While word counts may not seem that important when you first start writing, they are a necessary part of the writing process.

What is a Word Counter?

A word counter is generally defined as any tool that helps count the number of words in a text document.

Not all word counters operate the same way, however. While most word counters will, of course, count the number of words in a document, some also count specific formatting features like bullets or numbered lists as words, too. When using a word counter, you’ll want to make sure it’s accurate to whatever guidelines you’re writing under.

What Is the Use Case for a Word Counter?

Typically, the use case for a word counter is for writers who need to stay within a specific range of words for the piece they are writing. This idea of a word count requirement is frequently found in paid freelance writing, journalism, legal writing, academic writing and advertising.

You can see specific examples of groups of people that can benefit from a word counter in the next section.

Who Can Benefit From a Word Count Tool?

Essentially, anyone that writes in a digital format can use the help of a word count tool or word count checker. Here are a few main groups that may benefit the most:

Online Content Writers/Bloggers

Since many writing projects are priced, paid out and evaluated with word counts in mind, being able to quickly keep track of this little number with the help of an online word count tool can make your life much easier. Editors often value writers who take the time to submit work with the correct amount of words.

If a writer submits a blog, article or other content piece that is over or under an expected word count, the editor may ask the writer to fix it or have to do the work for them. Either way, word count is essential to any article, blog or product description submitted to any company or editor.

Content Marketers/Advertisers

Marketers and advertisers are always working with content types that have specific word count requirements. For example, if you’re writing social media posts to promote products or services, you have to be aware of character and word counts that fit the platform you’re working in. With ad copy, your word count limits are even more strict, thus making a word count checker a very valuable tool.

Having a free word counter on hand can help make an advertiser’s job much more simple and efficient.

Students/Teachers

In the age of online classes, homework and testing, word count checkers can be valuable for both students as well as teachers. Using a unique word counter can help students trying to hit class assignment requirements. Teachers, on the other hand, can use a word count tool to hold their students accountable.

A website word counter is just another tool educators and students have to help foster an environment of learning.

Why Should You Use an Online Word Count Tool?

Whether you fall into one of the groups listed above or not, chances are you have reasons why you need to know the exact word count of the content you are writing. Rather than counting it all out yourself, use the convenience of technology to do it for you!

The good news is there are many free word counters and word count checkers on the world wide web. So next time you write, be sure to use an online word count tool to ensure your writing meets expectations.

Available Free Word Count Tools

From web browser extensions to websites where you can input your data, using a free word count program is easy and convenient. Web browser extensions give you the word count by simply highlighting the text in the browser. Or you can copy and paste the text into a website word count tool and get the deets there. Here are some great places to find a free word count tool:

1. EasyWordCount

This is a word and character counter plus it gives additional information on the value of word counters for content writers and bloggers.

2. CountOfWords.com

This is a great website word counter that goes beyond word counting to include difficult words, average sentence length, unique words, syllables and more.

3. WordCounter.net

Wordcounter Net is an online word count program that features an online editor to help improve word choice, find grammar errors and top keywords to include in your blogs.

4. WordCountTools.com

Wordcounttools is the free web version of the Google Chrome word count extension.

5. Small SEO Tools Word Counter

This SmallSEOTools word counter is really easy to use. Simply upload your document to this word counter and take advantage of the other relevant tools including plagiarism checker and grammar checker.

6. Word Count Tool (Firefox Addon)

Mozilla Firefox browser fans can benefit from a free web word counter add-on for counting both words and characters.

7. Word Count Chrome Extension

This is a free add-on character counter and word count tool to add to your Google Chrome browser. This word count chrome extension is perfect for the writer that works solely in Google Chrome.

8. CharacterCountOnline.com

CharacterCountOnline.com is a free character counter and online word counter that takes into account words, characters, paragraphs, sentences and white space.

9. AllWorldPhone.com

This isn’t the prettiest word count tool online but it does the trick. It includes word and character counters plus it features a website graphics creation tool.

10. LetterCount.com

When writing for business, sometimes you need help with character limits on top of just word count. Lettercount gives great information on social media, Blogger and Ebay character limits to help you stay on task when pumping out lots of smaller form content like this.

How to Do Word Count in Word (Microsoft Word)

Lastly, we felt it would be important to go over how to find word count in Word. If you own the Microsoft Office Suite, then you have a word counter built directly into Microsoft Word! It’s incredibly easy to use this word counter. Here are the steps:

1. First, open up Microsoft Word to a blank document and start typing.
2. Click on the “Review” tab at the top of the document navbar.
3. Click on “Word Count” on the left-hand side of the navbar.

From there you’ll get a pop up window that shows the word count in Word. You’ll also see the character count in Word as well as paragraphs, lines, pages and characters with or without spaces.

Shortcut for How to Find Word Count in Word

If you’re looking for an even quicker shortcut on how to get word count in Word, look at the bottom left corner of the document you are writing and you will see some numbers/stats for the document. The fourth stat over from the right can be set to show the word count in word.

You can click on this to expand a window to show you words, characters with spaces and characters without spaces. You can also change the settings so that this number always shows you character count if you prefer.

See?! Finding out how to do word count in Word is pretty easy! Try it the next time you write a document in Microsoft Word.

Analyze Your Writing With a Word Count Checker

Editors expect a piece of content to meet the word count requirements given. A word count tool allows writers to know how much more they have to write or how much they need to cut. It is not the editor’s job to do all of this for the writer, and having a free word count tool like this can help to reduce revisions needed because of missed word counts. Make the most out of your editor/writer relationship by ensuring the your writing meets agreed-upon expectations. Send in your best writing while following the word count guidelines to make both you and the editor happy.

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