Word & Character Counter

How to use the Word & Character Counter

1. Paste or type your text into the box. Counts update as you type.
2. Read the word count, the character count with and without spaces, and the estimated reading time.
3. Trim or expand the text until it fits the limit you are working to.

When to use it

Meta descriptions, ad headlines, social posts, tender responses and job adverts all come with hard limits, and most of them count characters, not words. This tool tells you both at once, so you can check a 155-character meta description and a 300-word bio in the same place. The reading-time estimate is useful for blog posts and newsletters, where knowing that a piece takes four minutes to read helps you decide whether to split it.

What is counted and how

Words are runs of characters separated by spaces or line breaks, so "e-mail" is one word and "e mail" is two. Characters are counted twice: once including spaces and once without, because platforms disagree about which they limit. Reading time is an estimate from the word count at a typical adult reading speed and is a guide, not a measurement. Counts update on every keystroke and nothing is stored or sent.

Worked example

A meta description for a product page: the draft reads 171 characters with spaces, and search engines truncate around 155–160, so the last clause goes. A LinkedIn post with a 3,000-character ceiling: the draft is 3,240 with spaces, 2,690 without; the limit counts spaces, so 240 have to go. A tender response asks for "no more than 500 words" on capability: the draft is 612, and the counter shows the cuts landing in real time. Three limits, three different units, one box.

Common mistakes

• Checking the wrong unit. Read the platform's rule: words, characters with spaces, or characters without.
• Counting the formatted version. Paste plain text; hidden formatting from a word processor can add characters that the destination will not count, or will.
• Treating reading time as a target. It describes length, not quality; a 2-minute read that says nothing is still too long.
• Forgetting hashtags and links. On social platforms they count towards the limit; paste them in.

When this tool is the wrong one

It counts. It does not check spelling, grammar, readability grade or keyword density. For changing capitalisation across a block, the Case Converter; for text that will become a web page, the Markdown editor, whose preview shows the structure the count cannot.

Good to know

The reading-time figure assumes an average adult reading speed of roughly 200 words per minute; technical or non-native readers will take longer. Nothing you paste is stored or sent anywhere, so it is safe to use for draft contracts and unreleased announcements.