How to humanize AI text
Start with the habits you can see, then fix the ones you can't. We counted which habits really separate AI drafts from human writing, and some of the famous ones don't.
Updated October 1, 2026
The habits that give AI away, counted
We ran our tell list over 300 well-edited human texts (explainers, forum answers, encyclopedia openings) and 300 AI drafts of the same pieces by Gemma 4, 70,000 to 80,000 words each.
- Em dashes
- Human, per 10,000 words7.7
- AI drafts, per 10,000 words41.8
- "Utilize" instead of "use"
- Human, per 10,000 words0.4
- AI drafts, per 10,000 words12.3
- Sentences opening with Moreover or Furthermore
- Human, per 10,000 words0.6
- AI drafts, per 10,000 words11.2
- Sentences opening with Additionally
- Human, per 10,000 words0.4
- AI drafts, per 10,000 words6.6
- "Robust"
- Human, per 10,000 words0.6
- AI drafts, per 10,000 words3.4
- Sentences opening with Ultimately
- Human, per 10,000 words0.1
- AI drafts, per 10,000 words2.2
- Lists of three
- Human, per 10,000 words23.6
- AI drafts, per 10,000 words23.8
| Habit | Human, per 10,000 words | AI drafts, per 10,000 words |
|---|---|---|
| Em dashes | 7.7 | 41.8 |
| "Utilize" instead of "use" | 0.4 | 12.3 |
| Sentences opening with Moreover or Furthermore | 0.6 | 11.2 |
| Sentences opening with Additionally | 0.4 | 6.6 |
| "Robust" | 0.6 | 3.4 |
| Sentences opening with Ultimately | 0.1 | 2.2 |
| Lists of three | 23.6 | 23.8 |
Lists of three, often called the classic AI tell, showed up just as often in human writing. Em dashes, "utilize" and stacked transitions are the real giveaways in this kind of writing. On LinkedIn the tells are different; see the signs of AI writing page.
Fix them by hand
- 01Cut the opener and the recap. "In today's fast-paced world" and "In conclusion" can go without replacement.
- 02Replace most em dashes with a comma, a period or parentheses. Keep one if it earns its place.
- 03Delete Moreover, Furthermore and Additionally at the start of sentences. The sentence almost always works without them.
- 04Swap the stock words: use for utilize, many for a myriad of, shows for is a testament to.
- 05Break the frames. "It isn't just X, it's Y" becomes a plain statement of Y.
- 06Vary the rhythm. Make one sentence much shorter than its neighbours, and let another run long.
- 07Add one thing only you know: a number from your own work, a name, a date, what actually happened.
- 08Read it aloud. Anything you wouldn't say to the person, rewrite.
Before and after (illustration)
These sentences were written for this page to show each step. They aren't from a test set. The specific details on the right are placeholders for your own.
- In today's fast-paced world, clear communication is more important than ever.
- Edited(cut: start with the point)
- Moreover, the new process utilizes a robust framework to streamline approvals.
- EditedThe new process uses one approval form instead of three.
- This isn't just a tool — it's a game-changer for teams.
- EditedOur team stopped copying numbers between spreadsheets by hand.
- In conclusion, investing in onboarding is essential for long-term success.
- Edited(cut: the reader just read the case for it)
| AI-style draft | Edited |
|---|---|
| In today's fast-paced world, clear communication is more important than ever. | (cut: start with the point) |
| Moreover, the new process utilizes a robust framework to streamline approvals. | The new process uses one approval form instead of three. |
| This isn't just a tool — it's a game-changer for teams. | Our team stopped copying numbers between spreadsheets by hand. |
| In conclusion, investing in onboarding is essential for long-term success. | (cut: the reader just read the case for it) |
What a trained rewrite changes that you can't see
Two real lines from our round-3 test, an AI draft of a LinkedIn post (Qwen3.5) and our model's rewrite. The whole post went from a detector score of 5.28 to 1.10, under the LinkedIn flag line of 4.10.
- Furthermore, the integration with Amazon voice devices allows for hands-free cooking, which is incredibly helpful when your hands are full.
- Rewriteyou can talk to Amazon voice devices as you cook, which is helpful when your hands are full.
- This is exactly the kind of holistic strategy brands need to thrive in the modern digital landscape.
- RewriteI'm really into this kind of content, education, commerce strategy.
| AI draft | Rewrite |
|---|---|
| Furthermore, the integration with Amazon voice devices allows for hands-free cooking, which is incredibly helpful when your hands are full. | you can talk to Amazon voice devices as you cook, which is helpful when your hands are full. |
| This is exactly the kind of holistic strategy brands need to thrive in the modern digital landscape. | I'm really into this kind of content, education, commerce strategy. |
The rewrite is plainer, more personal and a little untidy, which is how people write. It also turned the draft's paragraphs into one block with inline dashes, so formatting needs a check before posting.
Why hand editing has a ceiling
Fixing every visible habit helps the reader, but it barely moves a detector. When our rules made the mechanical fixes above on 300 drafts, the share flagged went from 93.3% to 92.7%. The rest of the signal is in rhythm and word choice that no checklist captures. A trained rewriter does better: one try of ours brought the same kind of drafts down to 19.3% flagged on general web text (pilot) and 2.3% on LinkedIn posts (round 3).
One side effect worth knowing: after one rewrite by our round-3 model, em dashes fell from 41.8 to 1.9 per 10,000 words on explainers, without a rule telling it to. It learned the habit from human writing.
Questions
What's the fastest way to make AI text sound human?+
Delete the opener and the recap, cut most em dashes and Moreover/Additionally transitions, and add one specific detail of your own. That fixes what readers notice. Detectors need a deeper rewrite.
Will editing by hand get past an AI detector?+
Usually not on its own. Our rules fixed the visible habits in 300 drafts and the flagged share only went from 93.3% to 92.7%. Heavy rewriting in your own words is different, because then it's your writing.
Should I remove every em dash?+
No. People use them too: 7.7 per 10,000 words in our human set. The tell is density. AI drafts used 41.8. One or two in a long piece is fine.
Are lists of three a sign of AI?+
Not in explainers: human and AI texts used them at the same rate, 23.6 and 23.8 per 10,000 words past a small allowance. Cutting them makes writing worse without making it more human.
Can I check my text for these habits?+
Yes. The free AI phrase checker on this site highlights them and fixes the safe ones, in your browser.
Is it okay to humanize AI text?+
For your own posts, emails and messages, yes. If a school or employer bans AI help for a piece of work, rewriting it doesn't make it allowed.