Question 1

How are words counted?

Accepted Answer

Words are counted by splitting the text on whitespace and punctuation boundaries. Hyphenated words like "well-known" are typically counted as one word. Numbers, contractions (don't, it's), and abbreviations each count as one word. Empty lines and multiple spaces are ignored.

Question 2

How is reading time estimated?

Accepted Answer

Reading time is estimated based on the average adult reading speed of approximately 200–250 words per minute for web content. The estimate is a guideline — actual reading speed varies based on the complexity of the text and the individual reader.

Question 3

Is there a character limit for text I can analyze?

Accepted Answer

There is no enforced limit. You can paste entire essays, reports, or articles. All processing happens in your browser so there are no server-side restrictions. Very large texts (hundreds of thousands of words) may briefly slow the UI while counting.

Question 4

What is the difference between characters with and without spaces?

Accepted Answer

Character count with spaces includes every character including spaces, tabs, and newlines — this is the raw length of the string. Character count without spaces counts only non-whitespace characters. Publishers and some platforms (like Twitter/X) specify character limits that count spaces; others (like academic journals specifying "characters") typically mean without spaces.

Question 5

Does the tool save or transmit my text?

Accepted Answer

No. All analysis runs in your browser's JavaScript engine. Your text is never sent to any server, stored in a database, or logged. Once you close the tab, the text is gone.

Word Count Tool