Let’s say you’re a professor grading papers at 11 PM, coffee in hand, and you come across an essay that’s just… too perfect. Or maybe you’re a student who’s worked hard on an assignment, but your AI detection software is claiming otherwise.
Between ChatGPT and other LLMs like Claude and Gemini changing how we write and colleges scrambling to keep up, everyone’s now using some form of AI writing detection. But here’s what’s driving me crazy — nobody’s giving it to us straight about which tools actually work.
So, let’s change that. Here are the five most used AI detectors by colleges and if they’re truly accurate.
TurnItIn
Ah, TurnItIn — that name that probably makes every student’s heart skip a beat. It’s been around forever, originally only used for catching plagiarism, but now they’ve moved onto AI detection too.
Name recognition definitely plays a part in why they’re the go-to AI detector for most universities. They claim to have an accuracy of 97%, which is extremely high if true.
Does it actually work? It’s unreliable — in fact, I believe that it’s more unreliable than anything else on this list. We’ve seen (and written about) completely human-written papers getting flagged as AI-generated, especially if the writer happens to be particularly articulate or follows a clear, logical structure.
Blackboard — SafeAssign
SafeAssign is Blackboard’s answer to LLMs. It’s built right into the Blackboard learning management system, which makes it super convenient for institutions already using their platform. The integration is seamless — I’ll give them that much. You can check for both plagiarism and AI-generated content with just a few clicks.
But here’s where things get interesting: SafeAssign uses what they call a “multi-algorithmic approach” to detect AI writing. In theory, this sounds great. Multiple algorithms working together should catch more potential AI content, right? Well, not exactly.
Does it actually work? Not all the time. While it’s decent at catching traditional plagiarism, it’s still finding its footing when it comes to AI detection.
GPTZero for Canvas
For Canvas users, GPTZero integrated itself into the LMS to make AI detection as seamless as possible for educators. It’s got a pretty solid reputation in the academic world, and I can see why. Their approach is different — instead of just looking for patterns, they analyze the “perplexity” and “burstiness” of text, fancy terms for how complex and varied the writing is.
What makes GPTZero interesting is their transparency about their results. They’re not just saying “trust us, we know what’s AI” — they’re actually explaining how they make their determinations and break down text so you could better identify which parts are AI.
So, does it actually work? It’s better than TurnItIn and Blackboard, but still struggles with false positives. We tested it last year and its true positive rate averaged to 65.25%. For more information about Canvas and GPTZero, check out this article.
CopyLeaks
Now, let’s head to standalone detectors. CopyLeaks has been at the forefront of AI detection, and for good reason. Unlike some others on this list, they’ve actually put in the work to understand how AI writing works. They use a combination of machine learning models trained on both AI and human-written text, and their approach is pretty sophisticated.
They don’t just look for obvious markers of AI writing — they analyze how ideas flow together, how vocabulary is used, and even how sentence structure varies throughout a piece. It’s like having a literary critic and a computer scientist working together to analyze each submission.
So, does it actually work? This is one of the most accurate free AI detection tools, but it’s not perfect.
Winston
What impresses me most about Winston is their attention to detail and accuracy. Like CopyLeaks, they don’t just give you a yes or no answer about whether something is AI-generated — they provide a detailed breakdown of your input.
But here’s what really sets them apart: they’ve got one of the highest true positive rates I’ve seen. They’ve clearly put a lot of effort into understanding how humans actually write, including all our quirks and inconsistencies. Plus, they’re constantly updating their system based on user feedback and new AI developments.
So, does it actually work? If you’re looking for the best AI detector, Winston is in contention. It was part of our testing last year and it had a true positive score of 91%. We also reviewed it independently, scoring a 100% on ChatGPT text and 50% on the best AI humanizer in the market, Undetectable AI.
Can You Protect Your Work Against False Positives?
We’ve established that no AI detector is accurate. Even the best ones can ruin your academic career. So, as a student myself, I recommend using AI humanizers like Undetectable AI to protect yourself against these issues.
So, why Undetectable AI?
Simple: because it works. I’ve tested lots of AI humanizers before and only Undetectable AI has proven itself to be reliable enough that it’s worth recommending. I used it against 8 AI detectors, against its own detector, and even against the other popular AI bypassers. Spoiler alert — it won all the time.
For more information about Undetectable AI, check out our complete review of it here.
The Bottom Line
Here’s the thing about AI detection tools — none of them are perfect. They’re all playing catch-up with quickly evolving AI technology, and that’s just the reality we’re dealing with. But some are definitely doing a better job than others.
The key is understanding what these tools can and can’t do. Just remember: technology is only as good as the people using it, and these tools should be starting points for conversations, not final verdicts.
What’s your experience with any of these tools? I’d love to hear your thoughts on how they’ve worked (or haven’t worked) for you.
