Word Counter for Word Documents, Google Docs & Text
Drop in a Word document (.docx or .doc), paste a public Google Docs link, or type. Words are counted the way Microsoft Word counts them, and your file never leaves your browser.
Word Counter
Counted with Microsoft Word's rules
Most Used Words
Top words occurring in your document with density percentages
Keyword Density
Analyze occurrences and density percentage for specific terms or multi-word phrases
Counts Words the Way Microsoft Word Does
Need to count the words in Word before you submit? Many online counters split text at every space or punctuation mark, so their totals drift from Word's. Word Word Count follows Word's rules for hyphenated words, contractions, slashes, numbers and Chinese or Japanese text, and it reads your .docx file directly, including footnotes, endnotes and text boxes, which Word counts when Include textboxes, footnotes and endnotes is ticked.
Count words in a Word document (.docx, .doc), a public Google Doc, or text you type. Files and text are counted in your browser and never uploaded. It works with any language that separates words with spaces, such as German, Spanish, Arabic, Hebrew or Hindi, and counts Chinese and Japanese character by character, as Word does.
How Microsoft Word Calculates Word Count
Word counts everything between spaces as one word, with a few exceptions. Each rule below was checked in Microsoft Word.
Hyphenated Compounds
Terms joined by standard hyphens—such as state-of-the-art or user-friendly—count as exactly one word in Microsoft Word.
Contractions & Apostrophes
Apostrophe contractions like don't, it's, we've, and possessives like author's count as one word.
Em & En Dashes
Em dashes without spaces (draft—revision) and en dashes properly split words into two distinct words in Word.
Numbers, Currency & Decimals
Currency figures ($1,500.00), percentages (99.9%), dates, and standalone numbers count as one word each.
URLs & Email Addresses
Full web links (https://wordwordcount.com) and email addresses (hello@wordwordcount.com) are parsed as single units.
Asian / CJK Characters
In Chinese and Japanese, words are not space-delimited. Microsoft Word counts each individual Chinese/Japanese ideograph as one word.
Word Word Count vs. Microsoft Word
Every Microsoft Word number here was read from Word itself. See the full test of tricky cases.
| Test Phrase Sample | Word Word Count | Microsoft Word | Technical Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| state-of-the-art | 1 | 1 | Word treats hyphenated compounds as 1 unit. |
| don't count | 2 | 2 | Apostrophe is a contraction, not a delimiter. |
| $1,250.50 USD | 2 | 2 | Currency symbol and decimal commas preserved. |
| https://wordwordcount.com | 1 | 1 | Colons and slashes in URLs do not split tokens. |
| 这是一个测试 (6 chars) | 6 | 6 | Logographic CJK characters counted individually. |
Word Count Shortcuts in Word & Google Docs
Each app has its own word count dialog. Use the shortcut below, or follow the full guide for status bar, mobile, and footnote settings.
Microsoft Word
Press Ctrl+Shift+G on Windows or Cmd+Shift+G on Mac to open the Word Count dialog.
Google Docs
Press Ctrl+Shift+C on Windows or Cmd+Shift+C on Mac. Footnotes are never included.
Several Word Files
Word only counts the open document. Drop a folder of .docx files into the batch counter for per-file and total counts.
Standard Word Count Guidelines by Content Type
Reference guide for target word lengths, standard page conversions (at 250 words per page double-spaced), and reading times.
| Document / Submission Type | Typical Word Range | Est. Pages (Double-Spaced) | Reading Time (225 WPM) | Speaking Time (130 WPM) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| College Application Essay | 500 – 650 words | ~2 – 2.5 pages | 2 – 3 min | 4 – 5 min |
| Standard Blog Post / Article | 1,200 – 2,500 words | ~5 – 10 pages | 5 – 11 min | 9 – 19 min |
| Academic Research Paper | 3,000 – 8,000 words | ~12 – 32 pages | 13 – 35 min | 23 – 61 min |
| Legal Brief / Appellate Memo | 4,000 – 14,000 words | ~16 – 56 pages | 18 – 62 min | 30 – 107 min |
| Non-Fiction Book Chapter | 3,000 – 5,000 words | ~12 – 20 pages | 13 – 22 min | 23 – 38 min |
| Full Commercial Novel | 70,000 – 100,000 words | ~280 – 400 pages | 5 – 7.5 hours | 9 – 13 hours |
Page estimates assume about 250 words per double-spaced page. See how many pages your word count fills in Word and what counts toward a word limit.
Word Document Word Count Guides
Step-by-step guides for Microsoft Word and Google Docs, Word's counting rules, and tools for whole folders of documents.
Word Count Without Citations
Leave in-text citations, the reference list, footnotes, headings or quotes out of the count. Every removed part is highlighted.
How to Check Word Count in Word
Ctrl+Shift+G and Cmd+Shift+G, the status bar, iPad and mobile, the NUMWORDS field, and footnote settings.
How to Check Word Count on Google Docs
Count a public Google Doc without signing in, plus the Ctrl+Shift+C shortcut and the live counter.
Batch Word Counter
Count words in many .docx and .doc files at once, with per-file totals and CSV export.
What Word Counts as One Word
Hyphens, contractions, dashes, numbers, symbols, and Chinese or Japanese text, each tested in Word.
What Counts Toward a Word Count
Footnotes, references, titles, tables, and headers: what Word includes and what your limit allows.
Words to Pages Calculator
How many pages your word count fills, and how many words fit on a page, by font and spacing.
Frequently Asked Questions About Word Word Count
Answers about counting Word documents online, matching Microsoft Word, and keeping your files private.