Word Counter
Paste text to see live counts of words, characters, sentences, paragraphs, and estimated reading time. Everything updates as you type and runs in your browser, so nothing you write is uploaded.
Word & Character Counter
Paste or type your text to see live statistics for word count, characters, sentences, paragraphs, and estimated reading time.
What each metric is for
Different tasks care about different counts. Essays and assignments have word limits; social posts and meta descriptions have character limits; content planners care about reading time. Seeing all of them at once lets you shape text to whatever constraint you are working against.
Reading time here is based on an average of about 200 words per minute, which is a reasonable estimate for general adult reading. It is a planning figure, not a guarantee, since dense or technical text reads slower.
How the counts are defined
Knowing the rules avoids surprises when your number differs from another tool.
- Words are runs of non-space characters, so hyphenated terms count as one.
- Characters are counted both with and without spaces, since platforms differ on which they limit.
- Sentences are estimated from . ! and ?, and paragraphs from blank lines.
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FAQs
Is my text uploaded anywhere?▼
No. All counting happens in your browser, so your draft never leaves your device. It is safe for confidential or unpublished writing.
How is reading time calculated?▼
It divides the word count by an average reading speed of about 200 words per minute and rounds up. Treat it as an estimate; technical or dense text reads more slowly.
Why does my word count differ from Microsoft Word?▼
Different tools define a word slightly differently, especially around hyphens, numbers, and symbols. The counts will be very close but may differ by a few on edge cases.
What is the difference between characters with and without spaces?▼
Some platforms count spaces toward a limit and some do not. Twitter-style limits usually include spaces; certain form fields do not, so both numbers are shown.
How are sentences counted?▼
By splitting on sentence-ending punctuation (. ! ?). Abbreviations like 'Dr.' can occasionally be miscounted, so treat the sentence number as an estimate.
How are paragraphs detected?▼
By blank lines between blocks of text. If you separate paragraphs with single line breaks instead of a blank line, they may count as one.
Does it count words in other languages?▼
Yes for languages that separate words with spaces. Languages without spaces between words (like Chinese or Japanese) cannot be word-counted the same way and will report differently.
Can I use it to check a meta description length?▼
Yes. Watch the character-with-spaces count and keep a meta description near 155 characters and a title near 60 so they are not truncated in search results.
Does formatting or markdown affect the count?▼
It counts the raw characters you paste, including markdown symbols like # or *. Strip formatting first if you want a count of the visible words only.
Can I export the statistics?▼
Yes, you can copy individual metrics or download a summary, which is handy for client reports or documenting that a piece met a required length.
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