Word & Character Counter
Live word and character counts, reading time, two independent readability scores shown side by side, word frequency with density, and progress against real platform length limits.
Readability — two formulas, shown side by side
Neither formula is an oracle — showing both makes that visible rather than implying one true grade level. Both depend on an estimated syllable count per word, which is a heuristic (vowel-group counting), not an exact linguistic fact.
Flesch Reading Ease
{{ result.fleschReadingEase }}{{ fleschEaseLabel }}. Higher is easier to read (0–100 scale).
Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level
{{ result.fleschKincaidGrade }}Approximate U.S. school grade level needed to read this comfortably.
Gunning Fog Index
{{ result.gunningFog }}Independent cross-check — years of education roughly needed, weighted toward complex words.
Platform length limits
Word frequency
| Word | Count | Density |
|---|---|---|
| {{ row.word }} | {{ row.count }} | {{ row.density }}% |
Start typing or paste text above to see live counts and readability scores.
All analysis happens in your browser as you type. Nothing you enter is ever uploaded to a server.
Why syllable counting is a heuristic, not a fact
English spelling doesn't map to pronunciation precisely enough to count syllables exactly without a pronunciation dictionary. This tool uses the standard vowel-group technique — counting runs of consecutive vowels, adjusting for a silent trailing "e" and common suffixes — the same general approach most readability tools use. Both readability formulas below depend on this estimate, which is why two independently-computed scores are shown side by side rather than one number presented as definitive.
Why the stop-word filter matters for word frequency
An unfiltered word-frequency list on almost any English text is dominated by "the," "a," "and" and similar function words — true, but rarely what anyone means by "what is this text actually about." Filtering common words out by default surfaces the words doing the actual work; turning the filter off shows the raw, unfiltered count instead.
Frequently asked questions
Why are there two different readability scores?
Flesch/Flesch-Kincaid and the Gunning Fog Index are independently-computed, published formulas that both estimate reading difficulty from sentence length and word complexity — but neither is a perfect oracle. Showing both side by side, rather than one number presented as definitive, makes it visible when they roughly agree versus when a text is a genuine edge case for one formula.
How accurate is the syllable count?
It is a heuristic (vowel-group counting with common adjustments), not an exact linguistic count — English spelling does not map to pronunciation precisely enough to compute syllables exactly without a full pronunciation dictionary. Both readability formulas depend on this estimate, which is why relative comparisons between texts are more meaningful than treating one score as an exact fact.
Why are common words excluded from the frequency list by default?
Unfiltered, almost any English text's frequency list is dominated by "the," "a," "and" and similar function words. Filtering them out by default surfaces the words actually carrying meaning; turning the filter off shows the raw, unfiltered count.
Where do the platform length limits come from?
X/Twitter's 280-character post limit, a single SMS segment's 160 characters, and commonly-cited practical limits for a meta description and a title tag before search engines truncate them — shown as progress bars so going over is obvious at a glance, not just a number to compare by eye.
Is my text sent anywhere?
No. Every count, formula and frequency calculation runs entirely in your browser using JavaScript, live as you type. Nothing is transmitted to a server.