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Analysis

College Essay Word & Character Counter

Instant word, character, sentence, and paragraph count with Common App, UC PIQ, and supplemental limits built in. No signup, no AI, no limits.

Words

0

Characters

0

0 without spaces

Sentences

0

Read time

1 min

0 paragraphs

Common college essay limits

Common App personal statement0/650 words
UC Personal Insight Question0/350 words
Stanford short 250s0/250 words
Common App activity description0/150 chars
Common App 'Additional Information'0/650 words
UChicago Uncommon Essay (suggested)0/650 words

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Word Counter FAQ

What's the Common App personal statement word limit?+

650 words. The counter tracks this live, along with UC PIQ (350), Stanford short essays (250), and Common App activity descriptions (150 characters).

Does the word count include the prompt?+

No. When you paste your essay, the counter only counts your response. Don't include the prompt text in your paste.

Can admissions officers tell if I'm one word over?+

Some schools enforce hard caps via their portal. Many do not. Regardless, going noticeably over the limit signals you weren't careful, which matters in an admissions pile.

Is this tool really free?+

Yes. One run per day per IP is free with no signup. Create a free account for a few more runs per day, or upgrade to Pro for unlimited use of every tool plus full essay scoring.

Do you store the essay I paste in?+

No. Inputs are sent to the AI model for this single request and not saved in our database. For logged-in users on the editor, drafts are saved to your account.

How is this different from asking ChatGPT?+

The system prompts are tuned specifically for college admissions essays and locked to produce structured output with guardrails against invention, preserved voice, and formatting constraints (word limits, character limits, etc.).

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