How to Evaluate Writing Readability in Microsoft Word

How readable is your writing? To make your writing more useful to your readers, you can check the readability level of your writing with a simple Microsoft Word tool. This tool measures your document's readability by assigning it what is called a Flesch-Kincaid score.

Things You'll Need

• Microsoft Word

Instructions

1. Open Microsoft Word.

2. Click Tools and select Options. In the dialogue box that appears, check Show Readability Statistics.

3. Run the spellcheck feature of Microsoft Word. Click Tools and select Spelling and Grammar. After the check is finished you'll see the readability window: the bottom number is your Flesch-Kincaid reading level, which is an estimate of the grade level at which the average reader would understand your writing.

Tips & Warnings

• The Flesch-Kincaid reading level is determined by word choices, word count, average sentence length and the use of passive sentences. Shorter sentences and smaller words will result in a lower score.

References

• Technology Evaluation: Flesch-Kincaid Readability Score