Character Counter
Character, word, line and paragraph counts that update as you type.
Text Tools
Use tool
Word Counter
Count words, characters, sentences and paragraphs instantly.
Word Counter tool
0
Words
0
Characters
0
No spaces
0
Sentences
0
Paragraphs
0 min
Reading time
0
Avg word length
—
Longest word
About the Word Counter
Word Counter measures the length of any piece of writing while you type it. Paste an article, an essay, a product description or a social post into the box and the counters above it update on every keystroke. Nothing is sent anywhere: the counting happens inside your browser tab, so even long confidential drafts stay on your own machine.
The tool reports seven numbers. Words are runs of non-whitespace characters, which is the same rule most word processors use. Characters are counted both with and without spaces, because publishers and form fields usually ask for one or the other. Sentences are detected from full stops, question marks and exclamation marks. Paragraphs are blocks of text separated by a blank line. Reading time assumes 225 words per minute, roughly the pace of an adult reading on screen.
Writers use it to hit a target length, students use it to stay inside an assignment limit, and marketers use it to keep meta descriptions and ad copy within platform caps. Because the result updates live, you can watch the count fall as you trim a draft instead of re-pasting the text after every edit.
How to use the Word Counter
- Paste or type your textDrop your draft into the large text box. You can also start typing directly in it.
- Watch the counters updateWord, character, sentence, paragraph and reading-time values recalculate on every keystroke.
- Trim toward your targetEdit in place and watch the numbers move until the text fits the limit you need.
- Copy or clearUse Copy text to take the edited version with you, or Clear to empty the box and start again.
Features
- Live counting with no Count button to press
- Words, characters with spaces, and characters without spaces
- Sentence and paragraph totals
- Average word length and longest word
- Reading time estimated at 225 words per minute
- Copy the text back out in one click
- Runs entirely in your browser, so nothing is uploaded
Who uses this tool
The word counter is used by writers, developers, students, marketers and anyone else who needs the job done once without installing software. Common cases include:
- Keeping an essay or assignment inside a word limit
- Writing meta titles and descriptions that fit search result snippets
- Checking that ad copy fits a platform character cap
- Estimating how long a blog post will take readers to finish
- Measuring translation or transcription work for billing
Frequently asked questions
How does this tool decide what counts as a word?
Text is split on whitespace, and each remaining chunk counts as one word. A hyphenated term such as state-of-the-art counts as a single word, and a number such as 2026 counts as a word too. This matches the behaviour of common word processors closely enough that your counts will line up with them.
Why is my sentence count different from what I expected?
Sentences are detected from full stops, question marks and exclamation marks. Abbreviations such as e.g. or Dr. contain full stops and can be read as sentence endings, which nudges the count up. For normal prose the figure is reliable; for text dense with abbreviations, treat it as an estimate.
Is my text uploaded to a server?
No. The counting runs in JavaScript inside your browser tab. Your text never leaves the device, which makes the tool safe for unpublished drafts and client work.
How is reading time calculated?
Word count is divided by 225 words per minute, a common average for adults reading on a screen, and rounded up to the nearest minute. Technical material is usually read more slowly, so treat the figure as a guide rather than a promise.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. The layout adapts to small screens and the counters stay visible above the text box, so you can check length while editing on mobile.
Is there a limit on how much text I can paste?
There is no fixed limit. Very large documents of several hundred thousand words may make typing feel slower, because the counters recalculate on every keystroke, but the tool will still produce correct totals.
Related tools
If the word counter is not quite what you need, these other free tools solve closely related problems.
Case Converter
Convert any text to UPPERCASE, lowercase, Title Case, Sentence case and more.
Text Tools
Use tool
Text Cleaner
Tidy messy pasted text: extra spaces, empty lines, breaks and special characters.
Text Tools
Use tool
Text Sorter
Order any list A-Z, Z-A, by number, by line length, or simply reverse it.
Text Tools
Use tool
Remove Duplicate Lines
Deduplicate any list of lines, with case-sensitive and empty-line options.
Text Tools
Use tool