Word counter
Count words using the browser's language-aware word segmenter. Hyphens split, decimals stay whole, and Korean is counted by space-separated chunks.
What to know
This page is about the Words box, which relies on the browser's word segmenter for the language of the page instead of just splitting on spaces. That is why Don't stop, e-mail me at 3.14 gives 7 words: Don't, stop, e, mail, me, at and 3.14.
Punctuation, emoji and symbols are never counted as words, while numbers are. A hyphenated compound such as well-known splits into 2, an apostrophe contraction stays whole, and a decimal such as 3.14 stays whole, so a style guide that treats hyphenated terms as one word will read slightly higher here.
Korean text is separated at spaces, so 안녕하세요 세계 입니다 counts as 3, which is close to how Korean word-chunks are usually tallied. Japanese and Chinese have no spaces, so the segmenter uses a dictionary and the result can differ a little between browsers.
Because the Reading time box divides this word count by 200 per minute, a 1,000-word article shows 5 min. Use the figure for essay minimums, subtitle lengths and article targets, and keep a margin of a few words when a limit is strict.
Choose a specific task 1
Related tools 4
How to use Word counter
- Paste Don't stop, e-mail me at 3.14 and confirm that the Words box shows 7 before testing your own text.
- Replace it with your essay or caption and read Words against the required range, for example 500 to 600.
- For a strict minimum, add a margin: aim for 520 words if the assignment says at least 500.
- Check Reading time underneath, which will show 3 min for a 520-word text, and adjust if you need a shorter read.
Quick answers
Does a hyphenated word count as one word or two?
Two. The segmenter breaks e-mail into e and mail, so a document full of hyphenated terms reads a bit higher than in tools that split only on spaces.
Are numbers and dates counted as words?
Numbers are counted and decimals stay whole, so 3.14 is one word, while symbols such as % or # and emoji are skipped.
Why can a Japanese or Chinese word count change between browsers?
Those languages have no spaces, so the browser guesses boundaries with a built-in dictionary. Different browser versions ship different dictionaries, and the totals can shift by a few words.
How is a Korean sentence split into words?
Mostly at spaces, so each space-separated chunk counts once. 안녕하세요 세계 입니다 gives 3 even though particles are attached to their nouns.