AbstractRecent long-read assemblies often exceed the quality and completeness of available reference genomes, making validation challenging. Here we present Merqury, a novel tool for reference-free assembly evaluation based on efficient k-mer set operations. By comparing k-mers in a de novo assembly to those found in unassembled high-accuracy reads, Merqury estimates base-level accuracy and completeness. For trios, Merqury can also evaluate haplotype-specific accuracy, completeness, phase block continuity, and switch errors. Multiple visualizations, such as k-mer spectrum plots, can be generated for evaluation. We demonstrate on both human and plant genomes that Merqury is a fast and robust method for assembly validation.Availability of data and materialProject name: MerquryProject home page: https://github.com/marbl/merqury, https://github.com/marbl/merylArchived version: https://github.com/marbl/merqury/releases/tag/v1.0Operating system(s): Platform independentProgramming language: C++, Java, PerlOther requirements: gcc 4.8 or higher, java 1.6 or higherLicense: Public domain (see https://github.com/marbl/merqury/blob/master/README.license) Any restrictions to use by non-academics: No restrictions applied