Guides · 2026-05-23
Social Media Character Limits: The 2026 Cheat Sheet
Every major platform's character and word limits in one place — plus a free counter to check your post before you publish.
Nothing's worse than crafting the perfect caption only to have it cut off mid-sentence. Every platform enforces its own limits, and they change often. Here's an up-to-date reference — plus an easy way to check your text before you hit publish.
Character limits by platform
- X (Twitter): 280 characters for standard accounts (more for premium).
- Instagram caption: up to 2,200 characters; only the first ~125 show before "more".
- Instagram bio: 150 characters.
- Facebook post: very high (63,206), but posts under ~80 characters get more engagement.
- LinkedIn post: 3,000 characters; about 140 show before "see more".
- LinkedIn headline: 220 characters.
- YouTube title: 100 characters; description up to 5,000.
- TikTok caption: 2,200 characters.
- Meta description (SEO): aim for ~155 characters so it isn't truncated in search.
The "first line" rule
Notice how many platforms show only the first 80–140 characters before a "more" link. That opening is your hook — front-load the most compelling part of your message so people tap to expand. Treat the visible portion as a headline, not a warm-up.
Check before you post
- Paste your caption into the free Word Counter.
- Watch the live character count as you edit.
- Trim until you're comfortably under the platform's limit — and under the "more" cutoff if you want the whole message visible.
The counter also shows words, sentences, and reading time, which is handy for blog intros, email subject lines, and ad copy where length affects performance.