Free Word Counter
Count words, characters, sentences and reading time in real time. Set custom word limits.
How This Word Counter Works
This tool counts words, characters, sentences, paragraphs and more in real time as you type or paste text. Everything runs in your browser — your text is never sent to a server.
What Gets Counted
- Words — split on whitespace
- Characters — every character including spaces
- Characters (no spaces) — useful for platforms that don't count spaces
- Sentences — split on sentence-ending punctuation
- Paragraphs — separated by blank lines
- Lines — separated by line breaks
- Unique words — distinct words (case-insensitive)
- Average word length — mean characters per word
- Reading time — based on 238 words per minute (average adult reading speed)
- Speaking time — based on 150 words per minute (average speaking pace)
Word Limit Checker
Set a target word count and see how close you are. Use the presets for common limits or enter a custom number. The progress bar turns amber when you're near the limit and red when you're over.
Why Use a Word Counter?
Blog posts, essays, academic papers, social media captions and competition entries often have word limits. A word counter helps you stay within bounds without manual counting.
Frequently Asked Questions
How are words counted?
Words are counted by splitting on whitespace. Hyphenated words count as one word. Numbers count as words.
Is my text sent anywhere?
No. All counting happens in your browser. Nothing is uploaded to any server.
How accurate is the reading time?
It uses 238 words per minute, the average adult reading speed. Actual time depends on text complexity and reader skill.