Character counter for every social network.
Paste a caption and see at once whether it fits TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, X, Threads, Bluesky and LinkedIn, counted the way each network counts: X's weighted links and emoji, Bluesky's characters as you see them and where Instagram and LinkedIn cut it off with "more".
Free, no sign-up. Runs in your browser.
-
TikTok video caption0 / 2,200
Up to 2,200 characters.
-
TikTok photo post description0 / 4,000
Up to 4,000 characters.
-
Instagram caption0 / 2,200
Up to 2,200 characters.
-
YouTube title0 / 100
Up to 100 characters.
-
YouTube description0 / 5,000
Up to 5,000 characters.
-
X post0 / 280
Up to 280 weighted characters.
-
Threads post0 / 500
Up to 500 characters.
-
Bluesky post0 / 300
Up to 300 characters.
-
LinkedIn post0 / 3,000
Up to 3,000 characters.
Character limits for every network (2026)
These are the limits a post has to fit when it goes out, including through a scheduler. Sendhour's composer checks the same numbers before it schedules anything.
| Where | Limit | How it counts | Also |
|---|---|---|---|
| TikTok video caption | 2,200 | Characters (an emoji counts as 2) | |
| TikTok photo post description | 4,000 | Characters (an emoji counts as 2) | |
| Instagram caption | 2,200 | Characters (an emoji counts as 2) | About 125 characters show before "more". Up to 5 hashtags (down from 30 in December 2025) |
| YouTube title | 100 | Characters (an emoji counts as 2) | |
| YouTube description | 5,000 | Characters (an emoji counts as 2) | Up to 60 hashtags (more and YouTube ignores them all) |
| X post | 280 | Weighted: links count as 23, emoji and CJK as 2 | X Premium allows up to 25,000. |
| Threads post | 500 | Characters (an emoji counts as 2) | Up to 1 hashtag (Threads calls it a topic tag and uses the first one) |
| Bluesky post | 300 | Characters as you see them (an emoji counts as 1) | |
| LinkedIn post | 3,000 | Characters (an emoji counts as 2) | About 210 characters show before "more" |
Why the same caption gets different counts
Networks don't agree on what a character is. X weighs text: every link counts as 23 characters however long it is, and an emoji or a Chinese, Japanese or Korean character counts as 2. Bluesky counts what you see, so a flag or a family emoji is one character. TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Threads and LinkedIn count the text the way computers store it, so most emoji count as 2 and some combined emoji count as more. The counter above runs each rule separately, which is why one caption can fit one network and still be too long for another.
TikTok: 2,200 or 4,000?
TikTok's own app accepts longer captions than its posting API. Anything posted through the API, which is what scheduling tools use, has to fit 2,200 characters for a video caption, and 4,000 for a photo post's description (its title takes up to 90). If you write one caption for every network, keep it under 2,200 for TikTok videos and Instagram.
Write for the cut-off, not the limit
The limit is rarely the problem. The fold is: Instagram shows roughly the first 125 characters and LinkedIn shows roughly the first 210 characters before "more", and the exact point moves with the screen size. Put the hook and the reason to keep reading before it. The counter shows what readers see before they tap.
One caption, every network
Sendhour posts to TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Threads, Bluesky, X and LinkedIn from one composer. Write the caption once, see each network's count as you type, and change it per network only where you need to.
Good to know.
What is the character limit on TikTok?
A video caption posted through TikTok's API takes up to 2,200 characters and a photo post's description up to 4,000. TikTok's app accepts longer captions, but scheduling tools post through the API, so 2,200 is the safe number for videos.
How many characters can an Instagram caption have?
2,200. Since December 2025 Instagram takes at most 5 hashtags on a post or Reel, down from 30. Only about the first 125 show in the feed before "more".
Why does X count my post as longer than it is?
X counts every link as 23 characters and counts emoji and Chinese, Japanese and Korean characters as 2. The limit is 280 for most accounts and 25,000 with X Premium.
What is the Bluesky character limit?
300 characters, counted the way you see them, so an emoji is one character.
Is my caption sent anywhere?
No. The counting happens in your browser and nothing you type leaves the page.