--- title: "X Character Counter: Weighted Count, Links and Emoji" description: "Count characters the way X does. Links count as 23, emoji and many scripts count double. Instant and private: it runs in your browser." url: https://kairopost.com/tools/x-character-counter --- # X character counter X allows 280 characters in a standard post, but it weighs them: every link counts as 23, and emoji and Chinese, Japanese or Korean characters count as 2. This counter weighs your text exactly the way X does. - Runs in your browser - Nothing uploaded - No sign up Live. Everything runs on your device. Nothing is uploaded ## How to use the X character counter 1. 1: ### Paste your post: Type or paste your draft into the editor, or start from one of the examples. 2. 2: ### Pick the limit: Choose Standard 280, or Premium 25,000 if you write longer posts as a subscriber. 3. 3: ### Read the ring: The ring shows how many characters are left, and turns red when you go over. 4. 4: ### Inspect any character: Tap a character in the weight strip to see why it counts as 1, 2 or 23. ## How X counts characters X measures posts in weighted characters, using four rules in order. They are published in [X's developer documentation](https://docs.x.com/fundamentals/counting-characters) . Why some scripts weigh 2. One Chinese or Japanese character carries far more meaning than one Latin letter, so X evens it out. Key takeaway The heavy side is not only Asian scripts. The bullet, the ellipsis, arrows, the euro sign and Unicode bold letters all count as 2, and they are the usual reason an English post runs over. ### Weight table by Unicode range Tap any sample to inspect its code point. - U+0000 to U+10FF 0 to 4351: 1: Latin letters with and without accents, digits, basic punctuation, Greek, Cyrillic, Hebrew, Arabic, Devanagari, Thai, Georgian and more: 1 - U+2000 to U+200D 8192 to 8205: 1: Typographic spaces of different widths, the zero width space and the joiners that glue emoji together: 1 - U+2010 to U+201F 8208 to 8223: 1: Curly quotes, the typographic dash family and the double vertical line: 1 - U+2032 to U+2037 8242 to 8247: 1: Prime marks, used for feet, inches, minutes and seconds: 1 - Everything else outside the four ranges: 2: Chinese, Japanese and Korean, the ellipsis, bullets, the euro sign, arrows, trademark signs, styled letters and all emoji: 2 ## Why every link counts as 23 characters X wraps every link in its own short [t.co address](https://help.x.com/en/using-x/url-shortener), which has a fixed length. So every link costs the same 23, whatever you paste. - Tracking parameters are free. The link costs 23 either way. - Shortening a link yourself saves nothing. - Even a.io takes 23 of a short post's 280. - Email addresses are not links. They count letter by letter. ## Characters that count more than they look Each number is calculated live with the same code as the counter. - 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦: ### A family emoji: Seven code points, one emoji, so it costs 2. 2 1 seen - 🇯🇵: ### A flag: Two regional letters shown as one flag: 2. 2 1 seen - ありがとう: ### Japanese: Five characters, ten counted. 10 5 seen - Wait…: ### The ellipsis: The single … character weighs 2. Three full stops weigh 3. 6 5 seen - a.io: ### A tiny link: Four characters on screen, 23 counted. 23 4 seen - 𝐁𝐨𝐥𝐝: ### Styled letters: Unicode bold letters count double. 8 4 seen - café: ### Accents typed two ways: X normalizes first, so both forms count as 4. 4 4 seen - 감사합니다: ### Korean: Every Hangul syllable weighs 2. 10 5 seen - नमस्ते: ### Hindi: Light range: each of the six code points counts once. 6 3 seen - Done. ↵ ↵ Next. ### A blank line: Two line breaks, 1 each. 12 12 seen - • €5: ### Bullets and the euro: The bullet and the euro sign weigh 2 each. 6 4 seen - https://example.com/blog/2026/09/how-we-cut-cold-starts-in-half?ref=newsletter: ### A huge link: Over seventy characters on screen, still 23. 23 78 seen ## How to shorten a post that is over 280 characters Two drafts that ran over, and what brought them back. ### The launch post that ran over Emoji, the ellipsis and the arrows cost 2 each. Cutting them saved more than shortening the link could. ### A bilingual announcement Japanese fills the post twice as fast. Saying less in each language brought it back under 280. ## X character limits at a glance Each limit links to X's own documentation. For profiles, use the [X bio checker](https://kairopost.com/tools/x-bio-checker) . - 280: ### Standard post: Weighted count: [Source](https://docs.x.com/fundamentals/counting-characters) - 25,000: ### Premium post: Subscribers only: [Source](https://help.x.com/en/using-x/x-premium) - 160: ### Bio: Under your name: [Source](https://help.x.com/en/managing-your-account/how-to-customize-your-profile) - 50: ### Display name: Above your handle: [Source](https://help.x.com/en/managing-your-account/change-x-handle) - 15: ### Username: Letters, numbers, _: [Source](https://help.x.com/en/managing-your-account/change-x-handle) - 1,000: ### Image description: The ALT button: [Source](https://help.x.com/en/using-x/write-image-descriptions) ## Counting built into the composer Kairo Post weighs every draft the same way, live. A post over the limit is stopped before it publishes or spends a credit, and a long draft becomes a thread in one step. See the [publishing feature](https://kairopost.com/features/publishing). ## Questions about the X character limit More writing helpers are in the [tools library](https://kairopost.com/tools). ### What is the character limit on X? A standard post can be up to 280 characters as X counts them. Premium subscribers can write posts of up to 25,000. Links always count as 23, and emoji and many scripts count as 2. ### Why does X say my post is too long when my word processor says it fits? Word processors count every character once. X counts emoji, Chinese, Japanese and Korean, bullets, the ellipsis and the euro sign as 2, and every link as 23. A few of those push a post past 280. ### Do spaces and line breaks count on X? Yes. Each space and each line break counts as 1. A blank line between paragraphs is two line breaks, so it costs 2. ### How many characters does a link use in an X post? Every link counts as 23, however short or long, because X replaces it with a t.co link. Shortening a link saves nothing. ### Do emoji count as two characters on X? Yes. Every emoji counts as 2, including emoji built from several code points such as families, skin tones, flags and keycaps. ### Do @mentions and hashtags count toward the limit? Hashtags and mentions you type count like any other text. The mentions X adds automatically at the start of a reply do not count, according to X's developer documentation. ### Is this counter exactly the same as X's composer? It follows the rules X publishes for developers. Link detection for addresses typed without https can differ in rare cases, so leave a few characters of room at the limit. ### Is my text sent anywhere? No. The counter runs entirely in your browser, with no sign up and no cost. Nothing you type is uploaded, stored or logged. Written by Jonas Ben , founder of Kairo Post. Updated 30 September 2026 . ## More tools [All tools](https://kairopost.com/tools) - [Thread splitter Turn long text into a clean, numbered thread.](https://kairopost.com/tools/x-thread-splitter) - [AI phrase checker Spot the phrases that make writing sound machine made.](https://kairopost.com/tools/ai-phrase-checker) - [Hook grader Score your opening line against a clear checklist.](https://kairopost.com/tools/hook-grader) ## Post at the right moment. Starting today. Connect an account, describe your voice and let Kairo Post do the legwork. [Get started](https://app.kairopost.com/signup) [See pricing](https://kairopost.com/pricing)