PDF Word Counter
Count words and characters in a PDF free — get totals plus a per-page breakdown for text-based PDFs. Private, in your browser, nothing uploaded.
About the PDF Word Counter
Find out how many words and characters a PDF contains, with a total and a page-by-page table. The tool reads the document's text layer with pdf.js and counts every word and character, so you can check length against a limit, estimate reading or translation time, or gauge how much content a report holds.
The per-page breakdown makes it easy to see where the bulk of the text sits and to spot near-empty pages. Counts cover words, total characters and characters excluding spaces.
Everything is counted on your device — the PDF is never uploaded. Scanned PDFs have no text layer, so they'll count as zero; use OCR first for those.
How to Use the PDF Word Counter
- 1Upload the PDF you want to measure.
- 2Click Count Words to read the text.
- 3Review the totals and the per-page table.
- 4Use the counts to check length or plan work.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my PDF show zero words?
A zero count means the PDF has no readable text layer — it is almost certainly a scan or image-only document. Run it through an OCR PDF tool to add a text layer, then count again.
How are words counted?
The tool extracts the text from every page and counts runs of non-space characters as words, matching how word processors count. It also reports total characters and characters excluding spaces.
Can I see the count for each page?
Yes. Below the totals, a table lists the word and character count for every page, so you can see how text is distributed across the document.
Is my PDF uploaded?
No. The text is read and counted entirely in your browser with pdf.js, so the file stays private.