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Character counter

Check character limits for posts, SMS and SEO as you type.

Characters
0
Without spaces
0
Words
0
Lines
0

More details

Characters without spaces
0
Sentences
0
Paragraphs
0
Lines
0
Reading time
0 sec
Speaking time
0 sec
Average word length
0.0 characters
Longest word
—

Common limits

  • X (Twitter) post0 / 280
  • Meta description0 / 160
  • SEO title0 / 60
  • Instagram caption0 / 2,200
  • SMS (one message)0 / 160
  • Essay (500 words)0 / 500

Most used words

Your most frequent words will appear here.

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How to count characters in a text

  1. 1

    Type or paste your text into the box.

  2. 2

    See characters with and without spaces update instantly.

  3. 3

    Check the bars below for X, SMS, SEO title and meta description limits.

When characters matter more than words

Many limits are measured in characters, not words: social media posts, SMS messages, app store descriptions, form fields and search snippets. This page puts character counts first, with and without spaces, and shows live bars for the most common limits so you can see at a glance how much room is left.

Shows character count with spaces and without. It’s also a letter counter.

The limits shown

  • X (Twitter) post: 280 characters
  • Meta description: around 160 characters before Google cuts it off
  • SEO title: about 60 characters
  • Instagram caption: 2,200 characters
  • SMS: 160 characters for a single message in the basic alphabet

Bars turn red when you go over, and the number tells you exactly how many characters to cut.

Counting what you see

Atifo counts characters the way people see them. An emoji with a skin tone, a flag, or a letter with an accent is one character, even though computers store several codes for it. A few platforms count some emoji as two, so it’s worth leaving a little margin near a hard limit.

Spaces or no spaces?

Most platforms count spaces. Some forms and academic guidelines ask for characters without spaces, which is shown right next to the main count. To count words instead, switch to the word counter.

Frequently asked questions

Are emoji counted as one character?

Yes. Atifo counts what you see: an emoji, even one with a skin tone, counts as one character. Note that some platforms count certain emoji as two, so leave a little room.

What is the character limit for an X (Twitter) post?

280 characters for standard accounts. Links count as 23 characters on X regardless of their real length, so the bar here may be slightly stricter.

How long should a meta description be?

Aim for about 140–160 characters. Google cuts longer descriptions in search results, and very short ones waste space.

Why does an SMS with Hindi text allow fewer characters?

A standard SMS holds 160 characters in the basic Latin alphabet, but only 70 when it contains other scripts or emoji, because it switches to a different encoding.

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