If you have an M-series Mac running macOS Sequoia 15.1 or later, Apple Intelligence Writing Tools are already on your machine. For free. They can proofread your text, rewrite it in a Professional, Friendly, or Concise tone, and summarize it. They work in any text field across the entire OS.
That’s a genuinely good tool, and for some people it’s all they need. This page is for the people wondering whether Kalamy is worth $5/month on top of what Apple already provides.
| Kalamy | Apple Intelligence | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $5/mo | Free (M-series Mac) |
| Works in every Mac app | Yes | Yes |
| Grammar / proofread | Yes | Yes |
| Tone rewrite | Yes (5 modes) | Yes (3 modes) |
| Translation between languages | 14 languages | No |
| Explain text | Yes | No |
| Trigger | Double-copy (1 gesture) | Right-click → submenu (3 clicks) |
| Works on Windows | Yes | No |
| Requires M-series Mac | No (macOS 10.13+) | Yes |
Apple Intelligence Writing Tools can proofread text (grammar, spelling, punctuation), rewrite in three tones (Professional, Friendly, Concise), and summarize. These tools appear via a right-click menu in any text field on macOS. They work in Safari, Mail, Notes, Pages, and third-party apps. If you’re a native English speaker who mostly needs grammar fixes on a Mac, Apple Intelligence handles that well — and it’s free.
Four things Kalamy does that Apple Intelligence does not: (1) Translate between languages — Apple Intelligence Writing Tools do not translate text. Kalamy translates between 14 languages. (2) Explain text in plain language — Kalamy’s Explain action breaks down technical, legal, or foreign text. Apple has no equivalent. (3) Work on Windows — Apple Intelligence is macOS-only, M-series only. (4) Trigger with a single gesture — Apple requires right-click then submenu navigation. Kalamy is one double-copy.
For non-native English speakers, translation is not a nice-to-have — it’s the daily workflow. Draft a Slack message in your native language. Double-copy. Kalamy translates it. Switch to Improve in the same popup and the translation reads like a native speaker wrote it. Apple Intelligence cannot do any part of this workflow.
Apple Intelligence: right-click on selected text, hover over “Writing Tools” in the context menu, then choose an action from the submenu. Three deliberate interactions. Kalamy: select text, press Cmd+C Cmd+C. One deliberate interaction. If you fix grammar a few times a week, the right-click menu is fine. If you do it twenty times a day, the friction difference matters.
Apple Intelligence does not exist on Windows. Kalamy works identically on both platforms. If you use a MacBook at home and a Windows machine at work — or if your team is split across both — Kalamy gives you the same shortcut and the same seven actions everywhere.
If all of these are true, Apple Intelligence is probably enough and you don’t need to pay for Kalamy: you only write in English, you only use a Mac with an M-series chip, you mainly need grammar and tone fixes, and you don’t mind the right-click menu. We’d rather be honest about that than overpromise. But if you work across languages, need Explain, use Windows, or want a faster trigger — that’s where Kalamy earns the $5/month.
No. As of macOS 15.x, Apple Intelligence Writing Tools do not include translation. Kalamy translates between 14 languages.
No. Kalamy supports macOS 10.13 and later, including Intel Macs. Apple Intelligence requires an M-series chip, but Kalamy does not.
Yes. Many users use Apple Intelligence for quick proofreads via right-click and Kalamy for translation, Explain, and faster double-copy access. They don’t conflict.
If you work across languages, need the Explain action, use Windows, or prefer the faster double-copy trigger, yes. If you only write in English on a Mac and only need grammar fixes, Apple Intelligence may be enough.
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