Word counts: what counts as a word?

Understand punctuation, Unicode text and why two word counters can disagree.

A word count depends on a definition. Toolbox counts runs of Unicode letters or numbers and allows an apostrophe within a word. Under this rule, don't is one word and well-known is two.

Try a small sample

Paste One small step, two big ideas. into the Word Counter. The result is six words. Compare it with the Character Counter when a form limits characters instead of words.

Where counters differ

Languages without spaces need language-aware segmentation for editorial word counts. A simple token counter cannot infer every linguistic boundary. Submission systems may also count URLs, hyphenated terms and numbers differently. For an assignment or publication, follow the destination's own count.

Cleaning copied text

Use Remove Extra Spaces for accidental whitespace, but keep an original copy when line breaks carry meaning.