An online word counter reports how long a piece of text is. This one shows words, character count with spaces, characters without spaces, lines, sentences and a rough reading time. Counts update as you type. Nothing is uploaded, which matters if you are pasting unpublished copy.
Characters with spaces vs without
Character count with spaces is the length of the string as typed, including spaces, tabs and new lines. Characters without spaces removes every whitespace character, so “speed test” is 9, not 10. Teachers, app-store listings and some ad headlines use the no-space number. Word count splits on whitespace: useful for the 800–1,200 word articles on the internet speed blog.
What this is not
It is not a grammar checker and it is not a speed test. For JSON payloads use the JSON formatter. Other utilities sit in Tools.
Common questions
What is the difference between characters with and without spaces?
With spaces counts every character, including spaces and line breaks. Without spaces strips all whitespace first, which is the count many assignment and SEO limits mean.
How are words counted?
A word is a run of non-whitespace. “Wi-Fi” is one word. Empty input is zero words.