How to use the Chinese Word Counter
- Type or paste your Chinese text into the box.
- Chinese characters counts only 汉字. Characters counts everything, including punctuation and spaces.
- Word-style count counts each Chinese character as one, plus each word in English or other languages.
- Tick Don't count punctuation as characters if your limit leaves out punctuation like ，。！？
Characters or words?
Chinese is written without spaces, so length is almost always measured in characters (字), not words. An "800-word essay" (800字作文) means about 800 characters. Many teachers and publishers count punctuation too, because each mark takes a square on Chinese grid paper (方格纸). Check what your limit includes, and use the punctuation toggle to see both numbers.
Words (词) in Chinese
A Chinese word can be one character or several: 我喜欢学习中文 is 7 characters but 4 words (我 / 喜欢 / 学习 / 中文). The Words count uses your browser's built-in Chinese dictionary to find these boundaries. Different tools split some words differently, so treat it as a close estimate.
Word-style count
Microsoft Word counts each Chinese character as one word, then adds the words in other languages. So 我用iPhone拍照 counts as 5 (4 characters plus 1 English word). The Word-style count tile uses the same idea, so it should be close to Word's figure, though punctuation and symbols can make small differences.
Limits for Chinese text
- X (Twitter): each Chinese character counts as 2, so a post holds about 140 Chinese characters. The limit bar counts the way X does.
- SMS: 70 characters per message for Chinese text.
Frequently asked questions
Does it count Traditional Chinese?
Yes. Simplified and Traditional characters are both counted as Chinese characters.
Is punctuation counted?
Chinese characters never includes punctuation. Characters does, unless you tick Don't count punctuation as characters.
Why doesn't the word count match another tool?
Chinese has no spaces, so every tool uses its own dictionary to decide where words end. Character counts are exact; word counts can differ a little.
Is my text uploaded?
No. Everything is counted in your browser.