Word & Character Counter
Count words, characters, sentences, and paragraphs, and estimate reading time as you type.
0Words
0Characters
0Characters (no spaces)
0Sentences
0Paragraphs
< 1 secReading time
< 1 secSpeaking time
How the counts work
- Words are anything separated by spaces, tabs or line breaks. “e-mail”, “don't”, a URL and a number such as 2026 each count as one word.
- Characters are counted with and without whitespace (spaces, tabs and line breaks).
- Characters are counted the way JavaScript stores text, so most emoji count as two characters and some, such as an emoji with a skin-tone modifier, count as four. Other tools and platforms may count them differently.
- Reading time assumes 200 words per minute and speaking time 130 words per minute, rounded up to the next minute. A 1,000-word article reads in about 5 minutes and takes about 8 minutes to say aloud.
Search engines don't set a fixed character limit for page titles or meta descriptions; they shorten them to fit the space available. To preview a title and description, use the meta tag generator, and to see which words and phrases you repeat most, the keyword density checker.
How to use the Word & Character Counter
- Paste or type your text into the text box.
- Read the live counts below it: Words, Characters, Characters (no spaces), Sentences and Paragraphs.
- Check Reading time and Speaking time to see how long the text takes to read silently or aloud.
- Edit the text and watch the numbers update instantly; there is no button to press.
Example: Counting a short two-paragraph note
Input: "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. It barked!" then a blank line and "Then it slept." The tool shows 14 words, 71 characters, 57 characters with no spaces, 3 sentences and 2 paragraphs. Reading time is 4 sec and speaking time is 6 sec.
Questions about the Word & Character Counter
- How are reading time and speaking time calculated?
- Reading time is the word count divided by 200 words per minute, and speaking time uses 130 words per minute. Under one minute the result is shown in seconds; from one minute up it is rounded up to the next whole minute.
- What counts as a word?
- Any run of characters separated by whitespace. Hyphenated terms like "well-known" and URLs count as one word each, and extra spaces between words do not add to the count.
- Why is my sentence count lower or higher than expected?
- A sentence is counted when text ends in a period, question mark or exclamation point followed by a space or the end of the text. A final sentence with no ending punctuation is not counted (unless it is the only text), and abbreviations such as "Dr." are counted as sentence ends.
- How are paragraphs detected?
- Every non-empty line counts as a paragraph, so a single line break starts a new paragraph just like a blank line does.
- Why does an emoji count as two characters?
- The counter measures text the way browsers store it, where most emoji take two units and an emoji with a skin-tone modifier takes four. Social platforms and other editors may count the same text differently.
- How long does it take to read 1,000 words?
- At the 200 words a minute this tool assumes, about 5 minutes. Reading it aloud at 130 words a minute takes about 8 minutes.