How to Check Word Count and Readability in Word

Applies to: Microsoft 365 (Word for Windows, Word for Mac, Word for the web); Word 2021, Word 2019
Article Type: How-To
Last Updated: 2026-07-29

Summary

Word tracks far more than the running word count in the corner of the window. This article covers the full Word Count dialog and what it does and does not include, how to count a selection rather than the whole file, and how to switch on the readability scores Word hides behind a setting — plus what those scores actually mean when you have a 2,000-word policy to hand over by five.

Prerequisites

• Microsoft Word on Windows or Mac. Word count works in Word for the web; readability statistics are desktop-only.
• A document with some text in it. Readability formulas need roughly 100 words before the numbers mean anything.
• No admin rights required.

Instructions

1. Read the Live Word Count in the Status Bar

The count updates as you type, so there is no button to press.

1. Look at the status bar — the thin grey strip along the very bottom of the Word window.
2. On the left you see the page indicator, for example Page 2 of 6, and beside it the running total, for example 1,482 words.
3. If the count is missing, right-click anywhere on the status bar. A menu headed Customize Status Bar opens listing everything Word can display there.
4. Click Word Count. A tick appears beside it and the count appears at the bottom of the window straight away.
5. Click anywhere in the document to close the menu.

Note: The same menu controls Page Number, Line Number, and Character Count. Turning on Character Count is worth it when you are writing to a character limit — a job title field, a meta description, or a message with a hard cap.

2. Open the Word Count Dialog for the Full Breakdown

The status bar gives you one number. The dialog gives you six.

1. Click the word count in the status bar. The Word Count dialog opens in the middle of the window. You can also click Review > Word Count in the Proofing group, or press Ctrl + Shift + G.
2. Read the six values listed: Pages, Words, Characters (no spaces), Characters (with spaces), Paragraphs, and Lines.
3. At the bottom of the dialog is a checkbox reading Include textboxes, footnotes and endnotes. Tick it and every number in the dialog recalculates immediately to include that content.
4. Click Close.

What is counted, and what never is:

Content	Counted?
Body text	Always
Tables	Always
Text boxes, footnotes, endnotes	Only when the checkbox is ticked
Headers and footers	Never
Comments	Never
Text formatted as hidden	Never, while it stays hidden

Note: The dialog is a snapshot, not a live meter. It does not update while it sits open. Close it, make your edits, and open it again for a fresh count.

Tip: If your total is mysteriously short, the missing words are almost always in text boxes — pull quotes, sidebars, and captions built as floating boxes all sit outside the default count.

3. Count Only Part of a Document

Word counts the selection whenever there is one, which is how you check a single chapter, an abstract against a limit, or a body of text without its bibliography.

1. Select the text you want to count.
2. Look at the status bar. The display changes to show both numbers, for example 312 of 1,482 words.
3. Click that display to open the Word Count dialog. Every figure in it now describes the selection alone.

To count sections that are not next to each other — three case studies scattered through a report, for instance:

1. Select the first block of text.
2. Hold Ctrl and drag over each additional block. On a Mac, hold Command.
3. The status bar totals all the selected blocks together.

Verification: Deselect by clicking once in the document. The status bar returns to a single number for the whole file, which confirms the earlier figure was the selection.

4. Turn On Readability Statistics

Word calculates readability scores but hides them behind a setting that is off by default.

1. Click File in the top-left corner, then Options at the bottom of the left-hand menu. The Word Options dialog opens.
2. Click Proofing in the left sidebar.
3. Scroll to the section headed When correcting spelling and grammar in Word.
4. Tick Show readability statistics. It is the last checkbox in that group.
5. If there is a Check grammar with spelling checkbox above it, tick that as well — on older builds the readability option stays greyed out until grammar checking is on.
6. Click OK.

On a Mac, the same setting lives in Word > Settings (labelled Preferences on older versions) > Spelling & Grammar, under the Grammar heading.

Note: Word for the web has no readability statistics. Click Editing > Open in Desktop App at the top right of the browser window to run the check in the full version.

5. Run the Check to See Your Scores

Turning the setting on changes nothing on its own. The statistics appear only when a spelling and grammar check finishes.

1. Press Ctrl + Home to move to the top of the document, so the check covers all of it.
2. Press F7, or click Review > Spelling & Grammar. In current Microsoft 365 builds this opens the Editor pane down the right-hand side.
3. Work through each item Word raises. Click Ignore Once or Ignore All on anything you do not want to change — dismissing an item counts as handling it.
4. Keep going until Word reports the review is finished, with a message along the lines of You're all set! Editor found no more issues.
5. The Readability Statistics dialog opens on top of that message.
6. Read the three groups it lists, then click OK.

Group	What it shows
Counts	Words, Characters, Paragraphs, Sentences
Averages	Sentences per Paragraph, Words per Sentence, Characters per Word
Readability	Passive Sentences percentage, Flesch Reading Ease, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level

Tip: To re-run the check on a document you have already cleared, click File > Options > Proofing and then Recheck Document. Word forgets everything you told it to ignore, so F7 runs the full pass again and the statistics reappear.

6. Read the Scores in Plain Terms

Two numbers do the work. Both are calculated from sentence length and syllable count.

Flesch Reading Ease runs from 0 to 100, and higher means easier.

Score	What it means	Typical example
90–100	Very straightforward	Short instructions, children's writing
60–70	Plain English	News writing, good workplace documents
50–60	Fairly difficult	Detailed policy, technical summaries
30–50	Difficult	Academic writing, dense reports
0–30	Very difficult	Legal contracts, regulatory text

Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level converts the same measurement into a US school year. A score of 9.0 means a ninth-grade reader handles the text without re-reading.

Document	Target Reading Ease	Target Grade Level
Instructions everyone has to follow	60 or above	6–8
Internal policy, process documents	50–60	8–10
Customer-facing email and web copy	60–70	6–9
Technical or specialist reference	40–50	10–12

Passive Sentences is the third number worth watching. Aim below 10 percent. "The report was reviewed by the committee" becomes shorter and clearer as "The committee reviewed the report", and that single habit moves both scores.

Note: These formulas count syllables and sentence lengths. Nothing more. A page of short sentences packed with jargon scores beautifully and still leaves the reader lost. Treat the number as a smoke alarm — worth investigating, not the final verdict.

Tip: The fastest way to lift a poor score is to split long sentences. Search the document for the word and and look at what follows it; roughly half those sentences work better as two.

7. Use the Editor Pane for Clarity and Conciseness

The scores tell you the document is hard work. Editor tells you which sentences are causing it.

1. Click Home > Editor, or Review > Editor. The Editor pane opens on the right with an overall score as a percentage at the top.
2. Under Corrections, work through Spelling and Grammar first.
3. Under Refinements, click Clarity. Word lists sentences it considers wordy or roundabout, with a suggested rewrite under each. Click a suggestion to apply it, or click the arrow beside it and choose Ignore Once.
4. Click Conciseness. This targets padding — "in order to", "at this point in time", "due to the fact that". Each suggestion replaces the phrase with a shorter one.
5. Use the writing style dropdown at the top of the pane — Formal, Professional, or Casual — to control how strict Editor is. Formal raises the most refinements; Casual raises the fewest.
6. Click Editor Settings at the bottom of the pane to switch individual checks on or off. It opens Word Options > Proofing > Grammar & Refinements > Settings, where Clarity, Conciseness, Formality, Punctuation Conventions, and Vocabulary each have their own checkboxes.

Verification: Re-run F7 after working through the refinements. Compare the new Flesch Reading Ease figure against the one you noted earlier — clearing the clarity and conciseness suggestions typically moves it several points.

Troubleshooting

TIP

Ctrl + Shift + G opens the Word Count dialog from anywhere in the document, with no trip to the ribbon or the status bar. It is the shortcut worth keeping when you are writing to a limit.

Symptom / Error	Potential Cause	Solution
No word count on the status bar	The item is switched off	Right-click the status bar and click Word Count in the Customize Status Bar menu.
Readability Statistics never appears	The check did not reach the end	Press Ctrl + Home, press F7, and dismiss or accept every item until Word reports the review is complete. Then the dialog opens.
Show readability statistics is greyed out	Grammar checking is turned off	Tick Check grammar with spelling in the same section of File > Options > Proofing first, then the readability checkbox becomes available.
Word finds no issues at all in a long document	Proofing is switched off for that text	Select all with Ctrl + A, click Review > Language > Set Proofing Language, untick Do not check spelling or grammar, and click OK.
The count is lower than expected	Text boxes and footnotes excluded	Tick Include textboxes, footnotes and endnotes at the bottom of the Word Count dialog.
Scores look absurd on a short document	Not enough text to measure	Readability formulas need roughly 100 words. Below that, one long sentence swings the result wildly.
No readability option in the browser version	Feature is desktop-only	Click Editing > Open in Desktop App, run the check there, and the document saves back to the same location.

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