What is the difference between Turnitin and Originality Feedback Studio?

The short answer is YES, they both come from Turnitin but they aren’t the same tool. The longer answer is the devil lies in the details. Keep reading to know more about it.

Why are these two different?

The simple answer is that Turnitin Originality (sometimes just called “Originality”) is not made to provide the full feedback-and-grading experience, while Turnitin Feedback Studio focuses on giving you robust instructor feedback, grading rubrics, and that dreaded similarity report all in one. Basically, if Turnitin Originality is the detective that hunts down plagiarism and AI-generated text, Feedback Studio is the detective plus the teacher who also leaves comments on your paper, scores your rubric, and maybe even chimes in with a voice note.

Also Read: Is iThenticate the same as Turnitin?

Technical Features: They share the same big detection engine

One important thing to note is that both Turnitin Feedback Studio and Turnitin Originality share the same text-matching engine. This means they tap into Turnitin’s massive database, which includes:

• Over 70 billion (yes, that’s 70,000,000,000) web pages.
• More than 1 billion student papers already submitted before.
• Tens of millions of journal articles (that’s a ton of academic reading!).

So basically, they can catch direct copying, patchwork copying, and weird paraphrasing in more or less the same manner. Both produce a similarity report with color highlights and a big overall percentage. That big similarity score can freak people out, but it’s just a number that indicates how much text matched something else in their database.

AI Writing Detection: They can both sniff out ChatGPT

Nowadays, many students worry about whether Turnitin can catch them using AI like ChatGPT or other large language models (LLMs). The short answer is: absolutely yes. Turnitin claims that their AI detection is pretty accurate with a “small” false-positive rate, but let’s face it, no AI detector is perfect.

• Originality includes AI detection automatically in many cases, plus an “authorship report” that tries to see if your writing style drastically changed or if you might have outsourced your paper.
• Feedback Studio can also include the same AI detection, but only if your school has paid for that add-on.

Also Read: Can Turnitin Detect AI Code?

User Experience and Interface Design

Turnitin Feedback Studio is all about that “all-in-one” approach. Once you open your submission, you’ll see similarity highlights in one layer, and you can switch to the grading layer where your instructor might leave inline comments, QuickMarks (like pre-made notes for common errors), or even voice feedback. It’s pretty nice if your instructor is dedicated to using all those features.

Turnitin Originality, on the other hand, has a simpler, some might say “bare-bones,” similarity report. You see the colored text matches and sources; that’s it. If your instructor wants to leave feedback, they usually do it somewhere else, like the built-in grading tool in Canvas, Blackboard, or whatever LMS your school uses.

Also Read: Best AI Humanizers For Turnitin

Integration with LMS Platforms

Speaking of LMSs (like Moodle, Canvas, or Blackboard), both Feedback Studio and Originality integrate via LTI (basically a fancy connector). For students, submitting an assignment can look almost the same. The difference is in the after-submission features:

• Feedback Studio: You see your similarity report and the actual feedback (comments, rubrics, etc.) in Turnitin’s interface.
• Originality: You mostly see a similarity score plus, if purchased, an AI writing check. Then your instructor has to give you your grade and comments through the LMS’s regular grading section.

Feedback and Grading Tools

Turnitin Feedback Studio: The big highlight is that everything is integrated. You can see QuickMarks, inline text comments, voice notes, rubrics, and grammar suggestions if your school pays for that.

Turnitin Originality: No built-in feedback. So if you’re waiting for your instructor to highlight your grammar mistakes, you might not see it here. They will do it somewhere else.

Pricing and Cost Considerations

Look, none of us pay for Turnitin out of our own pockets (unless you’re at a certain type of private institution), but these costs matter a lot to your school. Feedback Studio is considered the premium product, so it can cost into the tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for large universities. Originality is cheaper but focuses on similarity checking plus optional AI and authorship detection.

Accuracy in Plagiarism & AI Detection

Since they share the same detection engine, both are equally good (or equally flawed, depending on your opinion) at catching plagiarism. AI detection is also basically the same, provided your institution purchased it. Turnitin warns that the AI flags are just “indicators,” not slam-dunk proof, because there can be that small chance of false-positives.

Pros and Cons of Turnitin Feedback Studio vs Turnitin Originality

Turnitin Feedback Studio

Pros:

• Everything in one place: plagiarism check, instructor comments, rubrics, voice notes.
• Intuitive design (once you get used to it).
• Can also do optional draft-checking.

Cons:

• Higher cost, so small institutions might prefer something cheaper.
• Some students get anxious seeing the similarity score.
• If an instructor doesn’t use it thoroughly, you might not get that feedback you hoped for.

Turnitin Originality

Pros:

• Straightforward similarity checking.
• Usually cheaper.
• Offers AI and authorship detection to catch contract cheating or AI usage.

Cons:

• No built-in feedback or grading.
• Puts a lot of focus on the similarity percentage, so some instructors or students might misinterpret that.
• Minimal “learning support.”

Adoption in Academic Institutions

Both are used in thousands of schools worldwide. Feedback Studio is typically chosen by places that want that extra layer of grading and feedback. Originality is more of a direct, cost-effective solution to catch plagiarism and AI writing.

My Take: Which is better for students?

If you want my honest opinion, Turnitin Feedback Studio is definitely more beneficial for students who actually care about improving their writing. It’s ideal if your instructor actively uses the rubrics and comment features. Meanwhile, Turnitin Originality is for institutions who just want to ensure academic integrity and maybe catch contract cheating or GPT usage.

The best approach might be a combination: a robust feedback tool that actually helps you learn (Feedback Studio) and advanced AI/authorship detection for those suspicious submissions (Originality). After all, writing with genuine integrity is always your best bet: no stress over getting flagged and no anxiety about big red percentages in your similarity report.

The Bottom Line

Both Turnitin Originality and Turnitin Feedback Studio help maintain academic honesty, but they have different focuses. Originality is the lean, mean checking machine, while Feedback Studio is the entire classroom experience for feedback and grading. If you’re in a position to influence which tool your school picks or if you’re simply curious about how they differ, now you know what sets them apart.

Good scholarship (honest writing + correct citation) is the simplest way to live in peace with these tools. So yes, Originality and Turnitin Feedback Studio are from the same company—but remember, different focus equals different experience!