Free word counter and character counter
Paste or type to count words, characters (with and without spaces), sentences and paragraphs instantly, plus estimated reading and speaking time. A quick check shows whether the text would fit as an SEO title, a meta description or a post on X. Everything runs in your browser, so drafts stay private.
52 words, 275 characters, 13 sec to read.
- Words
- 5245 unique
- Characters
- 275with spaces
- Characters (no spaces)
- 222
- Sentences
- 413.0 words on average
- Paragraphs
- 3
- Reading time
- 13 secat 238 words a minute
- Speaking time
- 22 secat 140 words a minute
- Longest sentence
- 23words
| Use | Limit | Result |
|---|---|---|
| SEO title | about 60 | 215 over |
| Meta description | about 155 | 120 over |
| Post on X | 280 | Fits, 5 to spare |
- Words are split on spaces and punctuation, so “e-mail” and “don’t” count as one word each and numbers like 1,500 count once.
How the counts work
- Words are split on spaces and punctuation. "E-mail" and "don't" count as one word each, and so does a number like 1,500.
- Characters count what you see on screen: an accented letter or an emoji is one character, even when it is stored as several code points. Some platforms weigh characters differently; X, for example, counts most emoji and Chinese, Japanese and Korean characters as two.
- Sentences end at a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark, except after common abbreviations such as "Dr." or "e.g.".
- Paragraphs are lines that contain text, which matches how pasted web copy is laid out.
- Reading time assumes 238 words a minute, the average silent reading speed for non-fiction in a 2019 meta-analysis of 190 studies by Marc Brysbaert. Speaking time assumes 140 words a minute, a comfortable pace for a talk or podcast.
Length limits worth knowing
| Where | Limit | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| SEO title | About 50 to 60 characters | Google cuts by pixel width, roughly 580 px on desktop |
| Meta description | About 120 to 158 characters | Longer text is truncated, not penalized |
| Post on X | 280 | Weighted count; links count as 23 |
| Google Business Profile post | 1,500 | |
| YouTube title | 100 | Lists and search often show fewer |
| Instagram caption | 2,200 | The feed cuts it after about 125 characters |
| LinkedIn post | 3,000 |
For titles and descriptions, character counts are a proxy. The SERP snippet preview measures the pixel width Google actually uses.
Is there an ideal word count for SEO?
No. Google has said repeatedly that word count is not a ranking factor, and longer pages do not rank better because they are longer. The right length is whatever fully answers the query: a definition may need 100 words, a buying guide several thousand. Look at what already ranks to understand the search intent, not to copy its length. Pages get into trouble for being thin, which is about missing value, not a low count.
If you write in WordPress, the free Hydrogen SEO plugin shows a live character count and search preview for your title and meta description as you type.
Common questions
How many words is a 5-minute read?
About 1,200 words at an average silent reading speed of 238 words a minute. Technical text with code or figures reads more slowly.
How many words is a 5-minute speech?
Roughly 650 to 750 words. Most people speak at 130 to 150 words a minute when presenting.
Should I count characters with or without spaces?
With spaces for almost every online limit, including titles, meta descriptions and social posts. Some academic and translation briefs count without spaces, which is why both figures are shown.
Why does my word processor show a different count?
Tools treat hyphens, numbers, URLs and dashes differently. A difference of a few words in a long document is normal and nothing to worry about.