Word Counter

Free online word counter — count words, characters, sentences and reading time instantly.

About

About the Word Counter

Counts words, characters, lines, sentences and paragraphs as you type, plus estimated reading and speaking time.

Writers use it to hit a target word count for an essay or article, while students check that a paper meets an assignment's length. It's one of many free text tools on Toolapt, and like every tool here, it's free to use with no sign-up and no limit on how many times you run it.

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Guide

Using the Word Counter

  1. 1

    Step 1

    Type or paste your text into the box.

  2. 2

    Step 2

    Watch the word, character, line, sentence and paragraph counts update instantly as you type.

  3. 3

    Step 3

    Check the estimated reading and speaking time below the counts.

  4. 4

    Step 4

    Click "Copy summary" to copy all the stats as plain text, or Clear to start over.

  • Updates every count live as you type or paste — no button to click
  • Counts words, characters (with and without spaces), lines, sentences and paragraphs in one place
  • Estimates reading time (200 words/minute) and speaking time (130 words/minute) for the same text
  • Copies the whole summary as plain text with one click, ready to paste anywhere
  • Works entirely in your browser — no installs and no sign-up
  • Free to use, with no limit on how many times you run it
  • Fully responsive, so it works just as well on a phone as on a desktop

Writers and bloggers

Writers and bloggers use the Word Counter for hitting a target word count on an article, blog post or story draft.

Students

Students use the Word Counter for checking that an essay or assignment meets a required word or character length before submitting it.

Speakers and presenters

Speakers and presenters use the Word Counter for estimating how long a script will take to read aloud before rehearsing it.

Social media managers

Social media managers use the Word Counter for keeping post copy tight and checking sentence and paragraph counts at a glance.

Examples

Word Counter examples

3 worked examples

01

Checking an essay's length

Pasting a 500-word essay draft instantly shows 500 words, roughly 2,650 characters, and an estimated 3-minute reading time.

02

Counting sentences and paragraphs

A three-paragraph text with 9 sentences shows those exact counts alongside the word total, so you can confirm structure at a glance.

03

Estimating speaking time

A 650-word script estimates about 3 minutes of reading time at 200 words per minute, but about 5 minutes of speaking time at 130 words per minute, since speech is slower than silent reading.

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FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers to common questions about the Word Counter.

What does the Word Counter do?

It counts words, characters, lines, sentences and paragraphs in your text, and estimates reading and speaking time, all updating live as you type.

Is the Word Counter free to use?

Yes. It's free, with no sign-up, no watermark and no limit on how many times you use it.

Is my text safe when I use this tool?

Yes. Everything you type is processed entirely on your own device — nothing is sent to a server.

How is reading time calculated?

Reading time assumes an average pace of 200 words per minute; speaking time assumes 130 words per minute, each rounded up to at least one minute.

Do I need to click a button to see the counts?

No. All the stats update instantly as you type or paste text — there's no "Count" button to click.

What counts as a sentence or paragraph?

Sentences are split on ., ! or … followed by a space or the end of the text. Paragraphs are split on blank lines between blocks of text.

Can I use the Word Counter on my phone?

Yes. The page is fully responsive and works on mobile, tablet and desktop browsers alike.

Does the Word Counter have any limitations?

It's built for everyday counting of typed or pasted text; extremely long documents may be slower to update on lower-powered devices.

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