Word Counter
Count words, characters, sentences, and paragraphs instantly.
How to use the word counter
- Type or paste your text into the box.
- The word, character, sentence, and paragraph counts update automatically as you type.
- Check the estimated reading time below the counters.
- Use Clear to start over with a new text.
Paste or type your text to instantly see the word count, character count, sentence count, paragraph count, and estimated reading time. Comes in handy for essays, articles, social posts, or anywhere there's a word limit.
Typical word counts to aim for
Many writing tasks come with a word limit. A college application essay is usually 250 to 650 words, a standard school essay 1,000 to 2,000, a blog post 1,000 to 2,500, and a news article 500 to 800. An abstract for a research paper is often capped at 150 to 300 words.
Word count also tells you how long a text takes to read or say out loud. People read about 200 to 250 words per minute and speak about 130 to 150, so a 5-minute speech is roughly 700 words.
Frequently asked questions
Does this tool store or upload my text?
No, all the counting happens locally in your browser. Your text never gets sent anywhere or saved.
How is reading time calculated?
Reading time is estimated using an average adult reading speed of about 200 words per minute.
How many pages is 1,000 words?
About 2 pages single-spaced or 4 pages double-spaced, using a 12 pt font with standard margins.
How are words counted?
Any group of characters separated by spaces or line breaks counts as one word, so hyphenated words like 'well-known' count as one.