Word counter

How are words counted?

As in Microsoft Word and Google Docs: anything between spaces that has a letter or a number in it is a word, so “well-known”, “don’t” and “3.5” each count once, and a lone dash doesn’t count. Chinese, Japanese and Thai, which don’t put spaces between words, are split into words using your browser’s dictionary for that language.

Do characters include spaces?

The main character count does, along with punctuation and line breaks; “Characters (no spaces)” leaves out spaces, tabs and line breaks. An emoji or an accented letter counts as one character, however it’s stored. For limits on X, text messages and search results, use the character counter.

How is reading time worked out?

At 238 words a minute, the average silent reading speed of adults reading non-fiction found by a 2019 review of 190 studies (Brysbaert). Speaking time uses 150 words a minute, a typical pace for a talk.

What counts as a paragraph?

Every line that has something on it, which is how word processors count. A sentence ends at a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark, using your browser’s rules for abbreviations like “Mr.”

Is my text saved or sent anywhere?

It’s never sent anywhere: the counting happens in your browser. So you don’t lose it while switching tools, it’s kept in this browser tab only, and it’s gone when you close the tab. Press Clear to remove it sooner.