Knowing the word count of a Microsoft Word document is important for meeting essay requirements, blog post lengths, book publishing standards, and more. Microsoft Word has several easy ways to see and display the word count.
View Word Count on the Status Bar
The quickest way to see the word count is on the status bar at the bottom of the Word window.
To view the word count on the status bar:
- Open your Word document
- Look at the bottom left corner of the window
- The total word count is displayed in the status bar
If you don’t see the word count on the status bar:
- Right-click the status bar
- Click Word Count to add a checkmark next to it
- The word count will now display
You can also click the word count in the status bar to open a pop-up with more statistics like character count, paragraph count, and more.
Open the Word Count Dialog Box
For more detailed statistics, you can open the Word Count dialog box.
To open the Word Count dialog box:
- Click the Review tab
- In the Proofing group, click Word Count
- A pop-up will open with word count, character count, paragraph count, line count and more
You can also use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Shift + G to quickly open the Word Count dialog box.
View Word Count for Selected Text
To see the word count for only a portion of text:
- Highlight the text you want to count words for
- The status bar will display the count just for the selected text
This allows you to see the length of specific sections. You can press Ctrl to select multiple portions of text and view the total count.
Insert Word Count Into Your Document
You can insert the total word count into the body text of your document if needed.
To insert the word count:
- Click where you want the word count placed
- On the Insert tab click Quick Parts > Field
- Select NumWords from the list and click OK
The live word count will be inserted. Right-click and select Update Field to refresh it.
Check Word Count in Word Online and Mobile Apps
The Word Online web app and Word mobile apps for iOS and Android also have word count capabilities:
- Word Online – Word count in status bar or Review tab
- iOS – Tap the … icon and go to Review > Word Count
- Android – Tap the arrow icon in bottom right and tap Word Count
So whether using Word on your desktop, web browser, phone or tablet, you can easily access the handy word counting feature.
Why Word Count is Useful
Here are some examples of why viewing the word count is useful:
- Meeting essay requirements – Ensure papers and assignments reach the required length
- Optimizing blog posts – Compare content against top performing competitors
- Hitting book length – Track manuscript progress when writing a book
- Website content – Create content within best practices for webpage length
Tips for Using Word Count
- Update your word count style to display as you type for real-time feedback
- Use keyboard shortcuts to quickly open the dialog box
- Customize the status bar to add character count and line count if desired
- Check word count on mobile apps when writing on the go
Knowing your Microsoft Word document length is vital for all kinds of projects. Use the various display options in Word desktop, Word Online, and the Word mobile apps to easily track word count and writing progress.
