How to use
- Type or paste your text into the box. Words, characters, sentences, paragraphs and reading time update as you type.
- Check Characters (no spaces) if a form or social network limits characters rather than words.
- Look at Word frequency to see which words you repeat most; choose Exclude short & common to hide words such as the and and.
- Use the text splitter to break long text into equal parts or chunks of a set number of characters, for example for posts with a length limit.
How to check the word count in Google Docs
In Google Docs, open Tools → Word count, or press Ctrl+Shift+C (Cmd+Shift+C on a Mac). To keep the count on screen while you type, tick Display word count while typing. If you select some text first, Docs counts only the selection.
Google Docs and this counter can differ by a few words, because they treat hyphenated words, numbers and special characters slightly differently. Paste the text here when you want the reading time and the most repeated words as well.
How to see the word count in Microsoft Word
Word shows the count in the status bar at the bottom of the window. For details, open Review → Word Count, which also lists characters with and without spaces, paragraphs and lines. Select text first to count only that part.
How long is it? Words, pages and reading time
Reading time assumes 225 words per minute, a little below the average of 238 words per minute for silent reading of non-fiction found in a review of 190 studies, so the estimate leaves a little room. Page counts depend on font and spacing; these are typical for a 12-point font with 1-inch margins.
| Words | Single-spaced pages | Double-spaced pages | Reading time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 250 | about ½ | about 1 | about 1 minute |
| 500 | about 1 | about 2 | about 2 minutes |
| 1,000 | about 2 | about 4 | about 4 minutes |
| 1,500 | about 3 | about 6 | about 7 minutes |
| 2,500 | about 5 | about 10 | about 11 minutes |
Frequently asked questions
How are words counted?
Any group of letters or numbers separated by spaces or line breaks counts as one word, so it's, e-mail and 2026 each count once. Punctuation on its own is not counted.
Do spaces count as characters?
In Characters, yes; in Characters (no spaces), no. Most character limits, such as those on social networks, count spaces.
Is my text saved or sent anywhere?
No. Counting happens in your browser and the text is not uploaded or stored, so it is safe to paste drafts, essays and work documents.
How many words is a 5-minute speech?
About 650 to 750 words. People speak more slowly than they read, around 130 to 150 words per minute.
