How to use the Word Counter
Step 1: Type or paste your text into the box. The counts update as you type.
Step 2: Read the word, character, sentence and paragraph totals.
Step 3: Check the reading and speaking time estimates if you are preparing an article or a talk.
Step 4: For longer texts, look at the most repeated words to spot overused terms.
Step 5: Press Copy results to copy a summary, or Clear text to start again.
Features and benefits
Seven measurements
Words, characters, characters without spaces, sentences, paragraphs, reading time and speaking time at a glance.
Live updates
Numbers change as you type or paste, with no button to press.
Repeated-word finder
For texts of 30 words or more, see which meaningful words you use most, ignoring common filler words.
Works with any language
Counts are based on whitespace and Unicode letters, so accents, emoji and non-Latin scripts are handled.
Private
Your writing is never uploaded, stored or logged.
How words are counted
The word counter treats anything separated by spaces or line breaks as one token, and counts it as a word when it contains at least one letter or number. This is the same approach most word processors take, so hyphenated words such as well-known count as one, and stand-alone symbols such as a dash do not count at all.
You may see small differences from other programs, especially with unusual punctuation, web addresses or text mixing several scripts. For languages written without spaces between words, such as Chinese or Japanese, the character count is usually a more meaningful measure than the word count.
How reading time is estimated
Reading time divides the word count by 200 words per minute, a commonly used estimate for adults reading silently. Speaking time uses 130 words per minute, a comfortable speaking pace for presentations. Real speeds vary from person to person and with the difficulty of the text, so use the figures as a rough guide.
Is there an ideal word count for SEO?
Search engines do not require a particular length. A page should be as long as it needs to be to answer the reader's question well: a simple definition may need a few hundred words, while a detailed guide may need several thousand. Use the counter to keep your own writing on target for its purpose rather than chasing a magic number.
Example use cases
Essays and assignments
Stay within a minimum or maximum word limit.
Blog posts and articles
Check the length and reading time before you publish.
Captions and bios
See how much you have written for a space with a fixed size.
Speeches and videos
Estimate speaking time for a presentation or a script.
Frequently asked questions
How does the word counter count words?
It splits the text on spaces and line breaks and counts every piece that contains at least one letter or number.
Why is my count different from Microsoft Word or Google Docs?
Programs handle edge cases such as dashes, symbols, web addresses and some scripts differently, so small differences are normal.
How is reading time calculated?
The number of words divided by 200 words per minute, a common average for silent reading. Speaking time uses 130 words per minute.
Is there a limit to how much text I can enter?
There is no fixed limit, but very large texts of hundreds of thousands of words may feel slower on older phones.
Is my text stored or sent to a server?
No. The analysis happens entirely in your browser.
Related tools
Useful guides
- How to Write SEO Meta Descriptions That Earn ClicksLearn what a meta description does, how long it should be, how to write one that fits, and the mistakes that make search snippets weak or misleading.
- How to Write SEO Meta Titles That Get ClickedA practical guide to writing page titles for search results: ideal length, pixel width, keyword placement, brand names, examples and mistakes to avoid.
Last updated 7 November 2026.