About the Social Media Character Counter
Every social platform has its own character limit, and going over means your post is cut off or rejected. The Social Media Character Counter checks your text against more than a dozen limits at once, with color-coded progress bars that turn orange as you approach a limit and red when you exceed it.
It covers X (Twitter) posts using X's own counting rules (links count as 23 characters and many emojis and CJK characters count as 2), Instagram captions and bios, TikTok captions, Facebook, LinkedIn posts and headlines, YouTube titles and descriptions, Pinterest, Threads, SMS, and Google's recommended title and meta description lengths. It also counts words, hashtags, mentions and emojis so you can follow best practices for each network.
Writing to the limit on each platform
Some limits worth knowing by heart:
- X (Twitter): 280 characters for a normal post. Every link counts as 23.
- Instagram: 2,200 characters for a caption, but only the first line or two show before "more". Bios are limited to 150.
- YouTube: titles up to 100 characters, with roughly the first 60 visible in search results.
- Google search results: titles show about 60 characters and descriptions about 155–160 before they are cut.
Write once, adapt for each network
- Write the full message for the platform with the most space, such as Facebook or LinkedIn.
- Put the most important point in the first line, because every platform shows the beginning first.
- Trim a shorter version for X, and move hashtags to the end.
- Check the bars here. Green means it fits, orange means you are close, and red means it will be cut.
Tip: shorter usually performs better even when you have room. A clear, two-sentence post with one link is often shared more than a long post that fills the limit.
How to use the Social Media Character Counter
- Write or paste your post in the box.
- Check the counters for characters, words, hashtags, mentions and emojis.
- Review each platform bar to see how many characters remain.
- Edit until every platform you need is green.
Frequently asked questions
How does X (Twitter) count characters?
X counts most characters as 1, but emojis and Chinese, Japanese and Korean characters count as 2, and every link counts as 23 characters regardless of its length.
How many hashtags should I use on Instagram?
Instagram allows up to 30, but many creators see better results with 3 to 10 highly relevant hashtags.
Why does the Facebook bar say ideal ~80?
Facebook allows very long posts, but short posts of around 40–80 characters tend to receive more engagement.