X (Twitter) Character Counter

How to use the X (Twitter) Character Counter

1. Type or paste your post. The ring shows how many characters are left and turns red when you go over.
2. Check the stats: each link counts as 23 and each emoji as 2, exactly as X counts them.
3. If you are over the limit, the part that would be cut is highlighted so you know what to trim.
4. Or click Split into a thread to break the text into numbered posts at sentence boundaries, then copy each post in order.

Features

• Weighted counting that follows X’s published counting rules
• Links counted as 23 characters, whatever their real length
• Emoji, including skin tones and flags, counted as 2
• Chinese, Japanese and Korean characters counted as 2
• Thread splitter that breaks at sentences, then words, never mid-word
• Adjustable limit for longer posts on paid accounts

Why X counts differently from a normal counter

X does not simply count the characters you type. Its open-source counting library, twitter-text, gives every character a weight. Most Latin, Greek, Cyrillic, Arabic, Hebrew and Indic characters weigh 1. Characters outside those ranges, including Chinese, Japanese and Korean ideographs, weigh 2. A standard post may use up to 280 weighted characters, which is why a post in Japanese can hold about 140 characters while an English one holds 280. A plain character counter will tell you that your post fits when X disagrees; this tool uses the same rules as X.

Links always count as 23

Every link is wrapped by X’s link shortener, so a URL costs 23 characters no matter how long or short it is. A 120-character product link and a 15-character domain both cost 23. Links typed without https://, such as example.com, are usually detected too. That means you should not bother shortening links for X, but you should remember that even a tiny link takes a real bite out of your 280.

Emoji count as 2

An emoji always counts as 2, even when it is built from several code points. A family emoji joined with zero-width joiners, a thumbs-up with a skin tone and a country flag each count as a single emoji, so 2 characters.

Splitting a long post into a thread

When an idea needs more room, a thread keeps it readable. The splitter first keeps whole paragraphs and sentences together, packing as many as fit into each post. If a single sentence is longer than the limit, it breaks between words. Numbering such as “1/5” is added in the style you choose, and its length is subtracted from each post’s budget, so every post still fits. Each post shows its own weighted count.

Thread tips

• Make the first post work on its own; many people only read that one.
• Put the link you care about most in the first or last post rather than the middle.
• Read the split points before posting. Sometimes moving one sentence makes the flow better.

Longer posts

Paid X accounts can publish much longer posts, which are collapsed behind a “Show more” link in the timeline. If you have one, raise the limit field; the weighting rules stay the same. For other platforms, use the general Character Counter, and for Instagram captions, the Instagram Caption Formatter.

Frequently asked questions