What it measures
Paste any text to count words, characters (with and without spaces), sentences and paragraphs, estimate reading and speaking time, and calculate a Flesch reading-ease score.
Reading ease
The Flesch score rewards short sentences and short words: the higher the score, the easier the text. Most web copy aimed at a general audience reads comfortably somewhere in the middle of the scale, while technical or legal text scores lower. It is a rough guide for English text, not a ranking factor.
Is there an ideal word count?
No. Search engines don’t rank pages by length. The right length is whatever it takes to answer the searcher’s question completely and clearly. A product page might need 150 well-chosen words; a buying guide might need 2,000. Use the count to check you have covered the topic, not to hit a target.
Tips for clearer writing
- Lead with the answer, then the detail.
- Break long sentences in two.
- Use headings that match the questions people ask.
- Cut words that don’t add meaning.
Clear, answer-first writing also makes your content easier for AI tools to quote, as we explain in how to get cited in AI answers.
