No matter where you are in your Russian language studies, a Russian grammar checker is a must. A good one can ensure that you have your cases on point, your Russian verbs properly conjugated and that you’ve dotted your ё’s and crossed your ф’s. Also, even if you thoroughly know the words you’re using, the longer the words are, the more opportunity there is for typos to make an appearance.
Most importantly, they work as a learning tool, letting you know what you’re doing wrong so you can learn and improve from the experience. Check out our recommended Russian grammar tools below.
RussianCorrector.com will check your work for an array of issues, including basic grammatical errors, stylistic mistakes and spelling issues.
Once the program has done its work, it highlights the problems in a color-coded way. Spacing errors appear in purple, spelling errors appear in pink and other errors (including grammar) appear in yellow.
If you hover over the highlighted areas, a bubble will appear to clarify the type of error and the rules governing the error. It will also suggest a specific correction. However, since these descriptions and suggestions are entirely in Russian, you need a decent command of the Russian language and/or the patience to run descriptions through a separate translator to use this program.
The LanguageTool interface is much like that of RussianCorrector.com.
Once you’ve inputted your text, LanguageTool will highlight key issues (including spelling and grammar), explain the problem and offer suggested revisions on the right hand side of the box.
Similar to RussianCorrector, the error descriptions are entirely in Russian. Because these descriptions can’t be copied and pasted into a translator, this grammar checker is best for intermediate and advanced students.
One unique feature of LanguageTool, though, is that you don’t have to use it exclusively through the website. You can install it as an add-on to your browser of choice or as a text editor for your Apple or Windows device.
SpellBoy detects and highlights stylistic, spelling and grammatical errors. It doesn’t catch everything, though. For instance, it may miss some case errors, but other programs sometimes do the same, so always be on your guard.
Again, explanations of errors are given in Russian. Luckily, you can easily copy and paste them into an online Russian translator.
While it’s not too different from the other programs we’ve listed so far in terms of features, it has a unique interface. The text box looks like notebook paper, making it easier to keep track of individual lines of text. If you’re used to referring to your handy dandy notebook, this format could be useful.
This may be an oldie, but it’s also a goodie. There’s a reason this program still exists today, despite having been developed way back in 1983.
If you’re a word processing warrior, chances are you’re more than a little familiar with Word’s spelling and grammar checker. You can easily change Word’s language settings to Russian by following this guide.
Like the others, Microsoft Word uses a color-coded system to underscore spelling and grammatical errors. If you click on the specific error, you’ll see a box on the right hand side of your screen explaining the error, suggestions and an option to correct or ignore the error.
TextGears claims to be “the most accurate” Russian grammar checker out there. While it’s always difficult to verify such claims, I did notice that when I ran the same sample text on this site and on other checkers, TextGears seems to detect more errors than the others.
Aside from grammatical errors, TextGears will also check for spelling, style, punctuation and structure. You’ll also see metrics like a readability score to see how comprehensible your text is to the average 11-year-old student.
Like GrammarChecker.top, TextGears names the type of error in English and describes the specifics of the error in Russian (which you can translate using their other tool). Unlike GrammarChecker.top, you only have the option to take the suggestion but not ignore it.
Unfortunately, you can only check up to 500 characters at a time on the free version. You need to upgrade to a Pro account to make the most of this site’s features.
How to Get the Most Out of Russian Grammar Checkers
Be aware that grammar checkers have their limits. There’s no denying that grammar check programs are great, but they aren’t 100% perfect. It’s important to remember that even grammar checkers can make mistakes, so whenever you receive a suggestion, review it carefully before making the change.
When the program finds an error in your writing, take note of what you did wrong. With grammar checkers, it can be tempting to just take them at their word, make the change and move along. However, this won’t help you learn from mistakes you’ve made. Whenever a grammar check program finds an error, analyze that error carefully and write it down in your favorite notebook or note-taking app. That way, you can avoid making that same mistake in the future.
Look for consistent errors identified in your work. Everyone makes mistakes now and then, but if the same types of mistakes keep appearing in your work, you should take steps to nip them in the bud. If you’re consistently making the same grammatical or spelling errors, you may want to target that particular skill by studying the rule more and/or using Russian grammar exercises.
If you love learning Russian and want to immerse yourself with authentic materials from Russia, then I should also tell you more about FluentU.
FluentU naturally and gradually eases you into learning the Russian language and culture. You'll learn real Russian as it's spoken by real Russian people!
FluentU has a very broad range of contemporary videos. Just a quick look will give you an idea of the variety of Russian-language content available on FluentU:
FluentU makes these native Russian videos approachable through interactive transcripts. Tap on any word to look it up instantly.
Access a complete interactive transcript of every video under the Dialogue tab. Easily review words and phrases with audio under Vocab.
All definitions have multiple examples, and they're written for Russian learners like you. Tap to add words you'd like to review to a vocab list.
And FluentU has a learn mode which turns every video into a language learning lesson. You can always swipe left or right to see more examples.
The best part? FluentU keeps track of your vocabulary, and gives you extra practice with difficult words. It'll even remind you when it’s time to review what you’ve learned. You'll have a 100% personalized experience.
