, filler, fluff, and cliches.
- Don’t just regurgitate your research. Put your own spin on it.
These are just some of the ideas I can think of off the top of my head. They are elements that I’ve been using since I started my career as a freelancer back in 2012.
Beware of Plagiarism Checker False Positives
False positives are a pain to deal with, especially if an instructor or employer is condemning you for plagiarism where none existed. Checkers, whether they are for plagiarism, AI detection, or grammar, are not 100% accurate. In fact, a lot of them are downright broken.
Those who use these detection tools should understand that the report is not absolute. Before you toss the content, understand why the checker is throwing flags on the play.
As I pointed out earlier, some of the AI-powered plagiarism checkers will pull parts of sentences from all over the Internet, even from topics unrelated to the original article.
That is not plagiarism. People will incidentally put the same five words together for a variety of reasons.
My point is that you should use caution when checking for plagiarized content. Automated tools are flawed, especially the ones utilizing AI. Out of all the plagiarism tools I tested, the worst results were from artificial intelligence.
Use these detection tools as a way to determine if there is something you need to add or remove. Don’t just trust them blindly.
Always Be Original and Authentic
A free plagiarism checker might point you in the right direction, but you still have to offer an authentic voice. While some of these apps may help decrease the odds of being accused of plagiarizing something, it’s always ideal to use your originality and personality.
Detection tools like those for grammar, plagiarism, and AI writing could inadvertently cause you to sound clinical and robotic if you follow all of their “suggestions.” In other words, you don’t have to listen to every suggestion from a collection of programming codes.
And for Pete’s sake, don’t pay someone else to write your college-level essays. That’s defeating the purpose of going to college in the first place.
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