How to use the Word Counter
- 1Type or paste your text into the box.
- 2Watch the counts for words, characters, characters without spaces, sentences and paragraphs update as you type.
- 3Check the estimated reading time and speaking time.
- 4Press Clear to empty the box and start again.
How words, sentences and paragraphs are counted
A word is any group of characters separated by spaces or line breaks, so hyphenated terms like well-known count as one word, and numbers count as words too. Characters includes every letter, digit, punctuation mark and space, while Characters (no spaces) leaves out spaces, tabs and line breaks.
Sentences are counted by looking for ending punctuation such as full stops, question marks and exclamation marks. Abbreviations like e.g. or Dr. can occasionally be counted as sentence endings, so treat the sentence count as a close estimate. Paragraphs are blocks of text separated by line breaks.
Reading time and speaking time
Reading time is based on an average silent reading speed of 238 words per minute, a figure drawn from research on adult reading rates for non-fiction. A 1,000-word article therefore takes about 4 minutes to read. Speaking time uses 130 words per minute, a comfortable pace for presentations and speeches, so the same 1,000 words would take roughly 7 to 8 minutes to deliver.
Actual speeds vary with the reader, the complexity of the text and the purpose of reading, so use these figures as a planning guide. If you need placeholder text to test a layout, the lorem ipsum generator can produce it.
Common word and character limits
Many platforms set limits by characters rather than words. A post on X (formerly Twitter) allows 280 characters for standard accounts. A standard SMS text message holds 160 characters. For web pages, search engines typically display around 150 to 160 characters of a meta description and around 50 to 60 characters of a title before truncating it. When turning a title into a web address, the URL slug generator creates a clean, hyphenated version.
For writing assignments, limits are usually given in words. A short school essay is often 500 to 1,000 words, a college application personal statement is commonly capped at around 650 words, and undergraduate essays frequently run from 1,500 to 3,000 words. Always follow the specific guidance from your teacher, publisher or platform, and check whether titles, references or footnotes are included in the count. If a heading needs reformatting, the case converter can switch it to title or sentence case.
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Frequently asked questions
Does the word counter count numbers and hyphenated words?
Yes. Numbers count as words, and hyphenated words such as long-term count as a single word because there is no space between the parts.
What is the difference between characters with and without spaces?
Characters counts everything, including spaces and line breaks. Characters (no spaces) counts only visible characters such as letters, digits and punctuation. Some forms and publishers specify one or the other, so check which they mean.
How many pages is 1,000 words?
Roughly 2 pages single-spaced or 4 pages double-spaced, using a standard 12-point font and normal margins. Font, spacing and headings all change the page count, which is why word counts are a more reliable measure. Our guide on how many words is a page covers more formats.
Why does my count differ slightly from my word processor?
Different tools treat symbols, dashes, URLs and abbreviations a little differently. The difference is usually only a few words in a long document. To see exactly what changed between two drafts, paste them into the text compare tool.
Is my text uploaded or saved?
No. Counting happens entirely in your browser. Your text is never sent to a server or stored, so it is safe to use with private drafts.