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From a final proofread to full editing and subject-matter editing: native-speaker editors correct spelling, grammar and style — and bring your thesis, business report, website or application up to publication standard. Monolingual and bilingual review, including post-editing of machine translation (MTPE).
Proofreading covers spelling, grammar and punctuation · editing adds style and clarity · your text, only better – never rewritten · also available as post-editing of machine drafts
Short & clear
Not every text needs the same treatment. Proofreading removes errors in spelling, grammar, punctuation and typography. Editing goes further and also improves style, sentence structure, consistency and clarity. Subject-matter editing adds a review by a specialist in the field, and post-editing (MTPE) brings machine-translated text up to publication standard.
At the FÜD, a native-speaker editor works on your text — not whoever happens to be free. After a brief look, we name the right level and a binding fixed price that you know before you commission the work.
Levels of service
Rather than defaulting to the most expensive service, we assign the level your text actually needs. If in doubt, we review a sample and recommend one.
Three types of text come up often enough that we treat them in depth elsewhere: academic writing under Research & Academia, web and marketing copy under Websites & E-Commerce, and official documents under Certified Translation.
Depth of review
The two terms are often used interchangeably, but they mean different depths of work — and therefore different effort and price.
Proofreading works on the surface of the language: it removes errors in spelling, grammar, punctuation and typography, and leaves wording and structure untouched. That is the right choice for a text that already reads well and only needs to become error-free — a final proof before print, or a finished manuscript before typesetting.
Editing goes further: it also checks style, word choice, sentence structure, clarity, flow and fit for the target readership — and proposes concrete improvements without changing your voice. Subject-matter editing adds a further layer, where a specialist in the field checks terminology and factual accuracy — in law, medicine or technology, for example. Which level you need depends on the purpose.
| Checked | Proofreading | Editing | Subject-matter editing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spelling, grammar, punctuation | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Typography & consistency | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Style, sentence structure, clarity | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| Audience & register fit | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| Subject terminology & factual accuracy | – | partly | ✓ |
| Four-eyes revision (DIN EN ISO 17100) | optional | ✓ | ✓ |
Who it's for & what we proofread
Every text type has its own pitfalls. That is why we match not only the language but also the field and the text type to the right person.
Doctoral theses, habilitations, master's and bachelor's theses, papers and abstracts. We check language, style, citation style and formal consistency — your findings and argument remain your own academic work. See also Research & Academia.
Annual reports, websites, brochures, press releases and white papers — error-free, consistent and on-brand. For web content we edit with SEO in mind. See Websites & E-Commerce.
Book manuscripts, novels, non-fiction and screenplays — from a straightforward proof of camera-ready copy to a full edit for style and flow. We smooth the text without changing your voice, and keep characters, tenses and terms consistent.
Cover letters, CVs and personal statements often succeed or fail in the first paragraph. We correct errors, sharpen the tone and make sure your documents read as confident and error-free — in English too.
Machine or AI-translated drafts are brought to publication standard: checked against the source text, guided by terminology, with human responsibility for the result clearly assigned. Complements specialised translation.
We also check finished translations: does the target text hold up linguistically and terminologically? If a document additionally needs a certified translation, we point you straight to that service.
Process & quality
A good result is not a coincidence; it is a managed process. We work to DIN EN ISO 17100, with defined assignment, revision and terminology management. You upload your text; we review length, language, text type and purpose, and name the depth of review, a delivery date and a binding price. A native-speaker editor with the matching background then works on your text, and — in subject-matter editing — terminology is checked against a style guide and term base.
Under the four-eyes principle of DIN EN ISO 17100, a second qualified person checks the result against the source where relevant. You receive the corrected text, on request with tracked changes and comments for sign-off. Urgent texts go through a short feasibility check and our express service, with a clear date and price.
Spell-checkers and AI catch typos, but not whether a sentence is actually true. Machine translation often reads fluently and is still wrong — with numbers, negatives and specialist terms, that goes unnoticed without a check against the source. A native speaker with subject knowledge sees where a formally correct sentence tips over. That is exactly the layer that turns a text with few errors into one that reads as assured.
One error in the wrong place — and the message tips over.
So: native-speaker editors, controlled terminology, and a final check under the four-eyes principle.
Use cases
Text type, purpose and language decide the level and the process. Three common jobs — from the starting point to the result.
Academic proofreading
Business & websites
Post-editing (MTPE)
Price
Pure proofreading starts from € 0.89 per standard line; editing and subject-matter editing are quoted by scope, depending on length, language, text type and depth of review. After a brief look at your text we name a binding fixed price.
| Native-speaker proofreading or editing | ✓included |
| Comments & tracked changes on request | ✓included |
| Terminology & consistency check | ✓included |
| Four-eyes revision (subject-matter editing) | ✓included |
| Binding fixed price before you commission | ✓included |
Proofreading is priced per standard line (55 characters incl. spaces), from € 0.89; editing and subject-matter editing are quoted by scope. How the price is made up →
Our thesis had to read well without anyone touching the argument. The FÜD held exactly that line: style and terminology cleaned up, the argument untouched — and the fixed price was agreed before we started.
PhD candidate, natural sciences · academic editing · 4.9 / 5 from 268 reviews (as of 08/2026)
Proofreading and editing improve language and style, but they are not a certification. If an authority requires a certified translation, an authorised translator (ermächtigter Übersetzer, authorised by a German court under state law) produces it and adds the certification note. Tell us what the document is for and we will point you to the right service. Certified translation →
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