Top 6 Proofing Tools for 2024 (Features, Pros, Cons, Pricing)

Looking for the perfect proofing software?

Most proofing tools help you eliminate spellings errors, misplaced punctuation, and embarrassing grammatical errors.

But did you know that online proofing software can do much more than just correct your grammar and spelling, or improve your writing skills?

That’s right.

Think beyond the squiggly red line spellcheck!

Modern proofing tools can be your ultimate creative collaboration hub.

It can help you with writing and editing and even with receiving and organizing feedback.

That’s the complete document approval process!

But just like the number of spellings for ‘chili’ (chilli? chile?), the list of options in the online proofing software market is endless.

So if you want to choose the right online proofing system for your work, you’re in the right place. In this article, you’ll learn what online proofreading tools are, why you need them, and the 6 best proofing tools currently available.

What Is A Proofing Tool?

A proofreading tool or a proofing software is a workflow management tool tailored to the needs of content creators. You can use it to create a new piece of text or visual content, and receive and respond to feedback without having to download the document each time.

But isn’t my dictionary, a Google Doc file, and spell checker enough?

Do I really need proofing software?

Yes, because content creation is full of nightmares.

Additionally, English is a crazy language!

It takes several meetings, going over content plans, multiple editing, and spell check rounds, and a few (hundred) drafts to create a blog post that everyone likes.

Trust us, we know this all too well 🙁

Even then, stubborn grammatical errors or a misplaced artwork file rears its ugly head minutes before your final submission!

And all you can do is scream silently.

Or loudly. It’s up to you, really.

Of course, using Ctrl+Z to undo things and pressing the backspace key can considerably ease your pain. (Imagine retyping a thousand-word article for a single spelling error. Phew!)

Yet, the typical proofing workflow remains complicated and challenging.

You must put up with:

Lags in collaboration
Missing older versions of your MS Word file or artwork
Delays in multiple reviews

But don’t worry.

These are exactly the problems that an online proofreading tool is meant to solve.

What are the benefits of an online proofing tool?

An excellent proofing software will help you:

Create content (alone or collaboratively)
Conduct rounds of grammar checking easily
Gather feedback on it via various media formats (PDF, JPEG, MS Word, etc.)
Track feedback or content review tab threads

All of this, in turn, should help you create great content free of grammatical mistakes with impeccable style!

How to choose a proofreading tool

An online proofing system could be of two kinds.

Some are simple, bare-bone content management software.

While others are elaborate, multifunctional labyrinths.

However, your ideal online proofreading tool should combine ease of use with a feature-rich experience.

Tall order? Not really.

Chances are, content creation is just one of the many things you dabble in.

You also need to manage your team, deal with your client or freelancer, oversee finances, etc.

But you won’t be able to do any of this with a narrow-focused proofing software.

For that, you need project management software.

So if you choose to invest in an online proofing software, ensure that it helps you with much more than just content management.

Thankfully, just like your favorite yellow sponge, we love making lists!

(But ours are much shorter and better curated.)

Not one for lengthy (or short) lists?

Jump to this section to see our top suggestion for project management software.

What Are the Top 6 Proofing Tools To Choose?

Untitled documents. Emails without subjects. Unscheduled “catchup calls”.

These are a few of our least favorite things.

That’s why we make our lists as Thoreau as possible.

Oh, sorry. We meant ‘thorough’!

(See why everyone needs a proofing process?)

We’ve listed the key features, pros, cons, and pricing for each online proofing system so you can make the most informed choice for your team.

1. ClickUp

ClickUp is the world’s highest-rated tool for project management, used by teams of all types and sizes worldwide.

With ClickUp’s combination of content creation and project management features, it’s the ultimate software for all your business needs.

Here are some ClickUp features to look out for.

How ClickUp helps in the proofing process

Much like everything else in ClickUp, the Proofing feature is also geared for efficient collaboration.

You can use it to clearly mark changes on an artwork file or streamlining the review for your marketing creatives. Whenever you need to communicate something on a file, just use ClickUp’s proofing tool for the job.

You’ll find ample support for various file types (PNG, JPEG, PDF, etc.).

Here’s how easy it is to proof task attachments in ClickUp:

Open the attachment within a task
Click “Add comments” towards the upper right of the preview window
Click on the attachment preview where you want to add a comment
Add your comment and assign it to a team member to help them take action immediately

With such easy-to-use proofreading features, not even the smallest error will escape your creative team!

And this extends to a whole host of content creation features.

The creative work-friendly environment of ClickUp ensures that you never have to leave the window when proofreading. Whether it’s writing a blog post or tracking the time your task takes, you can have it all without ever leaving the ClickUp Workspace!

How?

You can dedicate Spaces within your Workspace for various business functions like marketing or HR.

And within these Spaces, Folders can store all your writing neatly, along with Lists and Tasks.

Other key ClickUp features

Marketing teams or a freelancer. Designer or CEO.

There’s a ClickUp feature for everyone.

Want to learn how ClickUp caters to remote teams?

Check out these articles:

Here are some other ClickUp features that’ll help streamline your proofing workflow:

1. Create documents with Docs

If you want your text to be easy to read and draft, check out ClickUp Docs.

Here, you can collaborate with others to create richly formatted documents and organize them within the relevant project tasks.

2. Create Tasks for all proofing-related work

Deadlines or not, ClickUp can always keep pace with your creativity.

You can untangle your projects by creating:

Tasks and Subtasks for blogs, articles, or any other task and assign them to individual team members or an entire team
Checklists to break down each task into smaller steps that can be checked off according to your progress

With each task tick marked, you’ll step closer to the sweet joy of approval!

3. Use Custom Statuses to simplify your proofing workflow

No two projects (or teams, or clients) will ever be alike.

That’s why ClickUp lets you set Custom Statuses for each new task workflow.

So while the creative team can add steps like “Drafting,” “Reviewing,” “Proofing,” the engineers in your team can set completely different statuses.

Use Custom Statuses to run a tight ship and reassure your client of your progress.

After all, knowledge is power!

4. Communicate easily with Comments Section and Chat view

Access all your messages (and their context) easily with ClickUp’s Comments Section.

You can even Assign Comments to a specific team member to ensure that they immediately take action on it.

And when you want to have unrelated discussions, unscheduled brainstorms, or share adorable pet pictures, go over to the Chat view.

5. Plan intuitively with Mind Maps

Bitten by the creative bug? Or simply can’t get an idea out of your brain?

Draw your thoughts in a Mind Map and share the scheme with your team.

While ClickUp gives you templates to get started quickly, you can just as easily start sketching on a blank page too.

6. Use Home to stay on top of your tasks

When the days are long and you’re drowning in project deliveries, go to Home and organize all your tasks. Here, you can also access your personal Inbox that lets you set personalized reminders for yourself.

ClickUp Pros

Comprehensive set of project management and content creation and proofreading features
An ideal fit for Scrum, Kanban, and other Agile software development projects
Custom Permissions to involve all the project stakeholders, like the client, sponsor, freelancer, etc.
A detailed report on team performance for decision makers to track productivity
Task dependencies to approach tasks in the right priority
Custom Task Statuses to show the progress of every task
Tons of third-party integrations (Microsoft Office 365, Zoom, Slack, and more)
Fully functional desktop app platform for Windows and Mac
Android, iOS mobile apps to manage your projects on the go
Powerful Forever Free Plan with tons of advanced features

ClickUp Cons

Can’t export Dashboards

But just like you won’t stop with one round of proofreading, ClickUp continuously works to fix any problems you have. Learn more about ClickUp’s product roadmap here.

ClickUp pricing

The Free Forever Plan lets you add unlimited members and projects and gives you 100MB cloud storage. Paid plans start at as low as $5/user per month.

ClickUp user ratings

G2: 4.7/5 (1100+ reviews)
Capterra: 4.7/5 (2000+ reviews)

2. Filestage

Filestage is an ‘all-in-one’ online proofing and creative team management software that helps you review and approve content, and streamline your creative workflow. It aims to contain your whole proofing process on a single software.

Filestage key features

Project dashboard to track various stages of review on deliveries
System to maintain all older versions
Markup tools for the proofer to leave comments on an image or PDF file
Time codes to review audio and video files
Custom branding of your company or agency
Flexible sharing to add internal and external stakeholders (ex: your client) to the approval process

Filestage Pros

No sign in required for external stakeholders to review
Add comments directly on a file. No need to download.
Automated to-do lists are generated based on comments left.

Filestage Cons

No desktop or mobile app platform
No analysis for predicting completion data or team productivity
No time tracking or goal setting features
No free plan with an expensive starter plan that only supports 10 members

Filestage Pricing

Filestage doesn’t offer any free plans, and its ‘Starter’ plan begins at $99 a month.

Filestage user ratings

G2: 4.8/5 (20 reviews)
Capterra: 4.8/5 (40 reviews)

3. ProofHub

ProofHub is an all-in-one project management and team collaboration software with powerful online proofing capabilities. It allows creative teams to streamline their review and approval process while also managing other important aspects of work in a centralized location.

ProofHub key features

Annotate and mark changes using markup tools
@mentions and comment resolutions
Advanced task management features like Kanban boards and Gantt charts
Labels and task prioritization
File sharing and document management

ProofHub Pros

One-click approval of final edits
File version control for better comparisons
Detailed project reports to measure overall productivity
Fully functional Android and iOS mobile apps

ProofHub Cons

Granular notification management could be improved
No single sign-in on Google

ProofHub pricing

ProofHub’s paid plans start from $45/month, billed annually (no per-user fee).

ProofHub user ratings

G2: 4.5/5 (60+ reviews)
Capterra: 4.5/5 (65+ reviews)

4. Hightail

Hightail is an online proofing system meant for agency collaboration. It reduces review time, keeps projects on track to completion, and aids in managing the overall content project.

Hightail key features

Task management with to-do lists that can be assigned
Easy sharing of large files
Can notify the proofer of files you’ve shared with them
Can track if your file has been received
Search and filter options to find files
Bulk upload for videos and video streaming

Hightail Pros

Can assign follow-ups to team members
Can handle in-context discussions in a dedicated project space
Side by side comparison of previous and current versions of files
Supports high resolution, live previews of your documents.

Hightail Cons

No time tracking functionality
Limited file support on the mobile app
No desktop app platform
Integrates only with a few tools like Dropbox, Google Drive, and Microsoft Outlook

Hightail pricing

The Hightail ‘Lite’ plan lets you upload files up to 100MB at a time and offers 2GB storage for free. Its paid plans start at $12 per month.

Hightail user ratings

G2: 4.2/5 (659 reviews)
Capterra: 4.4/5 (271 reviews)

5. Smartsheet

Smartsheet is a throwback to the days of Excel project management.

It uses a familiar spreadsheet interface to track and manage projects of all kinds and doubles up as an online proofing software. But yeah, it’s pretty much just a spreadsheet software that can do a little more than Excel.

Learn about Smartsheet project management and alternatives to Smartsheet.

Smartsheet key features

Project sheet to oversee progress
Version control with automatic document locking
Wide range of integrations for seamless connectivity
Gantt charts to visualize project planning
High-level team planning view of your projects
Automate your proofing workflow by combining multiple actions and conditional paths

Smartsheet Pros

Easy to adapt for those who’re comfortable with the Excel format
Live on-demand reports on the dashboard
Well suited for Agile, Scrum, and Waterfall projects

Smartsheet Cons

Spreadsheets are inadequate for modern project management
No real-time collaboration support
No desktop app available
No free plan

Smartsheet pricing

Smartsheet doesn’t have a free version, and its paid plan starts at $14 per month.

Smartsheet user ratings

G2: 4.2/5 (2000+ reviews)
Capterra: 4.4/5 (1500+ reviews)

6. Ziflow

Ziflow is an online proofing software specifically designed with creative agencies and brands in mind. It caters to their content sharing, review, and approval requirements.

Ziflow key features

Collaborative review in which creative team members can add comments and respond to them in real-time
Flexible sharing with different permission settings for each proofer
Version tracking and comparison with audit trail features
Built-in file organizer
Integrations with a wide range of third-party tools

Ziflow Pros

Document lock to prevent further comments once it’s been finalized
Support for a wide range of file types
Enterprise-ready security features
Review groups for easy file sharing and reviews

Ziflow Cons

No desktop app platform
No task management features
Limited set of integrations compared to similar software
Steep pricing for small teams

Ziflow pricing

Ziflow offers no free plan, and its paid plan begins at $10/user per month.

Ziflow user ratings

G2: 4.7/5 (59 reviews)
Capterra: 4.6/5 (102 reviews)

Conclusion

When we were all much younger, Microsoft Word, Powerpoint, and the whole Microsoft Office suite were the greatest things ever.

I mean, the creative possibilities were endless (WordArt ftw)!

However, we’re older and (hopefully) much smarter now.

And that means recognizing the limitations of those tools.

If creative work and writing skills are the essence of your business or agency, then it’s time to move on to an online proofing tool. You can’t afford to compromise anymore.

And while tools like Filestage and Ziflow can weed out grammar errors, you need to think bigger. You need to think ClickUp.

With advanced features like proofing, Docs, and Mindmaps, it’s going to make creative work and the approval process a cakewalk. And with tons of other project management features, it ticks all the boxes you could ever need!

Need more convincing?

No need to contact our sales rep.

Just open your ClickUp account for FREE, and try it for yourself.

We guarantee it’ll help you become a content king in no time!