Word Counter — Words, Characters & Reading Time

How long does it take to read or speak?

Reading time is estimated at 200-250 words per minute for an average adult reading non-fiction, and speaking time at 130-150 words per minute for a calm presentation pace. A 1,000-word article takes about 4-5 minutes to read and 7 minutes to present. The estimates above adjust for both.

Common word-count targets and limits

Three ways writers use this tool

Keyword density: paste your draft and check that a target phrase appears naturally — roughly once per 100-200 words is a healthy range. Sentence pacing: the sentence count reveals average sentence length; if it climbs above 25 words per sentence, consider splitting. Hitting briefs exactly: when a client or professor specifies a word count, the live counter keeps you within the limit as you edit — no guesswork at the end.

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A "word" is any run of characters separated by spaces — so "state-of-the-art" counts as one word, "€50,000" counts as one, and standalone numbers count too. Hyphenated compounds and apostrophes stay together; the character count excludes nothing, so you can verify strict limits like tweet lengths or ad copy caps.

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