There are two kinds of AI writing tools.
The first kind writes for you. You give it a topic, it gives you an article. The output is technically coherent and completely forgettable — it sounds like every other AI-generated piece on the internet.
The second kind writes with you. It checks your grammar. It suggests a different tone for a specific paragraph. It tells you whether your target keyword appears enough times. It generates headline options so you can pick the one that actually fits.
The second kind is the one worth using if you care about your writing.
What a Good AI Writing Assistant Should Do
Grammar and clarity checking that goes beyond spell-check: passive voice, complex sentences, repeated words, unclear pronoun references.
Tone and style adjustment for specific passages. Not a full rewrite, but the ability to take a paragraph that feels too stiff and make it more conversational — or vice versa.
SEO feedback without obsession. Does your target keyword appear in the text? In the headline? Is the meta description the right length?
Headline generation that gives you options to choose from — not one "optimized" headline that's generic, but five variants in different styles.
What it should not do: generate the body of your article, replace your editorial voice, or require you to leave your writing environment to use it.
The Best Options in 2025
Writing With — Best for Writers Who Want AI That Stays Out of the Way
Price: Free (3 credits) / Pro from $6/month
Platform: Web (writingwith.com)
Best for: bloggers who want AI tools available without disrupting writing flow
Writing With takes an unusual approach: all AI tools live in a collapsible sidebar that is completely invisible while you write. The sidebar only appears when you deliberately open it.
Grammar and Clarity: analyses your full document and returns a prioritized list of issues with plain-English explanations.
Style Rewrite: select any passage, choose a style (Formal, Casual, Funny, Persuasive, or Simple), receive a rewritten version in the sidebar. You choose whether to apply it or dismiss it. Your original is never automatically replaced.
SEO Assistant: enter up to five target keywords. The tool checks your document for keyword presence, suggests a meta title (under 60 characters), and drafts a meta description (under 155 characters).
Headline Generator: give it your document, get back five headline options. Click any to copy.
Guided Writing: input your title, content type, and target word count before you start. Get a structural outline — section headings and brief prompts — inserted into the editor. The AI creates the skeleton. You write the substance.
All tools run on Gemini 2.5 Flash — fast and accurate enough for editorial feedback without rewriting your voice. Pro users get 20 AI uses per week.
Grammarly — Best for Grammar Depth
Price: Free / $12/month Pro
Platform: Web, desktop, browser extension
Grammarly's grammar detection is the deepest available. Best used as a second-pass editing tool after your draft is complete — the constant underlining while you write makes clean first drafts difficult.
Hemingway Editor — Best for Readability
Price: Free (web) / $19.99 (desktop)
Platform: Web, Mac, Windows
Color-coded readability analysis — yellow for complex sentences, red for very hard to read, blue for adverbs, green for passive voice. No AI generation, just clear visual feedback. Excellent as a second step after Writing With.
Jasper — Best for High-Volume Teams
Price: From $39/month
Platform: Web
Built for volume. If your workflow involves producing ten SEO articles a week, Jasper's templates make that faster. For independent bloggers with a personal voice to protect, it risks homogenizing your output.
The Workflow That Works
Step 1: Draft in a distraction-free environment. Write without using AI at all. Get your ideas down in your own voice.
Step 2: Run AI checks. Grammar check, SEO check, style review on weak passages. In Writing With, this takes five minutes in the sidebar.
Step 3: Edit for readability. Paste into Hemingway for a readability pass if your writing tends toward complexity.
Step 4: Finalize the headline. Use the headline generator to get options, then make an editorial judgment.
Four steps. Two tools. Your voice, sharpened — not replaced.