13 Best Sites to Practice English Grammar Online (for Free)

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If you’re looking for the best sites to practice English grammar online, I’ve got you covered. With so many sites in cyberspace, how do you know which ones are best for you?

As a trained proofreader and someone qualified to teach English as a second language, I know a good grammar site when I see one.

I’ve spent many hours researching websites to bring you the best ones, and I’ve organized them according to the grammar proficiency levels they cater to.

Whether you’re a beginner ELL (English language learner) or a native English speaker who’s soon to be a grammar guru, this article has recommendations for you.

I’ll tell you what each site offers and what I like most about it.

At the end of this article, I’ll leave you with some helpful tips to make learning grammar as simple as possible.

Note: If you’re a high school or college student, my article about the best grammar sites for university students will better meet your needs.

Website Winners (My Number One Picks)

Here are my top picks for the best websites to learn grammar according to various levels. Since my site caters to aspiring proofreaders, I’ve included my top choice for those wishing to work on error patrol. 😉

Best Site Overall (suitable for ELLs and native English speakers): Grammar Monster

Criteria for Websites

To be included in this post, a site had to meet the following criteria:

• be a reputable site with accurate information
• have exercises, quizzes, tests, or some way to practice English grammar
• be easy to navigate
• have grammar content available for free
• not require registration to access the content

How These Sites Are Organized

I’ve organized these sites according to their suitability for various levels of grammar learners.

Three websites are suitable for several levels, so I’ve listed those sites first.

Then, they’re in order starting with sites for ELLs and ending with sites for advanced learners.

How I Define the Levels

Here’s what each level means:

ELL: You’re learning English as a second language.

Beginner: English is your first language, and you have a below-average understanding of grammar (e.g., you’ve forgotten most of what you learned about grammar in middle and high school). If this is you, don’t worry! It was me at one point. 😊

Intermediate: English is your first language, and your grammar knowledge is on par with most people.

Advanced: English is your first language, and you have an above-average understanding of grammar (e.g., you remember much more than most from your grammar-learning days or are currently in high school or college).  

Who Can Benefit from These Sites?

The following people can benefit from these websites:

• English language learners
• students of all levels
• job seekers
• professionals in all fields (especially the publishing industry!)
• proofreaders and aspiring proofreaders

If you’re an English language learner, you’ll benefit from the simple explanations and practice activities on these websites. Using these resources will speed up your acquisition of English.

As a student, you’ll benefit because getting a leg up on your grammar game translates into better grades on written assignments.

If you’re a job seeker, the grammar in your résumé, CV, or cover letter can mean the difference between getting a job or getting overlooked.

As for professionals in the working world, good grammar will help you gain trust and maintain your authority. Bad grammar can undermine your credibility and make you look careless and unprofessional. Yikes!

Finally, for all you proofreaders, the more grammar you know off the top of your head, the more efficient you’ll be on the job! And the more efficient you are, the more money you can make.

The Best Sites to Practice English Grammar Online

Let’s look at top-notch websites where you can practice English grammar in a meaningful way. Practice makes progress and helps reinforce your learning.

1) Grammar Monster

Grammar Monster has been one of my favorite sites for years. Why? It’s a ton of fun! If you have any reservations about learning grammar, hop on over to this site.

Despite the name, I promise it won’t scare you. 😉 On this website, learning grammar becomes more like a fun game and less like a tedious bore of a chore.

Grammar Monster does an exceptional job of incorporating infographics into its content. And who doesn’t love a well-designed infographic to make concepts easier to understand?

Launch Date: 1999

Who Created It? Craig Shrives—a former soldier and author of several grammar books

English Dialect: US

Level: Suitable for all levels (ELLs and beginner, intermediate, and advanced learners)

Main Content:

• grammar games and tests
• comprehensive list of grammatical terms (some with explainer videos)
• thorough list of easily confused words (some with explainer videos)

The site also has content about punctuation.

What I Like Most: I love the multitude of engaging tests and games that let you discover your weaknesses. The tests are neither too long nor too short, and the games are entertaining.

For example, you can practice identifying parts of speech with the whack a mole and fish games.

I enjoy the tests so much that I mention them in my article about proofreading tests and quizzes.

Grammar Monster has also spruced up its site design. Looking good, Grammar Monster!

But what I like the most is the form that invites you to tell Grammar Monster the words you plan to use for a tattoo you’re getting.

They say they’ll check the wording to make sure it’s correct. Hahaha! What a fantastic service to humanity, no? 😊

2) Daily Grammar

Launch Date: 1996

Who Created It? Pete Peterson and Bill Johanson

English Dialect: US

Level: Suitable for all levels (ELLs and beginner, intermediate, and advanced learners)

Main Content: Here are the ways the grammar content is presented:

• lessons
• quizzes
• glossary
• FAQ

Daily Grammar also has content covering punctuation and capitalization.

What I Like Most: The lesson archive is my favorite part of this site. The archive makes it super simple to find what you need quickly. The lessons are indexed by number and subject. Over 400 bite-size lessons are available!

Here’s a look at part of the lesson archive:

3) GrammarBook.com

Launch Date: Unknown

Who Created It? Jane Straus

English Dialect: US

Level: Beginner, intermediate, and advanced learners

Main Content:

• in-depth info about English grammar rules and confusing words
• quizzes to check your knowledge of English rules
• grammar blog (some posts have pop quizzes at the end)
• English usage videos (most videos feature Jane Straus)

It also contains content covering capitalization, punctuation, and writing numbers.

What I Like Most: I think the variety of fun quizzes is the best part of this site. I’ve taken many of them and really enjoyed them. They cover a lot of material, and explanations are given for each quiz question.

You can also find grammar and punctuation tests (four total) that are more comprehensive than the quizzes. These are excellent for testing overall grammar and punctuation know-how.

4) EnglishClub

Launch Date: 1997

Who Created It? Josef Essberger

English Dialect: UK (primarily)

Level: ELLs (lots of content for beginner ELLs)

Main Content: Here are some of the ways the grammar content is presented:

• lessons
• quizzes
• games
• articles
• discussions

The site also includes info about these topics:

• vocabulary
• pronunciation
• speaking, listening, reading, and writing

What I Like Most: EnglishClub has a 24-hour English Help Desk with teachers available to answer your questions about grammar or other ELL-related topics. What a valuable and generous feature!

The English Help Desk has a specific forum for grammar-related questions (called Grammar Help).

It’s still going strong, and a reply is given for every question someone posted.

ELLs can also participate in these EnglishClub forums:

• Help Each Other with English

This forum is for questions about all aspects of learning English (grammar, vocab, pronunciation, spelling, word usage, etc.).

• Learning Tips

Here you’ll find suggestions and strategies for learning English.

• English Language FAQ

This discussion covers commonly asked questions about the English language.

The site contains a wide variety of content presented in a multitude of ways. If you’re learning English as a second language, I hope you enjoy exploring all this site offers.

5) UsingEnglish.com

Launch Date: 2002

Who Created It? Richard Flynn and Adam King

English Dialect: UK

Level: ELLs

Main Content: Here are some examples of the site’s resources for learning grammar:

• articles
• exercises
• worksheets
• quizzes
• tests (you need to complete the free registration to access the tests)
• an extensive glossary of grammar terms

The site also features content on other topics, including vocabulary, writing, reading comprehension, and test taking. You can also find numerous articles about learning English.

What I Like Most: I love that this site hosts online discussion forums for learning English grammar. English teachers and experts volunteer to answer students’ questions 24/7. That’s such a nice feature!

The many active forums fall under one of three categories:

1. learning English
2. analyzing language
3. ESL (English as a Second Language) questions

Below, you can see that the Learning English forum is quite active!

UsingEnglish.com also has a ton of free resources for ESL teachers. Bonus!

6) Perfect English Grammar

Launch Date: 2007

Who Created It? Seonaid

English Dialect: UK

Level: ELLs

Main Content: Here are a few examples of what this site covers:

• verbs (verb tenses, phrasal verbs, modal verbs, etc.)
• prepositions
• adjectives
• adverbs
• questions
• conditionals
• reported speech

What I Like Most: This site includes in-depth info about verb tenses—a challenging topic for most ELLs.

I like how the verb tense explanations are simple, and the accompanying infographics provide an easy-to-understand overview of the tenses.

Both the explanations and infographics are available as PDFs so you can easily print them out and have a hard copy to study if you prefer.

7) Exam English

Launch Date: 2004 (according to Crunchbase)

Who Created It? Unknown, but Stephen Chadwick manages it

English Dialect: UK

Although the site is written in UK English, the dialect will vary when taking the site’s practice tests. For example, the TOEFL evaluates US English, but the IELTS tests UK English.

Level: ELLs

Main Content: The site is designed to help those studying for an English language exam.

It features free practice tests for the following English language tests:

• the TOEFL®
• the TOEIC®
• the IELTS
• the Cambridge English exams (e.g., A2 Key [KET], B1 Preliminary [PET], B2 First [FCE], and C1 Advanced [CAE])

What I Like Most: The best part of this site is its comprehensiveness: it provides practice tests for a wide variety of international ESL exams.

I also like how Exam English gives you the following details about specific tests:

• how a test is organized
• when and where you can take it
• how much it costs

8) British Council LearnEnglish

Launch Date: 2000

Who Created It? The British Council—the UK’s international organization for educational opportunities and building relationships with other countries

English Dialect: UK

Level: ELLs and beginners

This site has content specifically for ESL students at the following levels:

• A1 (elementary) and A2 (pre-intermediate)
• B1 (intermediate) and B2 (upper intermediate)
• C1 (advanced)

Main Content: This site contains grammar lessons and tests on various topics. Here are some of the subjects you can explore:

• adjectives
• prepositions
• countable and uncountable nouns
• verbs
• conjunctions
• adverbs
• pronouns
• conditionals
• reported speech

The website also includes other resources for learning English, like a comprehensive vocabulary section featuring a variety of exercises. The vocabulary material is organized by level.

The site also has activities to help ELLs master the four main skills involved in language learning: reading, writing, listening, and speaking.

What I Like Most: I love how the material is organized by level (A1–C1) so learners can access content appropriate for their level.

I also appreciate how LearnEnglish features video, audio, magazine, and story “zones” that allow students to practice their listening and reading skills.

These zones are in addition to the activities for practicing all four language learning skills.

9) Purdue OWL (Grammar Exercises Section)

Launch Date: 1994 (when Purdue’s Online Writing Lab [OWL] was launched)

Who Created It? Dr. Muriel Harris, David Taylor, and Stuart Blythe

English Dialect: US

Level: ELLs and beginners (other content on the site appeals to all levels)

Main Content:

The grammar exercises cover the following topics:

• adjectives and adverbs
• appositives
• articles
• count and noncount nouns
• prepositions
• tense consistency

What I Like Most: I like the count and noncount exercises for ELLs since this is an important concept to grasp.

Although the site only has a few exercises relevant to grammar, the practice is excellent.

Other OWL exercises cover the following topics:

• punctuation
• spelling
• sentence structure
• sentence style
• writing numbers
• paraphrasing
• nominalizations and subject position

I learned about Purdue OWL in college since several professors recommended it as an excellent resource for writing assignments. It has useful info about how to cite sources in research papers.

10) English Grammar.org

Launch Date: Unknown

Who Created It? Unknown, but Jennifer Frost maintains the site

English Dialect: US

Level: Beginner and intermediate learners

Main Content:

• downloadable grammar lessons
• online grammar exercises
• grammar rules
• a grammar checker
• writing guides

The site also touches on other topics, including punctuation, spelling, proofreading, commonly confused words, idioms, various types of writing, vocabulary, and basic conversational topics.

What I Like Most: I love the abundance of English grammar lessons on this site. Most “lessons” are exercises that let you practice your skills. You can download the exercises as a PDF if you wish.

Another nice feature of this site is that new grammar lessons are added frequently.

If you’re a beginner or intermediate grammar student who’s always looking for new content, this site is perfect for you.

11) University of Bristol (Grammar and Punctuation)

Launch Date: 2003

Who Created It? Neville Morley

English Dialect: UK

Level: Intermediate and advanced learners

Main Content: This site covers grammar and punctuation in two formats:

• explanations with examples (examples are tailored to the writing of formal academic essays)
• quizzes

What I Like Most: I like how the content on this site is geared toward a specific audience: college students. If you’re a university student, this helpful, easy-to-navigate resource can guide you through your grammar conundrums.

The explanations are clear and concise, and the formatting of the information and quizzes is visually appealing.

I wish I had known about this resource when I was in college!

12) Grammar Bytes

Launch Date: 1997

Who Created It? Robin L. Simmons—a professor of English and humanities at Valencia College in Orlando, Florida

English Dialect: US

Level: Intermediate and advanced learners

Main Content:

• list of grammatical terms (some with explainer videos)
• interactive grammar exercises
• handouts
• lessons about grammar rules
• PowerPoint presentations about grammar topics

What I Like Most: The interactive grammar exercises are entertaining and unique. They provide answers to the questions you find on the handouts.

If you select the correct answer, you win a cool cyber prize. And when you choose the wrong answer, you get a prize—but it’s nothing you would hope for. 😉

The interactive exercises include sound effects, so make sure you turn up the volume. The sounds for some of the incorrect answers made me laugh out loud.

Robin has a great sense of humor!

13) CMOS Shop Talk

Relevant Section of Website: Chicago Style Workouts

Launch Date: Unknown; however, the first edition of The Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS) was published in 1906. That goes way back!  

Who Created It? The editors and staff of CMOS

English Dialect: US

Level: Advanced learners

Main Content: The Chicago Style workouts are 10-question quizzes that evaluate your knowledge of CMOS. Here are a few examples of the content these workouts cover:

• grammar
• word usage
• punctuation
• spelling
• writing numbers
• proofreading
• editing

What I Like Most: I love that the content adheres to the rules set forth by CMOS—the style guide I use most frequently for proofreading work.

I went through all the exercises (“workouts”) while learning to become a proofreader.

Below, you can see the intro for one of the workouts.

Since then, numerous workouts have been added. This site is an invaluable resource that continually becomes more comprehensive.

5 Tips for Learning Grammar Easily

Here are a few tried-and-true tips for getting the most out of these grammar websites.

1) Study a little bit each day.

Consistency is the key. Studying for a short time each day will improve your retention of the material and prevent burnout.

2) Build a solid foundation.

Lots of grammar concepts build on one another, so make sure to master basic concepts before trying to grapple with more advanced ideas.

For example, identifying direct and indirect objects won’t be possible until you understand how to locate subjects and verbs.

3) Keep a dedicated notebook to practice English grammar.

Putting things in writing helps to reinforce what you’re learning. You can also jot down any questions you have while studying.

You can try to find answers to your questions on these grammar sites (sometimes through forums).

If you can’t find your answer on these sites, Google, Quora, and Reddit are good sources to consult.

4) Use a variety of mediums for learning grammar.

Learning through a variety of mediums helps keep things interesting.

Reading lessons, watching videos, listening to audio transcripts, responding to writing prompts, playing games, and taking quizzes and tests are all great ways to boost your grammar game.

Taking advantage of different forms of learning means you’ll be taking in information visually, auditorily, and through reading and writing.

The more senses you involve, the better your retention will be.

And if you know your learning style, you can focus on the types of content that work best for you!

5) Use tests and quizzes to assess your progress.

The sites on this list are chock-full of engaging tests and quizzes. Taking them is a fun way to know what you understand and where you need more practice.

I wrote an article about advice for improving your grammar if you’d like some other solid strategies.

I hope this article highlighting the best places to practice English grammar online helps you immensely.

Best wishes to you!

“These mountains that you are carrying, you were only supposed to climb.”

– Najwa Zebian