Grammarly + Custom Style Guides: Write Consistently Everywhere

Grammarly catches grammar errors, but its real power is enforcing consistent style across everything you write. By configuring custom rules—like "never use 'utilize'" or "always Oxford comma"—you ensure your writing matches your brand voice in every email, document, and message.

This is especially powerful for teams where consistency matters.

Setting Up Your Writing Style

1. Access Grammarly Settings

   Open Grammarly (web, desktop app, or extension). Click your profile icon > Settings > Customize.

2. Set Your Goals

   Configure your default writing goals:

   • Audience: General, Knowledgeable, Expert
   • Formality: Informal, Neutral, Formal
   • Domain: General, Business, Academic, Technical, Creative, Casual
   • Tone: Neutral, Confident, Friendly, etc.
   • Intent: Inform, Describe, Convince, Tell a Story

3. Save as Default

   These become your default settings for all new documents.

Creating a Style Guide (Business/Premium)

Grammarly Business and Premium offer custom style guides:

Word Preferences

Add rules for specific words:

• Use → Suggest: "utilize → use" (flag "utilize," suggest "use")
• Company terms: Flag misspellings of product names
• Banned words: Flag jargon you want to avoid
• Preferred terms: "customers" instead of "users"

Common Style Rules

• Oxford comma: Always use (or never use) the serial comma
• Contractions: Allow or disallow (don't vs. do not)
• Passive voice: Flag passive constructions
• Sentence length: Flag overly long sentences
• Redundancies: Flag phrases like "past history" or "free gift"

Recommended Style Rules

For Professional Writing

• Avoid "very" and "really" (weak intensifiers)
• Replace "utilize" with "use"
• Replace "leverage" with "use" (unless specifically about leverage)
• Replace "impactful" (not a word for purists) with "effective"
• Replace "synergy" with specific collaboration benefits
• Avoid "in order to" → just use "to"

For Clarity

• Maximum sentence length: 25 words
• Avoid passive voice where active is clearer
• Flag nominalizations (using nouns instead of verbs)
• Highlight adverbs for review (often unnecessary)

For Technical Writing

• Consistent capitalization of product names
• Specific terminology preferences
• Second person ("you") vs. third person style
• Code formatting conventions

Team Style Guides

With Grammarly Business, admins can create shared style guides:

1. Create Team Guide

   Admin dashboard > Style Guide > Create new guide

2. Add Rules

   Import from existing style guides or create custom rules.

3. Assign to Team

   Apply the guide to all team members automatically.

4. Update Centrally

   Changes to the guide propagate to all team members.

Alternatives to Grammarly

• ProWritingAid: Deeper style analysis, good for fiction
• Hemingway Editor: Focus on readability, simpler suggestions
• LanguageTool: Open-source, good for non-English languages
• Vale: CLI tool for technical writers, highly customizable

Effective Workflow

When Writing

• Write first, edit later—don't let Grammarly interrupt flow
• Use the floating widget to spot major issues
• Set document-specific goals before editing

When Editing

• Run full Grammarly check
• Review suggestions in categories (clarity, engagement, delivery)
• Don't accept all suggestions blindly—use judgment
• Dismiss irrelevant suggestions to improve future recommendations

Conclusion

Grammarly with custom style guides transforms from a grammar checker into a writing consistency tool. Spend 30 minutes setting up your rules and goals, and every piece of writing you produce will be more consistent without conscious effort.

Start with the basics—formality, domain, and a few word preferences—then refine over time as you notice patterns in your editing.