Free Word Counter
Paste your text and get an instant live count of words, characters, sentences, and paragraphs — plus estimated reading time.
How to use the word counter
There is nothing to click. Just type or paste your text into the box and every statistic updates live as you write. Use it for essays, blog posts, social media captions, meta descriptions, or anywhere a word or character limit matters.
Tips for hitting word counts
Most school essays and articles are judged on the main body text, so paste only the body — not titles, headers, or bibliographies — for an accurate count. If you are writing for the web, the character count without spaces is the number most platforms use for limits, while the reading-time estimate (based on an average 200 words per minute) helps you gauge whether a post is a quick skim or a deep read. For SEO meta descriptions, keep them under about 155 characters so they do not get cut off in search results. And because everything is counted locally in your browser, you can safely check drafts of sensitive documents — nothing is ever uploaded or stored.
Frequently asked questions
How are words counted?
Text is split on whitespace, so any group of characters separated by spaces, tabs, or line breaks counts as one word. Hyphenated words count as one word.
Is my text uploaded or saved?
No. Counting happens entirely in your browser. Your text never leaves your device, so it is safe for private or sensitive documents.
How is reading time calculated?
Reading time assumes an average adult reading speed of 200 words per minute. Dense or technical text usually takes longer in practice.
Can I use this for Twitter/X or Instagram limits?
Yes. Watch the character count: X posts allow 280 characters, and Instagram captions allow up to 2,200. The "characters (no spaces)" stat matches how many platforms count.