Resource
Word Counter
Count words in any text, with sentence and paragraph structure and reading time — for essays, articles, and anything with a word target.
Character Counter
Paste any text and see characters, words, lines, and reading time at once — plus whether it fits Twitter, SMS, and meta-description limits.
Overview
Most character counters give you one number and stop. This one measures length the way a writer actually needs it: characters with and without spaces, words, sentences, lines, reading and speaking time, and — the part that matters — whether the text is under or over the limits that bite, from Twitter's 280 to a 160-character meta description. This loads a single paragraph so you can see the full read-out at a glance. It measures text for people and platforms; for model tokens and cost, that's the Token Counter.
How to use this resource
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Paste the text
Any text — the report shows counts only, never echoes your content.
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Read every metric
Characters, words, lines, sentences, and reading time together.
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Check the limits
See at a glance which platform limits the text fits or busts.
Why This Works
- Every length metric a writer needs is in one read-out, not just a single count
- Platform-limit checks turn a raw number into a go / no-go for where it ships
- Counts only — your text is measured, not echoed back
Best for
- A fast, complete length read-out
- Checking text against platform limits
- Writers and marketers sizing copy
Not for
- Counting tokens or estimating cost — that's the Token Counter
- Deciding context-window fit — that's the Context Window Estimator
FAQ
Does the character counter check if my text fits a meta description or tweet?
Yes. The PLATFORM NOTES section checks length against common limits and reports over/under for each: X/Twitter (280), SMS (160), meta description (160), Google title tag (60), Instagram (2,200), and LinkedIn (3,000). It shows how many characters you're over or how many remain. It runs in your browser and measures counts only; it never echoes your pasted text back.
Why does this measure characters instead of tokens for an AI prompt?
Because a character is not a token. The NOTES spell out that characters count keystrokes while tokens are the model's sub-word units, and PLATFORM NOTES adds that AI model inputs are measured in tokens, not characters. This report targets people and platforms, with reading time at ~200 wpm. For token counts and window fit, it hands off to the Token Counter and Context Window Estimator.
More resources from Character Counter
Resource
Calculate Reading Time for an Article
How long will this take to read? Estimate reading time from word count at a pace you choose — the "5 min read" label, calculated.
Resource
Character vs Token — When Each One Matters
A character is what you type; a token is what a model reads. This shows when to count which, from the character side.
Resources that pair well
Resource
Estimate Token Usage Before You Run It
Know how many tokens a job will consume before you send it — input plus an assumed response, costed per call and at scale.
Resource
Estimate Token Budget — Plan Before You Paste
Token budget planning for real workloads: how much of the window a transcript actually consumes, what is left for the answer, and how much headroom remains.
Resource
Prompt Cleanup Examples (Before & After)
A set of before-and-after examples showing exactly what prompt cleanup removes — and what it deliberately leaves alone.
Related tools
Tool
Character Counter
Count characters, words, lines, and reading time — with live platform-limit checks for Twitter, SMS, meta descriptions, and more.