A client asked for 500 characters of copy; do spaces count or not?
Both conventions are in use and there is no single rule every client knows, so the right move is to ask before you write: 500 with spaces or without? The word counter shows both, 'Characters (as read)', which includes spaces, and 'Characters without spaces'. The gap is not small: in a real 216-character product description, 33 of the characters were spaces.
How much difference it makes
We counted texts in the Word and character counter:
- The short Arabic line «مرحبا بكم في متجرنا» (welcome to our shop): 19 characters with spaces, 16 without. Three spaces out of 19.
- An Arabic abaya description of three sentences and 34 words: 216 characters with spaces, 183 without, so spaces are about 15% of the text.
- Its English translation of 44 words: 253 characters with spaces, 210 without. English has more words, so more spaces.
If you write 500 characters with spaces and the client meant without, your text will come up short by dozens of characters. The other way round, you write more than asked and the text may get cut wherever it is published.
How to ask the client clearly
Do not just ask 'Do spaces count?', since they may say yes without thinking. Ask where the text will be used:
- If it is for a field on a website or app with a limit, ask the client to paste some text into that field, or send you a screenshot of its limit message. Fields count what is typed into them, and a space is typed.
- If it is an article or content paid per character, agree the method in writing before you start and mention it on the invoice.
- If the client does not know, propose counting with spaces, since it is the safer choice for any field with a limit, and say so in your message.
What exactly 'without spaces' leaves out
The tool leaves out all whitespace, not just the ordinary space: the non-breaking space that sometimes arrives from Word files, tabs and line breaks. So in a text of several lines, each line break is a character in the first figure and not in the second. Punctuation, digits and emoji stay counted in both.
Tips for writing to an exact limit
- Write first without watching the counter, then paste and adjust. Writing with one eye on the number produces stiff copy.
- If you are a little over, cut weak words before you cut information.
- Doubled spaces add to the with-spaces count without you seeing them. If you are close to the limit, check for them.
Common questions
Is 'Characters (as read)' the same as characters with spaces?
Yes. It counts every character you see, spaces included, and a letter with its diacritics is one character.
Do digits count as characters?
Yes. The number 500 is three characters either way.