Character Counter
A character counter shows how many characters your text has, with and without spaces, as you type. This one also shows words, lines, UTF-8 bytes and SMS messages, and checks your text against common limits such as X posts and meta descriptions.
Runs in your browser. Your files and text are not uploaded.
Character limits
- X (Twitter) post0 / 280280 left · X counts every link as 23 characters and some scripts (such as Chinese or Japanese) as 2, so treat this as a guide.
- Instagram caption0 / 2,2002,200 left
- LinkedIn post0 / 3,0003,000 left
- Facebook post (shown before “See more”)0 / 125125 left
- Google title tag (about)0 / 6060 left · Google cuts titles by pixel width, roughly 50–60 characters.
- Meta description (about)0 / 160160 left · Google usually shows about 150–160 characters on desktop.
- YouTube title0 / 100100 left
- TikTok caption0 / 4,0004,000 left
How to use Character Counter
- Type or paste your text.
- Read the live character counts.
- Check the limit bars for X, Instagram, SMS and SEO.
- Set your own limit if you need a specific one.
Frequently asked questions
Does a character count include spaces?
“Characters” includes spaces and line breaks; “Characters (no spaces)” leaves them out. Most limits, such as X posts, SMS and web forms, count spaces.
How many characters can an X (Twitter) post have?
280 characters for standard accounts. X counts every link as 23 characters and most emoji and Chinese, Japanese or Korean characters as 2. Paid X Premium accounts can post longer text.
How many characters fit in one SMS?
160 characters if the message only uses the standard GSM-7 character set, or 70 if it contains an emoji or other special characters. Longer messages are split into parts of 153 or 67 characters.
How long should a meta description be?
About 150–160 characters. Google cuts snippets by pixel width, so put the most important words first.
How are emoji counted?
Each visible emoji counts as one character here. Some platforms count them as more: X counts most emoji as 2, and an emoji uses 2 of an SMS’s 70 Unicode characters.
What is the difference between characters and bytes?
Bytes measure storage size in UTF-8, which many databases and APIs limit. English letters use 1 byte, accented letters 2, and emoji 4.
How do I count characters in Word or Google Docs?
In Word, open Review › Word Count. In Google Docs, open Tools › Word count or press Ctrl+Shift+C (Cmd+Shift+C on a Mac).
Is my text saved or uploaded?
No. Counting happens in your browser and nothing is stored. To count words, sentences and reading time, use the Word Counter.