How to Check Word Count in Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word shows the word count in the status bar at the bottom of the window. It updates as you type. Click it to open the Word Count box, which also shows pages, characters, paragraphs and lines.

If you cannot see it, or you need a count for just one part of the document, the steps below cover every case.

How to check word count in Word on Windows

  1. Look at the status bar along the bottom of the Word window. On the left you will see something like “1,250 words”.
  2. Click that number to open the Word Count box.
  3. Read the totals, then click Close.

You can also open the same box from the ribbon: click the Review tab, then Word Count in the Proofing group. On Windows, the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+G opens it too.

These steps follow Microsoft’s help page on word count.

What if the word count is missing from the status bar?

The count can be switched off. To bring it back:

  1. Right-click the status bar at the bottom of the window.
  2. In the list that appears, tick Word Count.

The count appears straight away. This is the most common reason people cannot find it.

How to count words in part of a document

Select the text you want to count with your mouse. The status bar then shows two numbers, such as “120 of 1,250 words”. The first is your selection, the second is the whole document.

To select several parts that are not next to each other, select the first part, then hold Ctrl and select the others.

This is handy when one section has its own limit, such as an abstract, a summary or a single answer on an application form.

How to include footnotes and text boxes

At the bottom of the Word Count box is a tick box called Include textboxes, footnotes and endnotes. It decides whether text in those places is added to the total.

  • Tick it if your limit counts everything on the page.
  • Clear it if your teacher or publisher only counts the main text.

Rules differ a lot here. Some essay limits leave out footnotes and the reference list, and others count every word. Check your assignment or submission rules before you trim.

How to check word count in Word on a Mac

  1. Look at the status bar at the bottom of the window and click the word count.
  2. The Word Count box opens with words, characters, lines and paragraphs.

To count only part of the document, select the text first, then choose Tools in the menu bar at the top of the screen, then Word Count. The Review tab on the ribbon has a Word Count button too.

How to check word count in Word for the web

In the free browser version of Word, the count shows at the bottom of the window while you are editing.

If you cannot see it, you may be in reading view. Click Edit Document, then Edit in Word for the web. To turn the count on or off, go to Review, then Word Count, and tick or clear Show Word Count.

How Word decides what a “word” is

Word mostly treats anything between two spaces as one word. That means:

  • Hyphenated words like “well-known” count as one word.
  • Abbreviations like “U.S.A.” count as one word.
  • Numbers like “2026” or “3.5” count as one word each.

Other tools do not always agree. When we tested the same tricky items in Google Docs, it split “U.S.A.” into three words and “3.5” into two. The full results are in our guide on how to count words in Google Docs. For normal sentences, the counts are almost always the same.

If your teacher or editor checks your work in Word, use the Word number.

Quick answers

  • Where is it? The status bar at the bottom of the window.
  • Full details: click the count, or go to Review, then Word Count.
  • Shortcut on Windows: Ctrl+Shift+G.
  • Missing count: right-click the status bar and tick Word Count.
  • Part of a document: select the text first.
  • Footnotes: use the “Include textboxes, footnotes and endnotes” tick box.

Not using Word right now? Paste any text into our free word counter to see the word count, character count, reading time and speaking time. It works in your browser and does not upload your text. If you are writing to a time limit rather than a word limit, see how many words a 5 minute speech needs.