Social Character Counter - Multi-Platform Limit Checker

How to use this tool

1. Type or paste your post. Enter your caption or tweet text in the editor.
2. Review the platform bars. Each platform shows a coloured remaining-count badge.
3. Edit to fit. Trim your text until all target platforms show green.

Draft one caption and compare its length across ten social platforms before you post. Counts update as you type, so you can see where a post fits and where it needs trimming. The cards expose each platform's remaining allowance and flag a post that has passed its listed limit.

Platform character limits at a glance

Limits depend on the platform and sometimes on the post format. The TikTok card represents the video caption field in TikTok's Content Posting API; the native app and photo posts can use different fields or allowances.

• X / Twitter: 280 characters (URLs count as 23).
• Instagram caption: 2,200 characters.
• LinkedIn post: 3,000 characters.
• Facebook post: 63,206 characters.
• YouTube description: 5,000 characters.
• TikTok video caption: 2,200 UTF-16 units in the posting API.
• Pinterest pin: 500 characters.
• Threads: 500 characters.
• Bluesky: 300 characters.
• Mastodon: 500 characters (server default; may vary).

Twitter URL counting

X routes links through t.co, so a recognized URL counts as 23 characters regardless of its original length. The counter applies that fixed weight automatically. Its local URL matcher targets web addresses beginning with http:// or https://; unusual punctuation around a link can be interpreted differently by X's own composer. See X's link-counting help for the platform rule.

Optimal post length by platform

Maximum limits describe what a platform accepts, not what readers will finish. The ranges below are commonly cited engagement guidance, not guarantees: topic, audience, and format all affect performance. Use them as a starting point when editing a campaign caption, then compare the draft with your own engagement data.

How X weights characters and emoji

X does not count every visible symbol as one. Its published v3 counting configuration assigns weight 1 to common Latin characters and selected punctuation, and weight 2 to most other code points. Recognized emoji sequences, including family emoji joined with zero-width joiners, count as a single emoji unit with weight 2. Common CJK characters therefore use weight 2 each. The X card applies these weights and the 23-character URL substitution; see the twitter-text v3 configuration for the published ranges.

The Characters statistic and non-X cards use Unicode code points, while the TikTok video caption card uses UTF-16 units because that is the unit named by TikTok's documented 2,200 character API field. For example, a single 😀 is one code point, two UTF-16 units, and two weighted X units. This difference matters when text includes emoji or characters outside the Basic Multilingual Plane.

Hashtags, mentions, and platform differences

Hashtags and mentions are part of the post text and use the same count rule as other characters. The statistics strip counts words, lines, hashtags, mentions, links, and emoji clusters to help you edit a draft; these summary values do not change a platform's limit. The Bluesky card currently uses code points, so grapheme clusters may not match the number shown in Bluesky's composer. Mastodon limits can also vary by server.

TikTok's current developer documentation sets video captions to a maximum of 2,200 UTF-16 units. Photo posts have separate title and description fields, documented at 90 and 4,000 UTF-16 units respectively; this tool does not split a photo post into those fields. These API values were checked in September 2026, and the native app may offer different limits by account, version, or post type.