Notepad is the primary text editor on all Windows computers. Even though Windows includes WordPad which is a word processor software with basic formatting options most still use Notepad. You may want to know the word count of your text in Notepad; however, the application doesn’t have any option for the same. In this article, we will help you count words in Notepad.
How to count words in Notepad
Neither Notepad, nor WordPad has any word counter. This means you cannot count words using these two applications. So, to count words in Notepad, use the following workarounds:
- Use Microsoft Word (offline method)
- Use Microsoft Word online
- Use free online word counter tools
- Use free Microsoft Office alternatives
- Use free offline word counter applications
- Use Notepad++
1] Use Microsoft Word (offline method)
If you have a paid subscription of Microsoft Office on your system, then you can use the same for counting words in Notepad. The reason is that Microsoft Word has an in-built word counter. All you need to do is copy the text from the Notepad document to an empty Microsoft Word document.
The word count will be visible even if you don’t save the document.
2] Use Microsoft Word online
The offline version of Microsoft Word is paid. You might not have the paid version on your system. In this case, you can use the free online version of the Microsoft Word application. It is free of cost but needs access to the internet.
The online version of Microsoft Word can be accessed from office.com. Simply copy the text from your Notepad file and paste it there. The word count will be visible even if you don’t save the document.
3] Use free online word counter tools
If you do not wish to create a Microsoft account (which is mandatory for logging into Microsoft Word online), then you can use third-party word counter tools. The most popular word counter tools are online ones. These tools can help you count words free of cost. All you need to do is copy the text from your Notepad document and paste it on the online tools. The major tools available online are as follows:
- wordcounter.io
- wordcounter.tools
- thewordcounter.com
- wordcounter.net
You can also bookmark these websites if you find them useful.
4] Use free Microsoft Office alternatives
Checking word count using online tools each and every time is quite a hassle. However, Microsoft Office is a paid software. In this case, we strongly advise installing free Microsoft Office alternatives on your computer. The text editors of most of these software products have a text editor which can count words.
5] Use free offline word counter applications
A few applications can be downloaded on your computer and used to count words even if your system is offline. You will have to copy the text from the Notepad file and paste it to the word counter tools. A couple of reliable offline word counter tools are as follows:
- Simple Word Counter which can be downloaded from apps.microsoft.com.
- Character Counter – Word Count which can also be download from apps.microsoft.com.
6] Use Notepad++
While WordPad doesn’t have a word counter, Notepad++ which is a popular alternative to Notepad has a word counter. You can use Notepad++ for counting words in a .txt document. Interestingly, even if you create the document itself in Notepad++, it can be saved as .txt file directly.
Read: Difference Between Notepad, WordPad and Word
Why do people use Notepad when WordPad exists?
Notepad and WordPad both are free text editor applications on Windows computers. WordPad has the option to include images and has a lot more functionality. However, Notepad came first, and most documents for codes were written in a manner that they could be read as .txt files. The same goes on to date. You will need Notepad for creating coded files and opening text files associated with a few applications.
Can Notepad ++ count words?
Yes, like Notepad, Notepad++ can also count words. In fact, you do not need to do anything else apart from writing your text in Notepad++ and count the number of words on the go. It displays all the details in the bottom section of your Notepad++ window.
