Product Review

Readable Review

Readable, as the name suggests, is a readability app that shows between a scale of 0 to 100, how readable your content is.

It simply means, how easy your content is to read. A higher score (70 or above) means most of the people can easily read and understand your message, whereas it’s exactly opposite if you get a score lower than 60.

Readable ditches the primary Linsear-Write formula (used in many readability services like Hemingway Editor) and opts for the Lensear-Write Formula to score the content. And they have their own reasons for it.

Besides this, it also takes into account some other algorithms like:

  • The Flesch Reading Ease and Flesch Kincaid Grade Level
  • The Gunning Fog Index
  • The Coleman-Liau Index
  • CEFR – Common European Framework Of Reference For Languages

After going through their website, it was clear that it’s an excellent app for scoring readability, but is it equally good in easing the writing process?

Take a look at the pros section to see what I found out.

Our Verdict

Do I recommend Readable? Yes and no. Yes, If you’re a copywriter, blogger, or author who occasionally needs to check his/her writing to make sure he/she is not overcomplicating things.

Readable Pros

After testing this app, I realized that Readable is an excellent option for online writing. It’s easy to get started with this tool, and you can access it on any device regardless of the operating system.

Above all, it checks for grammar and spelling errors in real-time eliminating a substantial pain-point for most of the writers.

Here are some other sections where Readable shines.

#1 Simple and easy to use interface

As I just said, Readable has a clean and straightforward interface. Once you open the app, you can start typing straight away or “Ctrl + V” your content.

It also allows you to import your documents as various file formats like PDF, Doc, or text spreadsheet.

You can also use Readable to scan your entire website, individual URLs, or emails.

#2 Compatible with all devices

Readable is a web-based software, so it doesn’t require you to download an app on your phone or PC. It works great with all the devices whether it’s an Android phone or iPhone or Mac/Windows PC.

#3 Excellent customer support

The customer service of Readable is quite agile and courteous. I sent a request to them asking a few questions about their product, and Laura from Readable support got back to me within 24 hours with a detailed reply.

Though the answer to all my questions was no, the agent seemed quite polite (at least, the wording was soft) and forwarded my request to their team as a feature request.

So, no complaints on that.

#4 Exporting options

Though Readable is not very generous about exporting files as different formats as Google Docs or Zoho Writer, it still supports the common file formats we use on a daily basis. Like, Word, PDF, OpenDocument, and HTML.

Unfortunately, these were the only advantages I found in Readable when I measured it as a writing app.

It misses many of the advanced facilities that you see in a genuine writing tool. And I’ve talked about them in detail in the following section.

So, let’s take a look at its cons.

Readable Cons

#1 Cannot create and save different versions of the same content

Having several versions of the same material helps you compare the revisions and gives you the power to go back to your older copy if you didn’t like any changes.

But unfortunately, Readable skips this crucial attribute and provides no facility to save older versions of the same content.

#2 No Storyboard or writing templates

I was also unable to find any storyboard or corkboard that facilitates note-taking in no time. You have to follow the typical way of scripting thoughts.

Similarly, you won’t find any writing template, too. Neither it allows you to create one of your own.

#3 Can’t share files and collaborate with others

Readable app doesn’t possess any facility that allows its users to share files with their peers directly from the app or invite others to work on a project.

#4 Doesn’t block on-screen distractions

While Readable does a commendable job on providing a minimal user interface to writers, it fails to offer anything more than that.

You won’t find “Focus Mode”, neither it toggles into “Full-Screen” mode.

So you can say, it clearly fails to make a mark in this department.

Readable pricing plans and payment options

Readable offers three different pricing plans you can choose from according to the nature of your business.

The ContentPro plan is for copywriters and authors, and cost $4/month when billed annually.

For people with e-commerce business or websites, there is CommercePro plan priced at $24/month (billed annually).

Agency owners can opt for AgencyPro costing $69/month, again billed yearly. And all these plans and pricing are for a limited number of users. If you wish to add more users, the cost will add up to $4/month per user.

If you are looking for ways to easily publish your content then we’d recommend checking out Wordable to publish Google Docs to WordPress in 1-click, instead. It will not only clean and properly format your HTML, but also compress images, open links in a new tab, automatically set featured images or create a table of contents, and lots more.

However, the payment options are very limited. They only process payments through credit card. There’s no other option available at present.

Do I recommend Readable?

Yes and no.

Yes, If you’re a copywriter, blogger, or author who occasionally needs to check his/her writing to make sure he/she is not overcomplicating things.

You can either use the free version or stop at the ContentPro plan. I won’t recommend you to acquire the CommercePro or AgencyPro license.

Why? Because the number of features fades away when you compare with the hefty per month cost.

Screenwriters and novelists; stay away from Readable because it’s not designed for you at all.

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