Character Counter
Count characters with and without spaces online. Free character counter for Twitter, SMS, titles, and other length-limited content.
How to Use Character Counter
Paste or type your text
Paste or type into the input field. All counts update in real-time — no submit button needed.
Read the character counts
See: total characters (with spaces), characters without spaces, words, sentences, paragraphs, lines. All metrics displayed simultaneously.
Use for platform limits
Reference the count against your target platform's limit (Twitter 280, SMS 160, meta description 160). Adjust your text to fit while preserving meaning.
Optional: clear or copy
Click Clear to reset, or copy your text to use elsewhere once you've achieved the right length.
When to Use Character Counter
Social media post optimization
Twitter limits to 280 characters; LinkedIn headlines to 220; Instagram captions to 2200. Compose your text and watch the count to maximize impact within limits. The character counter shows you exactly how close you are, helping you craft punchy posts that fit.
Meta description and SEO content
Google displays up to 160 characters of meta description in search results. Title tags display 50-60 characters before truncation. Use the counter to write descriptions that won't be cut off in SERPs, ensuring your full message reaches searchers.
SMS and notification message length
SMS messages are limited to 160 characters (basic Latin) or 70 characters (when including emoji or non-Latin chars). Push notifications have similar limits. Counting before sending prevents unexpected message splitting (which costs more) or truncation that loses context.
Academic and professional writing
Essay assignments, abstracts, and reports often have specific word/character counts. Job application cover letters, executive summaries, and bio statements all benefit from precise length control. The counter ensures you hit specifications exactly.
Character Counter Examples
Twitter post analysis
Just shipped a new feature! 🎉 Read more at https://example.com/blog/new-featureCharacters: 80 / 280\nWords: 12\nSentences: 1A typical tweet uses about 80 characters out of 280 available — plenty of room. The count includes spaces and the URL. URLs in Twitter are auto-shortened to t.co (23 chars) regardless of original length, so don't worry about long URLs eating your budget.
Meta description sweet spot
Free online JSON beautifier — format and validate JSON instantly with proper indentation. Supports tab, 2-space, 4-space, sort keys, and minify modes.Characters: 152 / 160\nWords: 22Just under the 160-char Google meta description limit. Maximize space (around 150-160 chars) so you fit more keywords and value props. Going over results in truncation with '...' which loses your message's end.
SMS message check
Your verification code is 123456. Valid for 10 minutes.Characters: 53 / 160\nWords: 9\nLines: 1\nBytes (UTF-8): 53Standard ASCII text uses 1 byte per character — 53 chars = 53 bytes, well under the 160-char SMS limit. Adding emoji (🎉) would jump to UCS-2 encoding, reducing limit to 70 chars per message. The character vs byte distinction matters for SMS.
Tips & Best Practices for Character Counter
- 1.Use the counter as you write, not at the end. Iterating on length while writing produces tighter copy than writing freely and then editing down.
- 2.Different platforms have different limits. Always verify the limit for your target platform (Twitter 280, SMS 160 GSM-7 or 70 UCS-2, meta description 160 Google but ~155 visible). Limits change occasionally.
- 3.Spaces count too — for most platforms. Don't try to game the count by removing spaces; readability matters more than fitting an extra character.
- 4.Leading/trailing whitespace counts. Strip it before sharing or pasting. The counter shows exact whitespace usage so you can clean up.
- 5.For accurate Twitter character count, note that URLs are shortened to 23 chars regardless of length. The counter shows the literal length; Twitter's actual count is shorter for tweets containing URLs.
- 6.Reading time estimates use word count: average reading speed is ~200 wpm. A 200-word piece reads in ~1 minute, 500 words ~2.5 minutes. Useful for pacing presentations or scripts.
Frequently Asked Questions
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