AI writing platform for job descriptions and performance feedback that drives diversity and quality
Textio is the only AI writing tool purpose-built for HR that has real outcomes data behind its recommendations. Its job description optimization and performance feedback guidance (Textio Flow) have measurable impact on applicant diversity and review quality.
Starts at $209/month for small teams. Enterprise pricing available.
Textio is an AI-powered augmented writing platform purpose-built for HR teams who need to create inclusive, bias-free content at scale. Unlike general-purpose AI writing tools, Textio is trained specifically on hiring and people management language, with two focused products: Textio Loop for recruiting content (job posts, sourcing outreach, employer brand) and Textio Lift for performance management (manager feedback, performance review writing). The platform detects and removes biased language before it filters out qualified candidates or produces legally risky performance feedback.
Pricing: From $15,000/year for organisations with 1–199 employees | Scales by company size | 14-day free trial available
Textio was founded in 2014 in Seattle by Kieran Snyder and Jensen Harris with a specific insight: the language used in job postings and performance reviews systematically filters out qualified candidates and produces biased feedback, and most HR professionals have no way to detect or correct this in their own writing. Textio built an AI model trained on hundreds of millions of job postings, candidate responses, and performance review outcomes to identify which specific language patterns produce which outcomes — and to provide real-time alternatives.
The platform operates at the intersection of AI writing assistance, diversity and inclusion strategy, and HR risk management. Customers include Johnson & Johnson, Cisco, Hulu, Spotify, McDonald’s, and eBay. Textio has experienced company restructuring in recent years but remains the category-defining platform for AI-powered inclusive language in HR contexts. The platform is a point solution — it does one thing (HR writing quality and inclusion) rather than offering broad HR functionality.
Textio is a niche enterprise platform with fewer public reviews than broader HR platforms, reflecting its specialist positioning. User feedback from Software Advice, GetApp, and Capterra is predominantly positive, with consistent praise for the DEI impact and real-time feedback quality. The most common complaints are cost and suggestions feeling formulaic. The platform’s enterprise customer list (Cisco, Spotify, Johnson & Johnson) indicates strong adoption among large organisations with sophisticated DEI programmes.
Textio Loop analyses job postings, sourcing outreach emails, and employer brand content in real time, identifying language patterns associated with lower application rates from underrepresented groups. The platform flags specific words and phrases (e.g., gendered language like “ninja” or “aggressive,” age-coded terms, unnecessarily exclusive metaphors) and suggests neutral alternatives. The Textio Score measures the predicted effectiveness of job content based on peer-reviewed language research and Textio’s own outcome data. As changes are made, the score updates in real time, giving writers immediate feedback on whether their edits improve or reduce expected reach. Templates allow teams to create pre-approved, high-scoring job description frameworks that standardise language across the organisation.
Textio Lift extends the platform’s language analysis to performance review writing — the area where HR language bias is most legally and organisationally consequential. Research consistently shows that performance review feedback is written differently for different demographic groups: women receive more personality-focused and less achievement-focused feedback; underrepresented minority employees receive shorter, less specific feedback; older workers receive feedback that codes their experience as a liability. Textio Lift detects these patterns in real time as managers write feedback, surfaces the issue with an explanation, and suggests more equitable alternatives. The tool also identifies feedback that lacks specificity or actionability — which tends to be correlated with less effective development outcomes.
The analytics layer tracks language patterns across the organisation over time: which teams are improving, which job families consistently use exclusionary language, what proportion of feedback meets quality thresholds. HR leaders can identify where targeted coaching or intervention is needed, track the organisation-wide impact of Textio adoption, and report on DEI language quality improvements to leadership. The analytics are particularly valuable for organisations with DEI reporting requirements or D&I programme measurement needs.
Textio Flow allows HR teams to build and manage a central library of pre-approved templates — job description frameworks, outreach email sequences, feedback language guides — with embedded Textio guidance. Recruiters and managers can access templates that already meet language quality standards, reducing the effort required to produce compliant content from scratch. Workflow management tools support review, approval, and publishing of content within the team.
Textio integrates directly with Greenhouse, Workday, Oracle Taleo, iCIMS, and other major ATS platforms. Job descriptions can be analysed and edited within Textio and pushed to the ATS, or the Textio analysis layer can be overlaid on the ATS interface directly. Email integrations with Gmail and Outlook bring Textio’s real-time analysis into sourcing outreach writing. LinkedIn Recruiter integration covers InMail and message writing. The integration coverage is solid for enterprise recruiting stacks but there is no public API for custom integrations.
Most inclusive language tools focus exclusively on job descriptions. Textio Lift’s extension into performance review writing is the platform’s most distinctive capability and the one with the strongest risk management argument for legal and compliance teams. Performance reviews are increasingly subject to employment discrimination scrutiny; biased feedback patterns — which are systemic and invisible without analytical tools — create legal exposure that Textio directly addresses. No other mainstream platform offers this in an HR-native, real-time feedback format.
Textio’s language recommendations are not based on generic inclusion guidelines but on actual outcome data: which specific phrases and language patterns correlate with higher application rates from underrepresented groups, better candidate acceptance rates, and stronger feedback quality assessments. This outcome-based approach means Textio’s recommendations are empirically grounded rather than rule-based, and continuously updated as the training data expands.
Textio’s interface is designed for HR professionals, not technical users, and is generally described as intuitive. The learning curve involves adapting to real-time in-line feedback — which some users initially find disruptive but most describe as natural after a few sessions. The Textio Score and colour-coded language highlights make the guidance immediately legible without requiring understanding of the underlying methodology. HR professionals with no technical background can use the platform effectively within a day or two of onboarding.
Textio implementations are straightforward. ATS integration requires IT involvement to connect systems but is typically completed within 1–2 weeks. User onboarding is managed through Textio U — Textio’s training and certification programme for HR professionals. Most teams are using the platform effectively within 2–3 weeks of contract signing. The primary implementation challenge is change management: getting recruiters and managers to use the tool consistently and trust its recommendations requires internal communication and leadership endorsement of the DEI programme the tool supports.
Textio offers phone and email support with a dedicated customer success function for enterprise accounts. Response quality is rated positively by users. Textio U provides self-service training resources and certification. Given the specialist nature of the platform, the support team has deep HR language expertise rather than generic software support knowledge, which users appreciate for substantive guidance on how to use recommendations effectively.
Textio pricing is based on company size with unlimited user licences per tier:
The unlimited user licence model is important context: for an organisation with 50 recruiters and 500 hiring managers all writing job descriptions and performance reviews, the per-user cost of $15,000/year is very competitive. For an organisation with 3 recruiters, $15,000/year is harder to justify.
Grammarly Business is a general-purpose writing assistant with some inclusive language features. Textio is an HR-specific platform trained on recruiting and performance management outcomes. Grammarly is more affordable and covers all business writing. Textio is more accurate and effective for HR-specific language quality. Organisations with a genuine DEI programme and high-volume recruiting will find Textio’s HR-native recommendations meaningfully better than Grammarly’s general guidance.
Ongig focuses on job description optimisation and scoring with a stronger focus on SEO and formatting alongside inclusive language. Textio focuses more deeply on language bias detection and outcome-based recommendations. Ongig also includes job page design and ATS-specific publishing features. For organisations whose primary concern is language bias reduction rather than job page design, Textio’s language model is stronger. For organisations who want job description optimisation including SEO and visual formatting, Ongig is broader.
Major ATS platforms (Greenhouse, Lever, Workday) have added basic inclusive language checking to their job description editors. These features typically flag a list of known exclusionary terms. Textio’s recommendation depth — outcome-based, continuously updated, context-aware — is significantly more sophisticated than basic term-flagging. For enterprise organisations with serious DEI commitments, Textio’s technology is materially better than ATS-native inclusive language features.
Textio analyses job postings, sourcing outreach, and performance review feedback in real time, identifying language patterns associated with bias, exclusion, and reduced effectiveness. It provides immediate suggestions for more inclusive, clear, and outcome-effective alternatives. Textio Loop covers recruiting content; Textio Lift covers performance management feedback.
Textio pricing starts at $15,000/year for organisations with 1–199 employees and scales by company size. Pricing includes unlimited user licences within the tier. A 14-day free trial is available. Enterprise pricing for 1,000+ employee organisations requires a custom quote.
Textio integrates with Greenhouse, Workday, Oracle Taleo, iCIMS, LinkedIn Recruiter, Gmail, and Microsoft Outlook. If your ATS is not on this list, direct integration may not be available as Textio has no public API for custom integrations. Check with Textio’s sales team for current ATS compatibility.
Textio’s outcome data shows measurable improvements: organisations using Textio report more diverse candidate application pools, higher application rates from underrepresented groups, and significantly reduced problematic language in performance reviews. The methodology is grounded in peer-reviewed research and continuously updated outcome data. As with any tool addressing systemic bias, Textio addresses language patterns in written content but cannot address broader organisational culture, hiring practices, or unconscious bias in interview and selection processes.
Textio is a genuinely effective, category-defining platform for HR teams serious about language quality and inclusive communication. The extension of bias detection into performance review writing (Textio Lift) is the most distinctive capability in the HR tech market for risk-conscious organisations — and the clearest argument for the $15,000+ annual price point.
The limitations are real: it’s expensive for a point solution, scope is narrow, and suggestions can feel formulaic for highly specialised writing contexts. But for an enterprise HR or talent acquisition team with a genuine DEI mandate and high recruiting volume, Textio delivers measurable, auditable impact on language quality that no general-purpose writing tool can replicate.