9 best AI grading tools for teachers in 2025

Grading. It’s the one task that seems to multiply overnight. For every insightful essay or clever math problem, there’s a mountain of papers waiting, each placing demands on your time and attention.

AI grading tools promise to help you get back some of those lost hours. Using artificial intelligence (AI) to streamline the grading process, they help you assess student work more efficiently, maintain consistency across the class, and deliver the timely, constructive feedback your students need.

Below, I’ve laid out the 9 best AI grading tools for a variety of assignments, class types, and use cases — based on hands-on testing.

Benefits of AI grading tools in education

• Time savings: AI grading tools can finish in minutes what might take you hours — regardless of the type of assignment or size of your class. That means your students get feedback quickly and you get several hours back in your day.
• Consistency: No matter how many papers it grades, AI doesn’t get grading fatigue. All work is graded consistently, based on your chosen rubric and feedback settings.
• Streamlining for large classes: Even the simplest grading work can become a huge time-sink for large classes, but AI can handle 300 grades in nearly the same time it can turn around three.
• More time and energy for high-value work: With an AI grader in your toolkit, all that time you used to spend grading can shift to higher-impact work, like lesson planning and providing one-on-one support to students.

Key features for AI grading software

A graduate-level Philosophy professor will have different needs from an AI grading tool than a second grade teacher. That said, there are some key features I looked for during my research and testing:

• Accuracy is paramount — the tool needs to reliably evaluate students’ work based on your prescribed criteria.
• Compatibility with various assignment types including multiple-choice quizzes, open-ended essay prompts, complex STEM assignments, and more.
• Flexibility and customization options to tailor rubrics and feedback settings to your needs and preferences.
• Integration with Learning Management Systems (LMS) to streamline administrative work.
• Data security measures to ensure the safety and privacy of your students and their data.

The 9 best AI grading tools for teachers

After testing, I landed on the top 9 platforms below — each of which offers something unique to help you streamline your grading and enhance student feedback.

1. Marking.ai

Marking.ai is engineered for efficiency, focusing on delivering in-depth feedback on written work with impressive speed. What caught my attention was its ability to accurately read and assess handwritten submissions. When I scanned and uploaded a sample handwritten essay, the platform quickly returned detailed, rubric-based feedback. This makes it an excellent choice for educators who use a mix of digital and paper-based assessments and need a consistent grading approach.

Best for: Grading handwritten and digital submissions

Key features: Reads handwritten submissions; provides in-depth, rubric-aligned feedback; allows for feedback to be shared directly with students

Pros: Excellent for handling a mix of assignment formats, including handwritten work; in-depth, rubric-aligned feedback; feedback can be shared directly with students

Cons: User interface is less polished than some; free plan is limited to only six submissions

Plans/pricing: Free plan for up to 6 submissions; paid plans start at $29 per month for 90 submissions and increase based on monthly submission count

2. MagicSchool

MagicSchool is less of a single-purpose AI grading tool and more of a comprehensive AI assistant for educators. It has over 80 different tools, with core feedback and grading features. I used its Rubric Generator to create a detailed rubric in seconds.

One option I loved: you can opt to speak your prompt and rubric/feedback details instead of typing it all out.

Then, I pasted in sample work and used the Writing Feedback tool and got instant, rubric-aligned comments. It’s an incredibly versatile platform that helps with lesson planning, communication, and, of course, providing high-quality feedback more efficiently.

Best for: A comprehensive AI platform

Key features: AI-powered feedback tool aligned to custom rubrics; over 80 tools, including a rubric generator and lesson planner; customizable feedback tone and style

Pros: Comprehensive suite of AI tools; highly customizable, teacher-centric design; generous free plan

Cons: Not a fully automated grading system; grading features may not be as specialized as more dedicated platforms

Plans/pricing: Generous free plan includes access to all 80-plus features; paid plans add additional features and AI allotments and start at $99.96/year

3. Class Companion

Class Companion was one of the most unique AI graders I tested (and my favorite!). It’s designed to be a collaborative tool that provides feedback before an assignment is actually submitted. It acts as an AI teaching assistant that students can interact with. I set up an assignment with a rubric, then previewed as a student to submit a draft and get instant, personalized feedback on how to improve it.

It creates an iterative feedback loop that empowers students to revise and improve. From the dashboard, you can see student progress and the conversations they have with the AI tutor, helping to highlight where students struggle or get stuck. It shifts the focus from grading a final product to improving the learning process.

Best for: Iterative grading and AI tutoring support

Key features: AI-powered feedback for students during the drafting process; teacher dashboard to monitor student progress; supports a wide range of subjects and assignment types

Pros: Promotes student ownership; improves the quality of final submissions; offers real-time insights into student understanding; free for teachers

Cons: Requires student buy-in; not a fully automated grading system for final submissions

Plans/pricing: Free for teachers

4. Kangaroos AI

Kangaroos AI is another powerful tool dedicated to grading written assignments. What stood out to me during testing was its balance of both speed and depth. I was able to upload an entire set of sample essays, and the AI returned detailed feedback for each one in just a few minutes. Feedback is broken down into categories based on the rubric, with specific examples from the submitted text to support each point. It also provides an overall summary and a suggested score.

It’s a great way to ensure every student gets robust, consistent feedback, even when you’re short on time.

Best for: Essay feedback for large classes

Key features: Bulk assignment uploads; rubric-aligned feedback with text-based evidence; generates summary feedback and suggested scores

Pros: Incredibly fast; consistent in feedback; supports bulk assignment uploads for large classes

Cons: Requires a well-structured rubric to be effective; not ideal for non-text assignments

Plans/pricing: Limited free plan available; paid plans start at $16 per month and increase based on volume of grading and word count per essay

5. CoGrader

CoGrader positions itself as an AI teaching assistant, and after using it, I can see why. It’s not designed to just slap a grade on a paper and move on — it generates rich, personalized feedback aligned with your rubric and instructions.

I found the setup process super intuitive: I uploaded my assignment, provided my rubric, and manually graded a few examples to train the AI. From there, CoGrader provided detailed, constructive comments that sounded remarkably like my own.

Best for: Best for detailed, personalized feedback

Key features: AI that learns your grading style; direct integration with Google Classroom; feedback quality and tone customization

Pros: High-quality, personalized feedback; AI that learns your grading style; simple, clean interface

Cons: Requires upfront training time for each new assignment; limited LMS integrations

Plans/pricing: Free plan available for up to 100 submissions per month; paid plans start at $15 per month for the Standard plan, which includes 350 submissions per month, Google Classroom integration, support for handwritten assignments, and more

6. SnapGrade

SnapGrade is designed to make rubric-based grading faster and more consistent — without taking the teacher completely out of the loop. I found the process super easy: upload your existing rubric and a student’s assignment, and the AI provides instant, rubric-aligned feedback and a suggested score. The platform emphasizes teacher-led assessment, allowing educators to quickly apply consistent comments to common errors, saving hours of repetitive work while still ensuring personalized and meaningful feedback for students.

Best for: Best for quick, rubric-based feedback

Key features: AI-powered alignment with any existing rubric; instant feedback and suggested scores; supports handwritten assignments

Pros: Easy to use; seamlessly integrates into existing grading processes; support for handwritten assignments

Cons: Lacks deep analytics and institutional-level features; not a fully automated online grader

Plans/pricing: Limited free plan available; Personal plan available for £4.99 per month, but the Classroom plan (for teachers) starts at £29.99 per month for up to 30 students and 30 assessments per month

7. EssayGrader

EssayGrader is purpose-built for evaluating essays, using AI to analyze student writing across several dimensions, including organization, argument strength, and evidence use, all aligned with a custom rubric.

When I uploaded an essay prompt and its corresponding rubric, the platform provided a predicted score along with detailed justifications. It was particularly good at identifying the thesis statement and checking if supporting paragraphs were relevant.

While I wouldn’t use it to assign a final, high-stakes grade without my own review, it’s useful for providing quick, low-stakes feedback and for getting a rapid first pass on a large batch of essays.

Best for: Essay evaluation

Key features: AI analysis of essay structure and argumentation; custom rubric alignment; plagiarism detection

Pros: Quick and efficient at grading large numbers of essays; provides a good overview of a student’s writing strengths and weaknesses; supports batch grading

Cons: Not ideal for grading creative or narrative writing; limited to essay-style assignments

Plans/pricing: Free plan available to grade up to 25 essays (up to 1,000 words each); Lite plan starts at $6.99 per month for up to 100 essays per month (up to 2,000 words each) and Google Classroom and Canvas LMS integrations

8. EduSageAI

EduSageAI positions itself as a comprehensive assessment partner, capable of grading both theoretical and coding assignments. The platform returned a thorough evaluation of my sample paper in minutes, and I was impressed by its ability to analyze nuanced, subjective answers and provide detailed, bias-free results.

It’s designed to save significant time for educators dealing with complex subjects, helping deliver detailed feedback across various assignment types.

Best for: Grading coding and theoretical assignments

Key features: AI-powered grading for both coding and theory; advanced rubric generator; AI plagiarism checker

Pros: Specialized grading capabilities for technical and theoretical subjects; detailed, bias-free results — even for nuanced, subjective answers; quick evaluation, even for complex subjects

Cons: Per-evaluation pricing model may get pricey for large classes and/or frequent assignments; individualized uploads may not be ideal for larger class sizes

Plans/pricing: Free plan available (for a limited time) for up to 200 evaluations per month; Premium plan starts at $25 per user per month for up to 1,000 evaluations per month

9. Edcafe AI

Edcafe AI is an all-in-one grading assistant for the modern teacher. With Edcafe, you can create lesson plans, build interactive quizzes, and grade the resulting assignments.

I found the Assignment Grader really useful, particularly with a clear, pre-existing rubric. You can upload student work, and the AI provides rubric-aligned feedback, which you can review and edit before finalizing.

Best for: All-in-one lesson planning and grading

Key features: AI assignment grader with rubric alignment; generates lesson plans, quizzes, and slides; build custom AI chatbots from your own materials; library for storing and sharing created content

Pros: Versatile platform that supports the entire teaching workflow; built-in teacher review and editing of AI feedback; affordable, scalable pricing plans

Cons: The sheer number of tools can be overwhelming; less specialized than some tools; better at providing overarching feedback than assigning a definitive score autonomously

Plans/pricing: Free plan available for up to 100 monthly AI generations, 3 assignment graders, and 40 participants per quiz; Pro plan starts at $7.99 per month up to 1,000 monthly AI generations, 200 participants per quiz, and additional generative AI features

Streamline grading with AI

The world of AI grading for teachers offers a solution for nearly every subject and teaching style. Whether you need to grade complex equations, provide personalized writing feedback, or instantly create and grade quizzes, there’s a tool that can help you save time and ensure consistency.

The key is to reflect on your specific classroom needs, the types of assignments you give, and your personal teaching philosophy. Many of the options above offer free plans or trials, so you can take one or two for a test drive to see which works best for you and your students.

Ready to streamline your assessments too? Get started with the Jotform AI Quiz Generator today to create and grade quizzes in minutes. Combine it with Jotform AI Agents to automate even more of your classroom tasks — like managing grade changes — to give yourself more time for what matters most: teaching.