We’ve all seen the headlines: a third of US college students say they use ChatGPT for writing tasks at least once a month. The share of US teens turning to the same tool for schoolwork doubled between 2023 and 2024. Generative AI tools overall are a fixture of life for seven out of ten teens.
The advent of ChatGPT and its competitors was supposed to put even the best essay writing services out of business. After all, generative AI can create an essay in seconds. So, why pay a professional to take care of it?
Yet, three years after the launch of ChatGPT, academic help services are still going strong. Here’s why US students continue to choose expert help over AI-generated content, and the four services they trust with their assignments.
How students actually use AI tools
When it first made the news, ChatGPT was called “the death of the English essay.” Now, that kind of language seems like a promise of an apocalypse that (predictably, in hindsight) never came.
Today, students don’t use generative AI tools to generate whole essays. Across multiple surveys, brainstorming, outlining, research, and test prep emerge as the main use cases for AI. For example, the survey from University of California Irvine found that:
- 66% use AI to learn more on a specific topic/subject
- 56% use it to prepare for tests
- 55% use it to find academic sources
- 46% use it for note-taking
Only a third of respondents (31%) reported turning to AI tools to write essays. The percentage went even lower for scholarship and college application essays (21%).
Why students still opt for top essay writing services
While AI tools are great at generating long texts in a blink of an eye for free, that’s where their benefits typically end. Unlike professional writers, AI simply can’t:
- Grasp all the intricacies and subtleties of the expectations toward an essay, especially if it’s meant for a college or scholarship application
- Capture the customer’s authentic voice based on samples of their previous writing
- Write an essay that’s truly distinct and memorable: AI tools regurgitate cliché narratives and generic statements
- Come up with qualitatively new ideas and arguments: AI can only repeat the opinions already out there
- Verify the essay is 100% factually correct: AI tools can hallucinate facts, and many don’t even include precise sources of information
Potential AI checks are another concern that pushes some students to hire a top essay writing service instead of using AI. For one, Turnitin automatically checks all assignments for both plagiarism and AI content now. Some educators take it on themselves to run AI content scans, too. An essay written by a professional will pass those checks without a hitch, which can’t be said about an AI-generated one.
4 best online essay writing services students trust
Which platforms score the highest among the best online essay writing services trusted by US students? Here’s your snapshot of four such platforms:
| Service | Best for | Rating (Sitejabber) |
| EssayPro | One-stop help | 4.4/5 based on 31,122 reviews |
| WritePaper | In-depth research | 5.0/5 based on 1,019 reviews |
| MyPaperHelp | Personalised writing | 4.8/5 based on 364 reviews |
| PaperWriter | Collaborative approach | 4.9/5 based on 848 reviews |
EssayPro: Best for one-stop help
EssayPro is the essay writing service online with the most extensive track record on this list. As of writing, it has over 30,000 reviews on Sitejabber alone and completes 300,000+ assignments annually.
But that’s not what makes it the best essay writing service. Based on customer reviews, students prefer EssayPro to AI because its essay help remains affordable, all while being more in-depth, insightful, and creative than AI content. The fact that its writers specialise in 140+ subjects and 50+ paper types helped EssayPro secure its popularity, too.
Pricing
- Custom writing: Starts at $10.80/page
- Rewriting: Starts at $7.56/page
- Editing: Starts at $7.56/page
- Proofreading: Starts at $5.40/page
Pros
- 350+ writers specialising in 140+ subjects
- Good price-quality ratio with transparent pricing and no surprise fees
- Solid track record of on-time delivery
- Free plagiarism and AI reports
- Full control over who works on your essay
Cons
- Not all orders can be completed in 3 hours
- No over-the-phone customer support
WritePaper: Best for in-depth research
AI tools can’t do the kind of research, analysis, and synthesis that experts at WritePaper do every day. That’s what makes it the best college essay writing service for essays and other papers that have to be insightful and present advanced, nuanced arguments on a complex topic.
According to the best essay writing service reviews, WritePaper’s experts are especially good at delivering in-depth essays in research-intensive disciplines that require advanced reasoning. Those include nursing, philosophy, psychology, and history.
Pricing
- Custom writing: Starts at $10.80/page
- Rewriting: Starts at $7.56/page
- Editing: Starts at $7.56/page
- Proofreading: Starts at $5.40/page
Pros
- Solid argumentation and research skills among writers
- 115+ subjects covered
- Around-the-clock support and help
- Thoroughly researched essays with advanced reasoning
- Diverse formatting options (MLA, APA, Chicago, etc.)
Cons
- Potentially overwhelming writer selection process
- Graphs and tables cost extra
MyPaperHelp: Best for personalised writing
While all services on this list provide custom writing services, MyPaperHelp is a paper writing service frequently praised for its personalised approach to orders. Its experts readily work with samples and adapt the style and tone of voice to the essay’s context and purpose. They also build on the ideas, suggestions, and whole outlines added to the order form.
This makes MyPaperHelp the best essay writing website for any essay that has to be highly personal in nature. Think scholarship and college application essays or creative writing assignments that focus on personal experiences rather than academic research.
Pricing
- Custom writing: Starts at $10.80/page
- Rewriting: Starts at $7.56/page
- Editing: Starts at $7.56/page
- Proofreading: Starts at $5.40/page
Pros
- Wide range of writing styles and tones of voice supported
- Essays fully adapted to their context and purpose
- High-quality creative writing assignments
- Possible to attach samples to the order form that writers build on
- Unique, authentic writing that doesn’t rehash generic ideas or clichés
Cons
- You have to be very precise with your instructions to leave no room for misunderstandings
- Originality reports aren’t provided by default; you have to request one (although they are free)
PaperWriter: Best for collaborative approach
Yes, US students turn to PaperWriter for many reasons, but direct writer communication is the most frequently cited one. So, if two-way communication with the writer is important, PaperWriter is definitely worth considering.
PaperWriter’s experts routinely reach out to customers via direct chat whenever they need to clarify the requirements or ask for additional information. That makes PaperWriter the best essay writing service for students who want their essays to reflect their thoughts, ideas, and opinions to the letter.
Pricing
- Custom writing: Starts at $10.80/page
- Rewriting: Starts at $7.56/page
- Editing: Starts at $7.56/page
- Proofreading: Starts at $5.40/page
Pros
- Direct writer chat with end-to-end encryption
- Strict privacy policy that protects confidentiality
- Responsive writers who proactively communicate with customers
- Unlimited free revisions without mandatory waiting time
- Review work services available
Cons
- Writer selection may be a bit time-consuming
- A collaborative approach is, by definition, also somewhat time-consuming
Final thoughts: AI can’t rival human creativity & expertise
AI tools may be becoming more ingrained in the learning process, but that doesn’t mean they’re ready to replace human creativity and expertise altogether. Yes, they can help you outline an essay or brainstorm ideas. But only professionals can come up with truly fresh ideas or develop a complex argument on a topic that requires hours of research.
So, it’s safe to say that essay writing services aren’t going anywhere any time soon. They will continue supporting students in their studies, more so than AI tools.
If you’re looking for the best essay writing service, Reddit and other social media platforms are a good place to start. Independent review platforms like Sitejabber and Reviews.io can also come in handy.
Image source: Unsplash
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