Free Online Word Counter
Check word count, reading time, and character stats as you type
Document Statistics
Top Words
Start typing to see word frequency
Try these next
Counting words is step one, but catching the clunky sentences hiding in your draft is where the real editing happens. We use Grammarly around here for that second pass because it flags stuff spell check misses entirely, like weak phrasing, passive voice, and tone issues. Worth a look if you're doing any amount of writing. (We may earn a commission, at no cost to you.)
Why use Word Counter
- Live updates on every keystroke -- no submit button, no reload.
- Shows reading time and speaking time so you can plan for silent readers and live audiences from the same screen.
- Character counts with and without spaces, matching how Twitter/X, LinkedIn, and Google measure text.
- Sentence and paragraph counts appear alongside word count, which most built-in counters omit.
- Handles any text format -- blog posts, essays, scripts, product descriptions, and social media drafts.
- Clear button resets instantly for comparing multiple documents in one session.
How it works
The counter splits your text on whitespace boundaries and counts the resulting tokens. Sentences are detected by terminal punctuation followed by a space or end of text. Paragraphs are counted by splitting on double line breaks. Character counts are calculated with and without whitespace. Reading time divides the word count by 225 WPM (a research-based average for adult silent reading), and speaking time uses 150 WPM to account for natural pauses in delivery.
About this tool
Paste your draft and see the word count, character count, sentence count, paragraph count, and estimated reading time update on every keystroke. Google Docs buries its word counter in the Tools menu. Microsoft Word shows one in the status bar. Neither displays reading time, speaking time, and character counts (with and without spaces) on the same screen. Reading estimates default to 225 WPM; speaking time uses 150 WPM. That means you can check whether a blog post exceeds the average 7-minute read and whether a keynote script fits a 20-minute slot -- without switching tools. Character counts catch platform overages before the platform does. Twitter/X caps at 280 characters. Google meta descriptions truncate around 155. LinkedIn posts perform best under 1,300. Instagram captions fold at 125 in the feed. Freelance contracts often specify word minimums per article, and long-form SEO content tends to rank better above 1,500 words for competitive keywords. Paste, check, keep writing.
How to use Word Counter
- Paste your text. Drop content into the text area. The counter starts updating on the first keystroke.
- Read the live stats. Word count, character count (with and without spaces), sentence count, paragraph count, and reading time refresh as you edit.
- Check reading and speaking time. Reading time uses 225 WPM; speaking time uses 150 WPM. Both help you judge fit for a blog scroll or a presentation slot.
- Copy or clear. Hit Clear to reset and paste something new. Stats recalculate the moment fresh content lands in the box.
Use cases
- Checking a guest post hits the 1,500-word minimum before sending it to an editor who pays per article.
- Pasting a university essay to verify it meets the 2,000-word requirement -- faster than hunting through the Google Docs Tools menu.
- Estimating whether a conference talk script fits a 10-minute slot at 150 WPM.
- Verifying a LinkedIn post stays under 1,300 characters before scheduling it in Buffer.
- Confirming a product description reaches the 300-word threshold a marketplace requires for SEO listing approval.
- Comparing reading times on two landing page versions to see which keeps visitors longer.
Frequently Asked Questions
About 250-300 words single-spaced, 500 double-spaced. Font size, margins, and formatting shift this.
Most SEO professionals recommend 1,500-2,500 words for blog posts targeting competitive keywords. The ideal length depends on your topic and audience -- a recipe introduction and a technical deep-dive have very different expectations.
We divide the total word count by 225 WPM, the commonly cited research average for adult silent reading of English prose.
It shows both counts side by side. Twitter/X and Google meta descriptions count spaces, so you need the with-spaces number. Some other platforms only count visible characters, so you may need the without-spaces figure instead.
About 750 words at a conversational pace of 150 WPM. For a more formal delivery, aim for 600-700 words. Paste your script above for an exact speaking-time estimate.
Tools > Word count, or Ctrl+Shift+C (Cmd+Shift+C on Mac). Google Docs shows word and character count but not reading time or speaking time. For those extra stats, paste the text here.
Blog posts 1,500-2,500 words, short articles 500-800, academic essays 1,000-5,000 depending on level, novel chapters 2,000-5,000, cover letters 250-400. The counter here lets you track against whatever target you need.
Select all text in the PDF (Ctrl+A then Ctrl+C), paste it here, and the count appears immediately. You also get sentence count and reading time, which PDF readers do not provide.
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