How words and characters are counted
- A word is any run of letters or numbers between spaces or punctuation, so “e-mail” and “don’t” count as one word each.
- Characters include spaces and punctuation; the “without spaces” figure leaves out spaces and line breaks.
- Emoji count as one character, the way people see them.
- Reading time assumes about 225 words per minute; speaking time is slower.
Common limits
| Where | Limit |
|---|---|
| Post on X (Twitter) | 280 characters |
| Single SMS | 160 characters (70 with Arabic) |
| Meta description | ~155 characters |
| Page title | ~60 characters |
How to use the Character Counter
- 1Type or paste your text, or drop a .txt file.
- 2The counts update as you type.
- 3Use the keyword list or the limit bars to edit your text.
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Frequently asked questions
Are my files uploaded anywhere?
No. Everything runs inside your browser on your own device. Nothing is sent to a server, so it works even offline once the page has loaded.
Does it count Arabic words correctly?
Yes. Words are split on spaces and punctuation in any language, so Arabic, English and mixed text are all counted correctly.
How are emoji counted?
Each emoji or accented letter counts as one character, the way people see it, even when it is stored as several code units.