May 26, 2023
Editor
Jessica is a writer for SideHustles.com. Her side hustles include freelance academic writing and editing, which she's done for 10+ years, as well as math and EFL tutoring, both on online platforms and in person.
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VariesIf you’re thinking about becoming a proofreader, you might be wondering whether your skills are good enough. To find out, you can take a proofreading test.
Tests can highlight gaps in your knowledge and help you work out whether you need more training and practice. They’re also a good way to identify the skills you need to improve.
We’ve compiled a list of 12 sites with proofreading tests you can take—all for free.
Who they are: The Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP) is a British association that provides training and support for editorial professionals. They’re a well-recognized authority in the editing and publishing industries.
The test: The CIEP proofreading test comes in the form of a document that contains common mistakes and an accompanying answer sheet showing you how to correct them. The test covers many of the different types of problems that proofreaders have to deal with, including mistakes in punctuation, spelling, and language use.
Other resources: As well as their proofreading test, the CIEP site has a lot of different quizzes on proofreading-related topics, from punctuation to formatting. There’s also a blog for editorial professionals, a selection of high-quality paid courses, and lots of free resources—fact sheets, booklets, and more.
Anything else I should know? While the CIEP proofreading test is very comprehensive, it uses British English. Watch out for the differences between British and American English.
Who they are: ProofreadNOW.com is a company that offers paid proofreading services.
The test: The test on the ProofreadNOW.com website is multiple-choice and mainly checks your spelling and punctuation. A couple of the questions are a little tricky, but there are only 10 of them, so it’s fairly easy overall.
Other resources: The site also has a resources section where you can get free ebooks and white papers. There’s also a page where you can ask grammar questions (they’ll reply via email).
Anything else I should know? One of the proofreading test questions is contested by people in the comments, so this question probably has two correct answers.
Who they are: Authority Pub is a site that’s designed to help writers build a self-publishing business.
The test: The Authority Pub proofreading test is an entertaining letter riddled with errors that you have to correct. The answer sheet has a corrected version of the letter, which you can review when you’ve finished proofreading.
Other resources: Authority Pub has lots of informative articles on writing (and a self-publishing course for $397), but not much for proofreaders, although the website has a few tips on how to improve your proofreading skills.
Anything else I should know? The answers given on the corrected version of the letter in the proofreading test aren’t necessarily the only correct answers. Some of the errors can be corrected in more than one way.
Who they are: The Using English for Academic Purposes (UEfAP) website is a resource hub with information and advice for students in higher education.
The test: This website has 10 proofreading tests that focus on different writing skills, including grammar, punctuation, and word use. There’s also a mixed test covering all 10 subjects. In these tests, you select the incorrect words and then type in the correct words, so it’s harder than a multiple-choice quiz. Luckily, there’s a “hint” button to help you if you get stuck.
Other resources: In addition to the tests mentioned above, the UEfAP site has another general test. Unfortunately, this one doesn’t include answers. The UEfAP also has a wealth of other resources to develop your proofreading skills, including exercises and explanations of many different aspects of language use.
Anything else I should know? This is another site that uses British English. It also focuses on academic English, and some of the tests are very advanced. Academic writing makes for great practice, as it’s one of the hardest types of writing to proofread. However, academic proofreading is quite different from many other types of proofreading (e.g., fiction proofreading), so the UEfAP’s tests aren’t all-purpose.
Who they are: Earn Smart Online Class is a website that offers advice about how to earn money working from home with jobs like proofreading, transcription, writing, and more.
The test: Earn Smart Online Class has a 20-question proofreading test that covers common errors in spelling and grammar, as well as homophones (words that sound the same but mean different things). It’s common for people to mix up homophones in their writing and also for spell checkers to miss these types of errors, so they’re important for proofreaders.
Other resources: The Earn Smart Online Class site features a few tips on how to get good at proofreading (including links to a free proofreading webinar from the company Proofread Anywhere). There are also job listings, but these aren’t very up-to-date.
Anything else I should know? The test has a few tricky questions, but overall, it isn’t very hard. You should be able to get a high score fairly easily. If you don’t, you should consider whether you need to spend more time training your language skills before you take on proofreading projects.
Who they are: Edit Republic is a company that offers professional courses in proofreading and editing, as well as how to start an editorial business.
The test: The Edit Republic proofreading quiz is a very quick multiple-choice test with 10 questions. It’s one of the easiest tests on our list, and you should be able to complete it in a few minutes.
Other resources: As well as the editing and proofreading courses that Edit Republic sells, they offer free training materials and other resources you can check out.
Anything else I should know? You’ll have to enter your email to get your proofreading test results.
Who they are: Freelance Writing is a platform for freelance writers to find work. It also directs businesses who want to hire writers to the website of a content-writing service.
The test: This proofreading test is a little different from the others on this list. Arguably, it’s more realistic. You have to find just three errors in several paragraphs, which is similar to what you’d expect if you were proofreading a text that had already gone through a round of copyediting (or was well-written enough not to need it), which will be the case for most of the pieces you’ll actually review as a proofreader.
Other resources: The Freelance Writing site has lots of resources for writers (including how-to articles, free ebooks, and information about writing competitions), but just a handful of articles specifically for proofreaders.
Anything else I should know? In theory, you’re supposed to complete the Freelance Writing proofreading test in 10 minutes. However, the site doesn’t time you, so you have to time yourself.
Who they are: LoveToKnow is an online media company that features news, content on parenting and family life, resources for pet owners, home and garden advice, and more.
The test: The LoveToKnow site has a downloadable proofreading test, which features an email containing lots of errors. You have to correct them on a printout (or you can mark up the PDF file they provide). The answer sheet has all of the errors highlighted and provides explanations of how a proofreader should correct each one.
Other resources: There aren’t many resources for proofreaders on this site, but there’s a grammar test on the same page as the proofreading test. The site also has an article on how to proofread your own writing.
Anything else I should know? Throughout most of the proofreading test answer sheet, the errors are highlighted and left uncorrected (with annotations explaining what changes should be made). However, a couple of the corrections are made directly onto the highlighted answer sheet. Watch out for this—it can be a bit confusing.
Who they are: Sporcle is a trivia website with hundreds of different quizzes.
The test: The 25-question Sporcle proofreading test takes a different format from the others on this list. It will show you a sentence featuring an error, and underneath it, there are many possible corrections. You have to pick the right one.
Other resources: There are plenty of other Sporcle quizzes that are relevant for proofreaders, covering grammar, spelling, word definitions, and more.
Anything else I should know? Sporcle times how long it takes to complete their proofreading quiz. You have a maximum of 8 minutes to complete it.
Who they are: Business Writing Blog publishes articles for writers working in a “professional, academic, and social setting,” according to their About Us page.
The test: This proofreading test features three emails that contain a number of errors (which you can correct on a printout or in a Word document). There’s an answer sheet for each test. The errors are highlighted and corrected.
Other resources: The Business Writing Blog site has an entire section dedicated to proofreading-related posts, plus more articles on useful topics like grammar and punctuation. They also offer a paid course on proofreading (for $159).
Anything else I should know? As you’d expect, this test focuses on business English, but it’s still good for general proofreading practice. Note that some of the errors on their test have more than one possible fix.
Who they are: Om Proofreading is a website run by Lindsay Babcock, a proofreader who offers services for new age and spiritual content.
The test: Om’s proofreading test is fairly short and easy, featuring 20 multiple-choice questions on homophones.
Other resources: As well as a proofreading test, the Om Proofreading site offers general advice for proofreaders and a quiz on adverbs.
Anything else I should know? The Om Proofreading test doesn’t cover grammar, punctuation, syntax, or other areas that are important for proofreaders to know about.
Who they are: In case you’ve been hiding under a rock, the New York Times is one of the most widely circulated and well-respected newspapers in the US.
The test: The New York Times test assesses your proofreading and fact-checking skills. You have to find 14 errors that have been inserted into extracts from five of the newspaper’s articles. You can then check the PDF under the test to see all of the correct answers.
Other resources: There are also many other quizzes on the website that test your copyediting skills. All of them are part of a series called Copy Edit This! Unfortunately, these tests aren’t collected on a single page on the NYT’s website, but you can find them easily by googling. You can view the first few for free, but eventually you’ll need a subscription.
Anything else I should know? The New York Times proofreading and fact-checking test focuses more on fact-checking than proofreading. Also, it’s from 2014, so some of the information is obsolete.
These tests don’t specifically cover proofreading, but they do cover topics that are useful for proofreaders to know about:
