Word Counter: Count Words, Characters & Sentences
Paste or type your text to instantly count words, characters, sentences, and paragraphs. Get reading time, speaking time, reading level, and keyword density — all free, no signup required.
What Is a Word Counter?
A word counter is a tool that counts the number of words, characters, sentences, and paragraphs in any text. Beyond basic counting, our word counter calculates reading time (based on an average of 200 words per minute), speaking time (130 words per minute), and estimates the Flesch-Kincaid reading level of your text.
Word counters are essential for anyone working with text length requirements — whether you're writing a tweet that fits within 280 characters, a college essay with a strict word limit, a blog post optimized for SEO, or a meta description for Google. Instead of manually counting or relying on your text editor, paste your text here for instant, accurate results with additional metrics most word counters don't provide.
Common Word Count Requirements
How long should your content be? Here are the standard word count ranges for different types of writing.
| Content Type | Word Count | Reading Time |
|---|---|---|
| X (Twitter) post | 40–50 | < 1 min |
| Facebook post | 40–80 | < 1 min |
| LinkedIn post | 50–100 | < 1 min |
| Email subject line | 6–10 | < 1 min |
| Meta description | 25–30 | < 1 min |
| Short blog post | 300–600 | 2–3 min |
| Standard blog post | 1,000–1,500 | 5–7 min |
| Long-form article | 2,000–3,000 | 10–15 min |
| College essay | 500–5,000 | 3–25 min |
| Thesis/dissertation | 10,000–80,000 | 50–400 min |
How to Use the Word Counter
Paste or Type Text
Copy your text from any source — Google Docs, Word, ChatGPT, or any other app — and paste it into the text box above. Or start typing directly.
See Results Instantly
Word count, character count, sentences, paragraphs, reading time, speaking time, and reading level update in real-time as you type.
Check Keyword Density
Scroll down to see your top keywords ranked by frequency. Useful for SEO content writers who need to check keyword distribution without leaving the page.
Word Counter Features
More than just counting words — get a complete analysis of your text in real-time.
Accurate Word Count
Counts every word in your text accurately, handling multiple spaces, line breaks, and special characters correctly. Works with any language that uses space-separated words.
Character Counter
Shows character count both with and without spaces. Essential for Twitter posts (280 chars), meta descriptions (155 chars), and any platform with character limits.
Sentence & Paragraph Count
Tracks the number of sentences and paragraphs in your text. Helps you check document structure and ensure your writing isn't dominated by overly long paragraphs.
Reading Time Estimate
Calculates how long it takes to read your text based on an average adult reading speed of 200 words per minute. Useful for blog posts, newsletters, and articles.
Speaking Time Estimate
Estimates how long it would take to speak your text aloud at a natural pace of 130 words per minute. Ideal for speeches, presentations, and podcast scripts.
Reading Level (Flesch-Kincaid)
Estimates the US grade level needed to understand your text using the Flesch-Kincaid formula. Aim for Grade 6–8 for general audiences, or Grade 10+ for academic writing.
Who Uses a Word Counter?
Students & Academics
Meet essay word limits precisely. Whether it's a 500-word response or a 10,000-word thesis, check your count before submitting. The reading level metric also helps ensure your writing matches academic expectations.
Writers & Bloggers
Optimize article length for SEO (1,500–2,500 words ranks best for most topics), check reading time for your audience, and monitor keyword density without switching to another tool.
Social Media Managers
Stay within platform character limits for Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. The character counter with platform limit indicators shows you exactly how much space you have left.
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Word Counter FAQ
How does the word counter work?
Our word counter processes your text entirely in your browser — nothing is sent to a server. It splits text by whitespace to count words, detects sentence-ending punctuation for sentence count, and identifies paragraph breaks for paragraph count. Reading time uses 200 words per minute, speaking time uses 130 words per minute, and reading level is calculated with the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level formula.
Is this word counter accurate?
Yes. It handles edge cases that simpler word counters miss: multiple consecutive spaces, tabs, line breaks, and punctuation. The count matches what Microsoft Word and Google Docs report. For reading level, we use the standard Flesch-Kincaid formula, which is the same metric used in academic and publishing contexts.
Is my text stored or shared?
No. The word counter runs entirely in your browser using JavaScript. Your text never leaves your device — it's not sent to any server, stored in any database, or accessible to anyone. You can verify this by disconnecting from the internet and using the tool offline.
How many words should a blog post be for SEO?
For most topics, 1,500 to 2,500 words tends to rank best on Google. However, length alone doesn't determine rankings — content quality, relevance, and search intent matter more. Short-form content (500–800 words) works for straightforward topics. Long-form (3,000+ words) works for comprehensive guides. Use our reading time feature to ensure your content stays readable regardless of length.
What reading level should I aim for?
For general web content, aim for Grade 6–8 (Flesch-Kincaid). This doesn't mean writing for children — it means using clear, direct language that's accessible to most adults. Newspapers target Grade 8. Academic papers are typically Grade 12+. Marketing copy and blog posts perform best at Grade 6–7. Use our reading level indicator to check where your writing lands.
Can I use this for languages other than English?
Word count, character count, and paragraph count work accurately for any language that uses spaces between words (English, French, Spanish, German, etc.). Reading time and speaking time estimates are based on English reading speeds, so they may be less accurate for other languages. Reading level (Flesch-Kincaid) is designed for English text specifically.
Need More Than Word Counting?
HumanizerAI helps you humanize AI-generated text, detect AI content, and rewrite paragraphs — all in one tool.