What is a word counter?
A word counter shows how long a piece of writing is. It counts words, characters with and without spaces, sentences and paragraphs, and estimates how long a reader would need to read it.
Students use it to meet essay limits, writers to stay within an article length, and social media users to keep posts under a character limit.
How the counts are made
A word is any group of characters separated by spaces or line breaks. Characters include letters, numbers, punctuation and spaces, and a second figure shows the count without spaces. Sentences are counted by full stops, question marks and exclamation marks, and paragraphs by blank lines.
Reading time is the word count divided by 200, a common average for silent reading, rounded up to the next minute. Speaking aloud is slower, usually 100 to 150 words per minute, so allow more time for speeches. A web page description is often kept to about 155 to 160 characters.
Where word counts matter
Many tasks come with limits. Essays and assignments specify a word range, job applications limit cover letters, and social platforms restrict the number of characters in a post or bio. Search results show only about 155 to 160 characters of a page description, so writers keep summaries within that range. Translators and freelance writers are often paid per word, so an accurate count matters for pricing. A reading-time estimate also helps bloggers decide whether an article is a quick read or a long guide.
How to use it
- Type or paste your text into the box.
- The counts update instantly as you type.
- Check the character count if you have a limit, for example for a bio or an application form.
- Use the reading time as a guide for blog posts and speeches.
Practical tips
- Check whether your platform counts spaces in its character limit.
- Keep sentences short for easier reading.
- For essays, count words only for the body if your teacher excludes titles and references.
- Your text never leaves your browser, so it is safe to paste private drafts.
More features
Besides counting, the tool shows unique words, speaking time and your most used keywords with their share of the text. Buttons let you change the text to UPPERCASE, lowercase or Title Case, remove extra spaces, copy the text or clear the box.
Frequently asked questions
How are words counted?
Any group of characters separated by spaces counts as a word.
How is reading time worked out?
By dividing the word count by 200 words per minute.
Does it count punctuation?
Yes, in the character count.
Is there a text limit?
No fixed limit, but very long texts may feel slower.
Is my text saved or sent?
No. Everything stays in your browser.