7 best AI essay writers of 2025

The best AI essay writers are making the art of writing in academic settings easier and faster. Due to the efficiency of AI tools, students, researchers, and professionals alike are turning to AI to improve essay clarity, generate ideas, help with spelling and grammar, and gather sources faster than any human ever could.

As with any new technology, though, there are concerns about the misuse of AI in academia, and this is extremely important to me. Here’s my take:

Whether it’s approved or not, we’ve now reached a point where students are using AI in academia — and for good reason. AI tools not only serve as reliable copilots, they also make essay writing more efficient.

The key is not to shame the use of AI but to embrace AI essay writers for what they are and empower academics to use them ethically, so that the tools don’t interfere with a student’s input, creative thinking, or unique perspectives.

Empowering students means teaching them the benefits of AI as well as the limitations. They need to understand where AI enhances the essay writing process and where it diminishes academic output.

In this article, I share seven of the best AI tools around for writing essays, including what I like about them, their pros and cons, and pricing plans. I also cover how AI essay writing tools work, along with their benefits.

How AI essay writers work

Essay writers use generative AI, powered by technologies like natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning (ML), to create content that closely replicates human writing.

Text-based generative AI, as opposed to image-based, generates content by predicting one word at a time, analyzing the words that came before.

While AI can produce sentences that are unique and not plagiarized, it’s not capable of true originality in the human sense. It doesn’t generate new ideas from lived experience or abstract reasoning. AI simply synthesizes and rephrases what it has already seen in its training data.

To better understand where generative AI enhances and limits writing, it’s important to know how generative AI and essay writers actually work.

With a prediction model, AI is limited by the training data it receives and by the existing ideas that help it predict what comes next. The problem with this type of model is there’s no unique perspective. Everything the AI outputs has already been said before. For academics working to provide unique insights and perspectives, prediction is extremely limiting, but you can enhance AI-generated content through edits that inject some human perspective.

On the other hand, AI models can enhance writing through rapid analysis of existing data, content, and good academic papers to produce content that is correct from a spelling and grammar standpoint. They can also review and summarize studies and aid in the research process of finding and quantifying the credibility of studies, both old and new.

Many AI models have unique features that make them suitable for the essay writing process. Some, for example, can analyze data or have been trained on academic essays, so their AI output is best for essay writing use cases.

This article by TechRadar provides an in-depth look at how ChatGPT works. While the article is about ChatGPT specifically, it’s very detailed and applies to other forms of generative AI as well.

Benefits of using AI essay writers

When used ethically, AI can improve the quality of writing, uphold the integrity of the writing process, and most importantly, maintain the essential role of the human academic who can prompt and edit content.

Here are some of the key benefits of using AI essay writers.

Time efficiency

One of the biggest advantages to using AI essay writers is in time saved. AI tools can generate well-structured essays in minutes. And it’s not just the foundations of an essay that can be tackled in minutes: It’s research, essay outlines, and structure.

Important to note: The first draft from any AI essay writing tool will be far from complete. There will still be a lot of work to do, from fact-checking and editing to adding unique perspectives and more.

Stress reduction

A massive benefit of AI for students under significant pressure is stress reduction, and this mustn’t be overlooked. Students report stress almost five times more than they did a decade ago, and AI tools can help alleviate that. 

From my experience as a student, the mere act of starting an essay can induce stress. The overwhelm of looking at a blank screen with 10 resource books piled up on your desk is a lot. I was pretty resilient, but I do remember feeling the pressure of the next deadline. Some of my friends dropped out of college due to stress, and essay writing was a significant factor in that.

AI tools help reduce stress because they can do so much in such a short time. And let’s face it: Students often leave things to the last minute. Empowered by AI and the know-how for using essay writing tools ethically, even procrastinators can produce high-quality essays on time. This knowledge alone can help lessen a student’s stress, but AI offers additional stress-reducing benefits too:

• Overcoming writer’s block
• Summarizing studies and research
• Discovering new research and studies to cite

Improved learning

It’s easy to assume that AI doesn’t teach you anything. But I disagree. 

A prime example of where I’ve learned from AI in writing is through the use of tools like Grammarly. I use Grammarly to edit every single piece of content I write, and I write over 30,000 words a month.

As Grammarly corrects common errors in my writing, I read each correction, add it using the AI, and, most importantly, remember it for the next time. I see myself making progress.

My learning with AI looks something like this:

1. AI highlights grammatical errors I missed. I see an error and read the correction offered by AI.
2. I see that AI has flagged an issue. As soon as I see the flag, I identify the issue from before and know what the correction is without needing to review the AI’s recommendation.
3. My writing improves, and I no longer make the mistake that I first discovered using AI. 

Grammarly even has analytics, so you can see your improvements over time. My analytics show incremental improvements in four weeks:

Unfortunately, you can’t see improvements over extended periods of time. I’ve been using Grammarly for years, and I wish I could see how things have changed since I first started using it. I genuinely feel like Grammarly’s writing AI has changed my writing for the better.

Customization

AI essay writers are customized to fit specific purposes. Many AI tools are trained on academic papers, so the AI outputs meet unique needs such as adopting a formal academic tone or correctly citing references.

Plagiarism-free content

Modern AI tools can generate original text and have integrated plagiarism detection systems, ensuring the final essay is both unique and ethically sound. But academic writers need to remember that while content may be technically plagiarism-free, AI can still steal ideas without citation.

Plagiarism detectors look at words on the page and word order. If you don’t copy existing content verbatim, it’s considered unique and might pass as “original.” However, even if the wording is unique, the underlying ideas may still require proper citation. This is especially important in academic contexts where acknowledging sources is essential for maintaining academic integrity. As a human, academic writer, you must check for citation and plagiarism nuances yourself.

Top AI essay writers in 2025

1. The Good AI

Best for: Students

Developer: The Good AI

The Good AI is an AI tool designed to help academic writers get over writer’s block, create essay outlines, and write.

My main reason for featuring this tool is that it’s highly suited to academic writing and trained specifically on essays, making it uniquely fit for the purpose. Aside from this, I also like how they position themselves.

The Good AI has an “Academic Integrity” descriptor:

Our AI essay writer should be used to inspire essay ideas and understand essay structures, not to submit as your own writing. It’s important to integrate your own insights and properly cite AI-assisted content. Doing so will ensure your essay remains original and honest.

The following screenshot shows my app once I’m logged in:

Key features

• Generative AI allows you to create essays or research papers in seconds.
• Humanize text lets you rewrite text until it has a tone that closely resembles that of a human.

Pros

• Essay type selection means you can have the generative AI write in a way that suits one of six types: classic, persuasive, personal statement, book report, critique, or compare/contrast.
• Train on your own writing when you use the tool and generate an essay. There is an option to paste your own sample text, which will help the AI write more like you.
• Automatic reference styling allows you to select the citation style you prefer to follow. For my test, I used Harvard, as this is what I used at my university.

Cons

• Free tier is extremely limited with an output capped at 250 words. That’s nowhere near enough for a full essay, but it’s enough to see if you like the tool.
• Citations can be shaky. The AI suggested Reddit in the references for an essay that generally would not rely on Reddit for reliable sources. The information within the thread was helpful though.

Plans/Pricing

• The Good AI does offer a free plan, but you will need to pay immediately if you want to create an essay, because the free tier gives you 250 words only.
• The Premium plan is just $5 per month and lets you write essays up to 3,000 words long.

2. ChatGPT

Best for: research or any topic, data analysis, and writing

Developer: Open AI

ChatGPT is one of the most versatile AI tools there is. Students can use it to generate essays, summarize articles, research and find sources, answer questions, help with citations, and even analyze data.

And you can do all that within a single conversation thread.

I recommend logging into the platform and using the Projects tab, where you can add files and instructions to train the AI for specific projects. If you want the AI to write like you, for example, you could upload your best essays. If you want the AI to review specific research or files, you can upload those.

The following screenshot image shows what a new project titled “Essay Writing” looks like:

Key features

• Generative AI can create essays and outlines.
• Natural language processing allows you to chat with the AI and iterate previous outputs until you get something you’re happy with.
• Data analysis can be an excellent feature for researchers who need to analyze and summarize content or analyze quantitative data within spreadsheets. For example, if you have an interview transcript, you can input it into ChatGPT and ask the AI to identify and provide the significant moments or most useful quotes. Then you can use those quotes in your own essay.

Pros

• Highly versatile for all academic subjects and essay styles, ChatGPT is a tool that can do it all.
• Built-in web browsing helps you complete thorough research from one chat interface. ChatGPT will pull in sources (and cite them) within minutes, which can save a lot of time on research. Just remember to double-check every source!
• Project function allows you to set up specific rules, files, tones of voice, and instructions specific to that project.

Cons

• ChatGPT is not trained specifically on essay writing as a whole.
• Hallucinations are common on ChatGPT. I have used ChatGPT, and it has cited completely false and made-up studies, including study names, research, and dates. This is a con for all AI tools, but I have experienced it a lot on ChatGPT.

Plans/Pricing

• For most academics, ChatGPT’s free version will be perfectly adequate. With this version, you’ll have no trouble writing content, researching, and conducting data analysis within the chat.
• If you want to use the AI for more sophisticated data analysis, such as analyzing data within a sheet, you’ll need to upgrade to the Plus plan, which costs $20 per month.
• The Pro plan costs $200 per month, but I have never needed this, and I don’t think students would either.

3. EssayGenius

Best for: quick essay generation

Developer: EssayGenius

EssayGenius is an essay writing AI tool that will generate articles very quickly. Using filters and free-text instructions, you can prompt the AI to create your desired essay.

The following image shows what the prompt and filter section looks like. When I tested this tool, I selected College Level for the essay level and found the word choices to be very unnecessary. The tool uses overly flowery language, which does require a heavy edit.

Key features

• Citation options help you cite references using the correct formatting.
• Writing modes allow you to undertake different writing tasks, such as generate, paraphrase, expand, continue, and summarize. I used Genius to rewrite an intro until I was satisfied with it.

Pros

• Very easy to use — I signed up and generated an essay within minutes using EssayGenius. Admittedly, I hadn’t provided much of a prompt, so I didn’t expect the essay to be particularly informed, but the functionality was easy to use and it quickly generated content.
• Filters for essay type, writing level, and citation style allow for easy customization.

Cons

• Although the tool works quickly, the generated content needs significant editing. I found the content to read very AI-like. This isn’t a massive issue as it’s a nonnegotiable that all AI-written content should receive a heavy edit, but of all the tools, I felt EssayGenius outputs needed the most work.

Plans/Pricing

You can try EssayGenius for free, but a Genius Account offers up to 100 full essay drafts a month for  $14.99 per month.

4. Jasper AI

Best for: AI newbies

Developer: Jasper AI

Jasper AI is the tool that started my AI journey. I was a pretty early adopter of AI content and became Jasper Certified in June 2022. 

Jasper is a versatile AI tool that can be adapted to essay writing. It’s very easy to use and with the right prompts, you can write essays for an intended target audience, such as a college professor or university lecturer.

With extensive training resources that include a Jasper foundation course, it’s easy to learn how to use Jasper AI to the fullest. Here’s a screenshot that shows what the training looks like:

Key features

• A comprehensive learning library ensures ethical and correct usage of the tool. You can even get certified, which might look good on a work resume.
• Over 50+ templates can help inspire your research or SEO. Try the FAQ app to find out what related questions people ask or the Content Rewriter tool when you can’t find the right words. Jasper’s generative AI will rewrite your content for you.

Pros

• Built-in plagiarism checker powered by Copyscape — I’ve used Copyscape for years, and it is brilliant. But don’t buy Jasper if you just want to check for plagiarism. Copyscape itself is very cheap, costing only about $0.31 to check plagiarism on 3,000 words.
• Lots of useful integrations — Jasper includes a Grammarly integration, which I highly recommend using if you’re serious about your writing. The AI features on Grammarly are excellent, and you can access them easily via Jasper.
• Easy to use — I have always found Jasper AI straightforward to use. 

Cons

• It’s not designed for essay writing — it must be adapted.
• Everything is behind a paywall. You can try Jasper seven days for free, but you need to enter your card details first. It’s hard to build trust with Jasper AI when they insist on card details to access everything.

Plans/Pricing

• Jasper’s one-week free trial requires a card to get started, so if you don’t like it, you must remember to cancel the subscription.
• The Creator plan is $39 per month, meant for individuals and freelancers, and offers enough features for most academics.
• The Pro plan is $59 per month per seat.

The Business plan offers custom pricing for enterprise-grade tools.

5. Writesonic

Best for: publishing content online with a focus on search engine optimization (SEO)

Developer: Writesonic

If you’re writing academic articles that you want to publish online, Writesonic might be the solution for you. With a strong SEO focus, Writesonic offers an SEO tab where you can do keyword research, SEO analysis on your report, and content gap analysis. It can also help you identify topic clusters and find questions people are asking related to your essay.

Here’s what the screen looked like when I started a 10-step article using Writesonic’s AI Article Writer tool:

Key features

• The Article Writer will generate up to a 5,000-word essay for you. You can choose either the 10-step article writer (this is what I recommend) or instant article writer. The 10-step writer gives you a lot more control over the output.
• Quality settings are “paid for” with credits. You can choose Good, Superior, or Elite Quality. Choose lower-quality articles if you’re prepared to do more editing. Editing is always recommended anyway.

Pros

• You can select your own references during the article setup phase so you know the tool is drawing from the best sources.
• Strong SEO features are perfect for essays you plan to publish online. An SEO-optimized essay has the best chance of being found in a Google search or by AI search tools like ChatGPT.

Cons

• There’s no automatic formatting for citations, but you could ask ChatGPT to do this for you.
• A 10-step article is slow to generate compared to tools like ChatGPT, where you can use projects and upload your own files. Writesonic has to take time to process every phase, with some phases taking longer than others.

Plans/Pricing

You can try Writesonic for free, but you’ll need to upgrade to a paid package once your credits are used up.

• The Lite plan is $39 per month for 15 AI article generations and 200 SEO page analyses.
• The Standard plan is $79 per month for 30 AI article generations and 750 SEO page analyses.
• The Professional plan is $199 per month for 100 AI article generations and 1,200 SEO page analyses.
• The Advanced plan is $399 per month for 200 AI article generations and 2,500 SEO page analyses.
• The Enterprise plan offers custom solutions for a custom price.

6. Samwell.ai

Best for: academic essay generation, research writing with citations, and AI-powered tutoring

Developer: Samwell

Samwell.ai is a versatile AI writing tool. It can help you write  academic essays, research papers, and literature reviews from scratch, or you can upload an existing essay for help enhancing your own work. Samwell’s AI tutor can even offer personalized learning based on class notes, links, and other files you upload.

The following image shows the Samwell.ai interface after it generated an article about the Battle of Midway for me. The user experience (UX) was really nice. I just selected a paragraph I wanted to edit, then on the left, chose how I wanted to edit it. I liked how easy it was to iterate on content.

Key features

• Citation automation is easy to do and edit with Samwell. Just choose a format, like MLA, APA, Harvard, Chicago, IEEE, or Oxford. If you want to change a citation within a generated article, click the paragraph and select In-Text Citations.
• Power editor AI tools extend paragraphs, add critical thinking, and insert citations.
• Built-in AI detection and plagiarism checks show up in the left-hand panel as you work. 

Pros

• Very easy to use — Samwell’s UX is straightforward and clear.
• It’s quick to generate AI content if you’re in a hurry.
• Advanced edit allows you to make your all-important human edits right in the document. This is a great feature, but I highly recommend taking frequent copies and pasting them into a Google doc. It’s not that Samwell is a problem for losing content, but I’ve lost content typing into a browser too many times.
• Earn free 5,000 words after you create your first paper. I got an email after creating my first essay, and I liked how targeted the email was. This makes the free demo seem even more generous.

Cons

• Samwell’s free trial restricts you to 1,000 words. Longer projects require a paid plan.
• Some Samwell users note the lack of customer support.

Plans/Pricing

Samwell.ai offers a generous free trial, and the academic plan is affordable at $12 per month.

7. Scalenut

Best for: rapid draft generation

Developer: Scalenut Inc.

Scalenut is an all-in-one AI writing platform built to combine AI writing capabilities with search engine optimization tools. It’s designed primarily for content marketers, but it can also support academic users who want structured outlines or fast first drafts. 

Here’s a screenshot showing what Scalenut’s Cruise Mode looks like:

Key features

• Cruise Mode is a key feature for many and the reason why this tool is best for rapid draft generation. Cruise Mode powers through the content process — from keyword research to full draft — in guided stages. I didn’t want to include this feature as a con since others praise it, but I found the mode a bit too fast. I prefer to prompt the AI tools to produce better results.
• The Detect and Humanize feature softens AI-generated tone by reducing detectability and improving readability.

Pro

• Scalenut has possibly the fastest article generation of all tools on this list.

Cons

• Geared for SEO content, Scalenut might be confusing for an academic writer to use. When you first start with the tool, it asks what your main SEO problems are. Select anything so you can just get started.
• It offers more features than an academic writer needs due to its primary use for SEO.
• No citations and references available, but this is easily fixed with a bit of help from ChatGPT.
• There are increased costs for additional features like Detect and Humanize.

Plans/Pricing

You can try Scalenut for free for seven days without entering any card details. After that, you can choose from three tiered paid plans:

• The Essential plan is $20 per month for generating 15 new articles and optimizing 15 existing articles.
• The Growth plan is $32 per month for generating 90 new articles and optimizing 90 existing articles.
• The Pro plan is $60 per month for generating 225 new articles and optimizing 225 existing articles.

How to choose the right AI essay writer

Choosing the right AI essay writer will depend on your needs, budget, and personal preferences. Some tools offer better free plans than others, which gives you more time to explore and familiarize yourself with their features. Samwell.ai, for instance, had one of the most generous free packages of all the tools I reviewed.

Consider the price before you sign up. If budget is a problem, then ChatGPT might be your best AI essay writer, as it allows you to do a lot for free. Remember to prompt it well and advise on things like preferred reference styles. You can work a lot of features offered by  paid AI writing tools into your prompts.

Some AI essay writers offer greater functionality for AI essay writing in particular, like finding academic sources and styling references for you. The Good AI, EssayGenius, and Samwell.ai are best for academic sources and citations.

Think about what you’re doing with your paper. If it’s being published online, you might want to think about SEO.

Finally, consider ease of use. Try as many of the tools as you can to get a feel for how they work and what you like. If you’re totally overwhelmed, Jasper AI — while not the cheapest — does offer a full walk-through where you can get trained (and certified) on the tool.

Get started with AI essay writers today

Whichever tool you choose, make sure to use your AI essay writer ethically and integrally. Academics should be extra careful about citations and sources. Unedited AI poses a serious professional risk because it can get quotes and citations wrong — you must check everything.

Used well, AI essay writing tools will streamline your workflows, reduce your stress, and enhance your productivity. Discover how technology can enhance your writing by exploring one of best AI essay writers of 2025!