What a word counter measures
A word counter turns raw text into the handful of numbers writing actually runs on: words, characters, sentences, and paragraphs. Words come from splitting on whitespace; characters are counted both with and without spaces; sentences and paragraphs are inferred from terminal punctuation and blank lines.
On top of the counts, two derived signals help you plan. Reading and speaking time estimate how long a piece takes to consume (≈200 and ≈130 words per minute), and keyword density surfaces the terms that appear most — a fast way to check what the text emphasises without re-reading it.
Everything updates live and runs entirely in your browser, so drafts and unpublished copy stay private.
Counts vs. estimates
Deterministic tallies you can hold to a hard limit.
Derived signals for planning, not precise guarantees.
Where it helps
Hitting a length limit
Trim a meta description or tweet to fit a strict character cap without guessing.
Planning a talk
Use speaking time to size a script to a conference slot before you rehearse.
Checking focus
Glance at keyword density to confirm an article is about what you intended.
Frequently asked questions
As a run of non-whitespace characters — text is split on spaces, tabs, and newlines, and the non-empty pieces are counted. It's the same approach editors and word processors use, so the number matches what you'd expect for prose.
Yes. Because a "word" is any run of non-whitespace characters, tokens like 2026, $5, or C++ each count as one word. Whitespace is the only delimiter, so punctuation attached to a word doesn't split it.
Reading time assumes about 200 words per minute (a common silent-reading average); speaking time assumes roughly 130 wpm. They're estimates for planning, not exact — actual pace varies with difficulty and audience.
With spaces counts every character including whitespace — useful for hard limits like SMS or database fields. Without spaces counts only visible glyphs, which some platforms use for their limits. Both are shown so you can match whichever rule applies.
It's a quick read on what a piece of writing is actually about. For SEO, your main topic should appear naturally among the top terms — but forcing it is keyword stuffing, which hurts more than it helps. Use the list to sanity-check focus, not to game it.
No. All counting and analysis happen in your browser; your text never leaves the page.