Live essay word counter
100% private — runs in your browser✓ Draft saved automatically A private autosave keeps your draft in this browser, so a refresh will not lose it.
The meter turns green once you land inside the usual 10% margin of your target.
Top keywords & phrases
Type a few sentences and the words and two-word phrases you repeat most will show up here, with density percentages.
Readability snapshot
Once you have a paragraph or two, a Flesch Reading Ease score appears here with a quick verdict on how dense the prose is.
How strict is the 10% rule on word counts?
Most departments quote the same figure: you can go about 10% over or under the stated length before marks start coming off. So a 1,500-word case study usually accepts anything from roughly 1,350 to 1,650 words. But "usually" is doing a lot of work in that sentence. Some professors count every word including quotes and references; others exclude them. The only reliable source is your assignment brief or module handbook, and if it is silent, one direct question settles it.
Treat the 10% margin as a safety net, not a target. Markers notice drafts that land at a suspicious 1,498 words, and they notice padding written purely to reach 1,650 — both look like someone managed a number instead of an argument. Finish the draft where the argument naturally ends, then use the target meter above to check the distance. If you are under, the fix is nearly always more evidence or deeper analysis, not longer sentences. If you are over, work through the trimming checklist below before you cut anything that matters.
What counts as a word — and what does not?
Word counters make it look simple: anything between two spaces is a word. That is how the tool above counts, and it is how Word does it too. The edge cases are where students get caught out:
- Hyphenated compounds. "Decision-making" counts as one word here and in Word. Some style guides would split it, but graders rarely hand-count to that level.
- Numbers and symbols. "2024" counts as a word. A standalone dash or ampersand does not.
- In-text citations. A bracketed "(Kotler, 2019)" adds tokens in most counters. Whether your department counts them is a policy question, not a technical one.
- Tables, captions and appendices. Usually counted in the body, usually excluded in appendices — the brief decides.
Because conventions differ, the honest approach is to count the draft with quotes included, then again with them removed, and report the number your brief asks for. The "chars, no spaces" tile matters too: some online submission portals cap characters rather than words, and a 2,500-character cap is a very different beast from a 2,500-word cap.
Plan a word budget per section
For a typical 1,500-word case study, the marks live in the analysis, not the summary. The split below is illustrative — adjust it to your own rubric — but it follows how most marking criteria distribute credit:
| Section | Words (of 1,500) | What belongs here |
|---|---|---|
| Executive summary | 150 | One paragraph: the problem, your recommendation, the headline numbers. |
| Situation | 300 | The facts of the case only. No analysis yet, no theories. |
| Analysis | 500 | Frameworks applied, causes traced, evidence weighed. Marks accumulate here. |
| Options & recommendation | 400 | Compare at least two options and justify the one you pick. |
| Implementation & risks | 150 | First steps, owners, what could go wrong. |
A passable paper gives analysis about a third of the words; a strong one gives it closer to half. Try setting the target above to the analysis section alone — 500 words — and writing against that number. Section targets prevent the classic failure mode where the background eats 400 words and the recommendation gets two rushed sentences. The full case study structure guide shows what each section should contain before you count a single word.
Trimming tactics that keep your marks
When the meter goes red because you are over, cut in this order. Each move removes length without touching your argument. Tap the items as you go — the bar tracks your progress:
- Delete restatements — sentences that repeat an earlier point in different words.
- Collapse background into one sentence. Graders know the case facts; you do not need to retell them.
- Cut intensifiers — "very", "really" and "quite" almost never change the meaning.
- Merge two thin paragraphs into one dense one; the transitional sentences usually die with them.
- Move method detail to an appendix and leave one pointing sentence in the body.
Reading the keyword density panel
The panel under the tool lists the words and two-word phrases you use most, with density shown as a share of all non-trivial words. Two reads matter here. First, the top rows should match what the paper is actually about — if "supply chain" dominates a marketing case study, the draft has drifted. Second, watch for one phrase sitting far above everything else. As a working guideline, a single term climbing past roughly 2% starts to read as repetitive to a human grader, so vary the wording before you submit.
There is no golden percentage to chase. Natural writing spreads the interest across several phrases, and a flat-looking panel is usually a good sign: it means no single word is doing all the work. Use the panel as a mirror, not a scoreboard.
Would rather someone else hit the word count?
If the deadline is closer than the draft, hand it over. Send your brief — topic, required length, referencing style, deadline — and a quoted, deadline-bound writer takes it from there. You keep the grade and your weekend.
Frequently asked questions
How many pages is 1,500 words?
With 12-point Times New Roman and double spacing, 1,500 words is about six pages; single spacing brings it down to roughly three. The exact figure shifts with font, margins and spacing, so for a closer estimate tuned to your formatting, use the words-to-pages converter.
Does this word counter store or upload my text?
No. The counting happens in your browser with JavaScript. The only storage is a private autosave in your own browser, so a refresh does not lose your draft, and clearing the box clears that autosave too. Nothing is sent to a server.
Should quotes and references count toward my limit?
Policies differ between departments, and the brief usually says which version applies. The practical move: run the counter once with everything included, once with quotes removed, and report the number your professor asked for. When the brief is silent, ask — one email beats a 5% penalty.
What keyword density should I aim for?
None. Density is a diagnostic, not a goal. If one phrase crowds the top of the panel, vary your wording; if the list looks flat, your vocabulary is doing its job. Deliberately repeating a phrase to reach a percentage reads as padding and can cost more marks than it earns.
How accurate are the reading and speaking time estimates?
They are rough averages: silent reading is estimated at about 225 words per minute, and speaking aloud at about 140. Use them to size a presentation slot or a reading block, then rehearse with a timer — real pace varies a lot from person to person.
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