How do I count characters in a text?
Type or paste into the box. The character count appears at the top, first with spaces and then without. Words, sentences, paragraphs and an estimated reading time follow, so one paste answers most questions about the length of a text.
Counting with spaces includes every space, tab and line break as a character. Counting without spaces leaves them out. Which one you need depends on who set the limit: a form field usually counts everything, while some assignments ask for characters without spaces.
Which limits does the tool compare against?
Limit bars show an X post at 280 characters, an Instagram caption at 2,200 and a LinkedIn post at 3,000. A bar for a meta description at about 155 characters is a search snippet guideline, not a platform rule. Instagram bios are limited to 150 characters and YouTube titles to 100, so those are worth checking by eye against the count.
SMS is its own case. A single message segment holds 160 characters in the basic GSM-7 alphabet, and less when the text contains characters outside it. This tool does not split text into SMS segments.
Why is the count different on X?
X uses a weighted count, not a plain character count. Every link is counted as a fixed 23 characters no matter how long it is, and emoji count as 2. A text that looks fine here can therefore be over or under the limit on X. For exact numbers while you draft a post, use the Twitter character counter, and read the X character limit guide for the full rules.
This page counts what a person sees. That is the right number for captions, descriptions, essays and most forms, and a useful first check for X.
Why do emoji and accented letters count differently in different apps?
Programs can count text in different units. JavaScript's plain length counts UTF-16 code units, so a simple emoji such as 😀 counts as 2 and a family emoji joined from several people can count as 11. Other tools count Unicode code points, and others count what a person sees as one symbol (a grapheme).
Accented letters have the same issue. A letter like “é” can be stored as one code point or as “e” plus a combining accent, which looks identical but is two code points. This counter counts graphemes, so each of those is 1. If an app reports a higher number than this page, the unit is usually the reason.
Is it private?
Yes. Counting runs in your browser. Your text is not uploaded or stored, so you can check drafts, applications or private messages. For word-focused numbers and speaking time, the word counter shows them first.
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Frequently asked questions
How do I count characters with and without spaces?
Paste your text above. Both numbers are shown together: characters including spaces and characters excluding them.
Does a space count as a character?
In the with-spaces count, yes, along with tabs and line breaks. The without-spaces count leaves them out.
What is the character limit for an X post?
280 characters for a standard post and up to 25,000 for Premium accounts. X counts each link as 23 characters and emoji as 2, so use the Twitter character counter for exact X numbers.
How many characters can an Instagram caption or bio have?
A caption can have up to 2,200 characters and a bio up to 150.
Why does another app show a different count for my emoji?
Apps count in different units: UTF-16 code units, code points or visible symbols. This tool counts visible symbols, so an emoji is 1.
Is my text uploaded?
No. The counting runs entirely in your browser.