Free Word & Character Counter for Social Media (2026)
Free Word & Character Counter, With Every Social Platform's 2026 Limit Built In
Paste your title, caption, or description below. We'll count it instantly and tell you exactly where it stands against YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, X, and Pinterest limits — no sign-up, nothing saved.
Every platform has its own idea of "too long." A YouTube title that looks fine in the editor gets sliced off in search results. An Instagram caption that reads well in full disappears behind a "more" button after two lines. A Pinterest description you spent ten minutes writing shows only its first sentence in the feed. None of this is obvious until you've already published — which is exactly when it's hardest to fix.
This page does two things. First, a live counter so you can check any piece of text — a video title, a caption, a product description — against the real limits before you post it. Second, a full reference guide below with the actual 2026 numbers for every major platform, because "character limit" articles go stale fast and most of the ones ranking right now are years out of date.
Word & Character Counter
Character limits, platform by platform (2026)
| Platform / field | Hard limit | Visible before truncation |
|---|---|---|
| YouTube title | 100 characters | ~70 characters on most viewports |
| YouTube description | 5,000 characters | First ~157 characters above the fold |
| Instagram caption | 2,200 characters | ~125 characters before "more" |
| TikTok caption | 2,200 characters (some accounts up to 4,000) | Full caption is used for SEO indexing |
| X (Twitter) post | 280 characters (25,000 for Premium) | Links always count as 23 characters |
| Pinterest description | 500 characters | ~50–60 characters in feed |
YouTube — title and description
100 char title5,000 char descriptionYouTube's title field has a hard cap of 100 characters, but only around the first 70 reliably display in search results, suggested-video tiles, and notifications — the rest gets cut. That gap between the technical limit and the practical limit is the most common mistake creators make: a title that reads perfectly at 95 characters can lose its hook entirely once it's truncated at 70.
The description field allows up to 5,000 characters, but only the first ~157 show above the "Show more" fold. Put your strongest keyword and a one-line summary in that opening window, then use the rest of the space for timestamps, links, and context.
Instagram — captions
2,200 char max125 visibleInstagram allows up to 2,200 characters per caption, but the feed only shows roughly the first 125 before a "more" link appears. If your hook, offer, or key point lands after character 125, most scrollers will never see it. Save the long version for people who tap through — lead with the sentence that earns the tap.
TikTok — captions
Up to 2,200–4,000 charTikTok's caption limit has expanded over the past couple of years and current reporting is mixed — most accounts see a 2,200-character cap, though some report access up to 4,000. Either way, treat the limit as a ceiling, not a target: TikTok's own guidance and most creator data agree that shorter captions (under 150 characters) still perform best, since the video carries the weight and the caption mainly feeds search indexing.
X (formerly Twitter) — posts
280 char free25,000 char PremiumFree accounts are capped at 280 characters per post. X Premium subscribers can post up to 25,000 characters, but engagement data consistently favors shorter posts even on Premium — a 25,000-character limit is a ceiling for edge cases like statements or threads condensed into one post, not a writing target. One quirk worth remembering: every link in a post counts as exactly 23 characters, regardless of the actual URL length.
Pinterest — pin descriptions
500 char max50–60 visiblePinterest descriptions can run up to 500 characters, but the feed only shows the first 50 to 60 before truncating. Because Pinterest functions more like a visual search engine than a social feed, the full 500 characters still matters for search ranking even when most of it isn't visible at a glance — front-load your main keyword, then use the remaining space for context that helps the pin get found later.
Writing inside the limit, not just under it
- Put the important part first. Every platform above truncates before the technical maximum. Write for the visible portion, not the allowed one.
- Match the platform's real behavior, not its marketing. A 25,000-character X post is a stat, not a strategy — the platforms above still reward brevity in the places people actually scroll.
- Recount after editing. A caption that fit yesterday can drift over the limit after you add a link, an emoji, or a hashtag block — links and some emoji count as more than one character depending on the platform.
- Keep a platform-specific version, not one copy-pasted everywhere. The same caption rarely performs the same on Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest — the truncation points alone are different enough to justify separate versions.
Frequently asked questions
100 characters maximum, but only about the first 70 display reliably in search results and suggested videos. Keep your main keyword and hook inside that first 70.
Up to 2,200 characters, though only around the first 125 show before the "more" link. Longer captions work for storytelling, but the hook needs to land in that first 125.
Yes — hashtags and mentions count toward the character limit on every platform above. On X specifically, links are counted as exactly 23 characters no matter how long the actual URL is.
Google typically displays 150–160 characters of a meta description before truncating it in search results. There's no hard technical maximum, but writing to that visible window keeps your description from being cut off mid-sentence.
For the official guidance on how titles and descriptions are used in search results, Google's Search Central documentation on title links is the most reliable primary source — it's written for developers, but the practical takeaways apply directly to any title or description you publish.
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