Free Word Counter Tool

KeyDuel's word counter instantly counts words, characters, sentences, paragraphs, and estimated reading time in any block of text. Paste your text and every metric updates in real time as you type or edit. Free, no sign-up, works instantly in your browser.

What the Word Counter Measures

• Word count — Total number of words in the text. Words are separated by spaces and punctuation.
• Character count (with spaces) — Total characters including spaces, punctuation, and line breaks.
• Character count (without spaces) — Total characters excluding whitespace — useful for character-limited fields.
• Sentence count — Number of sentences, detected by full stops, question marks, and exclamation marks.
• Paragraph count — Number of paragraphs, separated by blank lines.
• Estimated reading time — Based on an average adult reading speed of 200–250 words per minute.

Common Uses

• Essays and assignments — Check you've met the word count requirement before submitting
• Blog posts and articles — Aim for the optimal length for your content type (600–1500 words for blog posts, 1500–3000 for in-depth articles)
• Social media — Twitter/X has a 280 character limit; LinkedIn posts perform best under 700 words
• Email subject lines — Keep subject lines under 60 characters for best deliverability
• SEO content — Measure content length to match the depth of pages you're competing against
• Resumes and CVs — Keep to a consistent density — typically 400–600 words per page

Reading Time Calculation

Estimated reading time is calculated using an average adult silent reading speed of 230 words per minute. This is a general estimate — technical content with complex terminology may take longer; simple narrative text may be faster. The estimate is useful for gauging whether your content length matches the depth your readers expect.

Related Tools

If you're looking to unscramble letters or find words from a set of characters rather than count them, try the free anagram solver.