Proofreaders, explained
A proofreader is the last set of eyes on a piece of writing before it goes out. Their job is to catch the small mistakes still left in the work that earlier rounds of editing leave behind, like a misspelled word or a comma in the wrong place. This is different from copy editing. A copy editor reshapes a piece so it reads well and does its job; a proofreader works at the surface, making sure the mechanics are right. Once a piece has been proofread, it should be clean enough to publish.
I’m a professional proofreader and copy editor, and every project gets copy editing and proofreading as standard.
What does a proofreader do?
A proofreader reads a finished piece slowly and carefully, looking for anything that’s still wrong. Proofreading is the last step before a piece is finalized, so the questions of style and structure have already been answered. What matters now is whether the writing is correct on the page.
Often, that’s the whole job: read it closely and hand it back clean. But a proofreader also checks that a document is consistent with itself and with other versions of itself. They might set an author’s manuscript against the publisher’s galley proof, or make sure an article reads the same in print as it does online.
Proofreading as an activity, and how the process works from start to finish, has its own guide in proofreading, explained.
Proofreader, copy editor, or fact checker?
These three jobs get mixed up, but they’re not the same. A copy editor takes time to understand what a piece is for and shapes it to fit, working on how it reads and whether it makes sense. A fact checker confirms the facts against outside sources. A proofreader works at the surface, on the spelling and punctuation that have to be right whatever the writing is.
The difference is easiest to see in one sentence. Take “Barack Obama was, ellected President in 2009.” A fact checker would look it up and change 2009 to 2008. A copy editor would weigh whether the sentence earns its place in the piece and might change it. A proofreader would catch the stray comma and the misspelled “elected,” and leave the rest alone.
Some copy editors do proofread as part of the service. The fuller comparison between copy editing and proofreading sits in copy editing, explained, and what a copy editor does has its own guide in copy editors, explained.
What to look for when hiring a proofreader
Start with education and a wide base of reading. Most professional proofreaders have a degree in English or something close to it, like journalism or communications. There are proofreading courses and certificates too, and they don’t hurt, but the more useful signal is a real grounding in the language and years of reading widely. That’s what builds the instinct for knowing when something’s off.
Then look at experience, which matters at least as much. A proofreader’s eye is built over time, on a lot of different writing, and both speed and accuracy come with the miles. Proofreading a first-grade math textbook is not the same job as proofreading a 100,000-word novel, and someone who’s done plenty of both will be steadier with yours.
It’s worth understanding why experience matters so much, because proofreading looks more mechanical than it is. In theory the rules never change: punctuation is punctuation, and a misspelled word is misspelled whether it’s in a novel or a text message. In practice, a proofreader is always reading for context. The conventions on a national news site are not the conventions of a company’s website or a PhD thesis, and the language itself keeps shifting under everyone’s feet. A good proofreader keeps up, and knows which rules apply to the piece in front of them.
It also helps to find someone who knows your kind of writing. A fiction proofreader is at home with dialogue and the rhythm of narrative; a non-fiction proofreader keeps a closer eye on the facts and the formatting. Someone who has worked in your subject will bring the right instincts to it.
What it costs comes down mostly to length, since a longer piece takes longer to do properly, and every job is a little different. The simplest way to find out what yours would cost is to ask for a quote.
Related guides
Proofreading, explained: proofreading as an activity
Copy editing, explained: the wider editing craft
Copy editors, explained: what a copy editor does
I’m Tara Foss, and I’ve been editing professionally for more than 25 years. Whatever you send me, I do the work myself.
FAQs about proofreaders
Is “proofreader” one word or two?
One word, these days. “Proofreader” is the standard spelling, and so is the verb, “proofread.” You’ll still come across the two-word “proof reader” and the hyphenated “proof-reader,” especially in older or British writing, but the single word is now the norm.
Can I proofread my own work?
You can, but you may not be the best person for it. We tend to read what a sentence is meant to say and slide right over our own mistakes, so a second reader will catch what you’ve stopped seeing. A trained proofreader also spots the things you’d miss, and keeps spelling and punctuation consistent throughout.
How many times will a proofreader read through a piece?
It depends on the proofreader. Some go through a piece once; others read it twice or more. For anything important or complex, more than one pass is usually worth it.
How long does proofreading take?
Speeds vary, but a useful rule of thumb is around 1,500 to 2,000 words an hour, or somewhere between 10,000 and 14,000 words a day. A longer or more technical piece takes more time to do properly, so the timing is always worked out per project.
If you’ve got a piece that needs a careful final read, tell me about it and I’ll let you know how I can help.