Word and Character Counter

How to use

This tool counts the words and characters in your text and updates the numbers as you type.

1. Type or paste your text into the box, or Open a file (or drop one on the page). The counts at the top change straight away.
2. Words is the number of words. Characters counts every letter, space and symbol. No spaces leaves out spaces, tabs and line breaks, which some forms and social sites use as their limit.
3. Under the box, Details shows the number of sentences, paragraphs and lines, plus how long the text takes to read and to say out loud. Reading time assumes 200 words per minute. Speaking time assumes 130 words per minute, a typical pace for a talk or presentation.
4. Top keywords lists the words you use most, with how often they appear as a share of all words. Common words like "the" and "and" are left out so the useful ones stand out. Use it to spot repetition or check the focus of an article.
5. Press Copy counts to copy a summary of the numbers, or Clear to start again.

Counting follows the way people read. An emoji, even one made of several symbols, counts as one character. Chinese and Japanese text, which has no spaces, is split into real words. Contractions like "don't" count as one word.

Very long texts, such as whole books, are counted in the background so typing stays smooth. Your text stays in your browser and is never uploaded or saved.

Frequently asked questions

Does the character count include spaces?

The Characters number includes spaces and line breaks. The No spaces number leaves them out. Check which one your form or platform uses for its limit.

How is reading time calculated?

Reading time is the word count divided by 200, an average silent reading speed for adults. Speaking time uses 130 words per minute, a comfortable pace for a speech.

Why might my word count differ from another program?

Programs treat some things differently, but this tool counts as Word and Google Docs do: a word is anything between spaces with a letter or digit in it, so "state-of-the-art", an email address or a date like 2026-10-23 is one word. Chinese, Japanese and Thai, written without spaces, are split into words by your browser.