Tools
Character counter
Character counter with and without spaces
Count the characters in a text, with and without spaces, for posts, ads or meta descriptions.
About this tool
Plenty of texts are limited by characters rather than words: a meta description for Google, an ad headline, a text message, an Instagram bio, a post on X or a field on an official form. This counter shows you instantly how many characters you have used, with and without spaces, so you can trim the message to fit before it gets cut off mid-sentence.
Type or paste your text into the box. The character count is shown large at the top, with the total excluding spaces just below; the other figures (words, sentences, paragraphs, lines) stay visible in case you need them. Keep trimming and watch the number drop in real time. When you are happy, “Copy stats” copies every figure and “Clear” empties the box.
Your text is processed only in your browser and is never sent to a server. Every accented letter and every emoji counts as one character, as do line breaks and spaces. Bear in mind that some platforms count differently (for instance those that measure bytes or shorten links), so leave a small margin if the limit is strict.
How do you count the characters in a text?
- Paste the text into the box with Ctrl+V (Cmd+V on a Mac) or type it in directly.
- Read the big figure at the top, “Characters”: it is the total including spaces and line breaks. Just below it you get the same count without spaces, shown as “312 without spaces”.
- Trim or rewrite the text and watch the figure change with every key you press, until it is under the limit you need.
- If you want to keep the figures, press “Copy stats”: it copies one line per figure, including “Characters” and “Characters (no spaces)”. “Clear” empties the box.
Does the character counter count spaces?
Yes, in the main figure. “Characters” adds up everything in the box: letters, numbers, punctuation, spaces, tabs and line breaks. “Hello world” has 11 characters, and 10 without spaces.
The no-spaces figure (the note under the total and the “No spaces” box) removes all white space: normal spaces, non-breaking spaces, tabs and line breaks. It is the count some translations, applications and writing briefs ask for.
Each line break counts as one character in the total. If you paste a text with lots of blank lines, the figure with spaces goes up even though there is no more text: check for empty lines if you are close to the limit.
How does it count accents and emoji?
Before counting, the text is normalised (Unicode NFC form) and counted by code points. That is why an “á” or an “ñ” always counts as one character, even when it arrives as a letter plus a separate accent, which sometimes happens when you copy from a PDF.
A simple emoji, such as 😀, counts as 1. Composite emoji are counted piece by piece: a flag such as 🇪🇸 adds 2, an emoji with a skin tone such as 👍🏽 adds 2, and a family emoji such as 👨👩👧 adds 5 (three people and two invisible joiners). Some symbols carry an invisible selector after them and also add 2, such as ❤️.
Other apps may count differently: some count 16-bit units (where 😀 is 2), some count bytes and some treat each composite emoji as one. If the limit is strict and the text has emoji, leave some room.
How is it different from the word counter?
It uses the same engine and the same rules as the word counter on this site. Here the character figure is highlighted at the top; words, sentences, paragraphs, lines and reading and speaking times stay below in case you need them.
Count characters when the limit is set by a field or a format: a meta description, an ad headline, a text message, a product name or a form field. Count words when the limit comes from an essay, an article or an application.
Frequently asked questions
How long should a meta description be?
Google sets no hard maximum, but it usually shows around 150–160 characters on desktop and a little less on mobile. Keep the key message within the first 120 to be safe.
Do spaces count as characters?
That depends on who sets the limit. Social networks, text messages and search engines count spaces; some translation briefs and applications ask for a count without them. That is why you get both figures here.
Does an emoji count as one character?
Here, yes: each simple emoji counts as one. Some platforms count it as two, and combined emoji such as families or flags can add more depending on the service.
How many characters fit in a text message?
160 characters using the standard alphabet. Add an emoji or another special character and the message switches encoding, dropping the limit to 70.