How many words is one page?
A typed page holds about 500 words single spaced and 250 words double spaced, using a 12-point font such as Times New Roman or Arial and 1-inch margins. That is the rule of thumb most teachers and editors use. Paste your text into the word counter to see your exact count.
The rule of thumb
A US Letter page (8.5 × 11 inches) or an A4 page (210 × 297 mm) with 1-inch (2.5 cm) margins leaves a text area of roughly 6.5 × 9 inches. At 12 points, that fits about 46 lines single spaced, with 10 to 12 words per line. The result is the well-known 500 words per page. Double spacing halves the number of lines, so you get about 250 words.
A4 is slightly taller and narrower than Letter; in practice the difference is only a few words per page.
Words per page by font and spacing
Estimates for 1-inch margins, without headings, images or blank lines between paragraphs:
| Font and size | Single | 1.5 | Double |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arial 11 | 550–600 | 400 | 300 |
| Arial 12 | 450–500 | 330 | 250 |
| Calibri 11 | 550–600 | 400 | 300 |
| Times New Roman 12 | 500–550 | 370 | 275 |
| Verdana 10 | 450–500 | 330 | 250 |
Times New Roman is narrower than Arial at the same point size, so more words fit. Verdana is wide. Headings, bullet lists and extra paragraph spacing all take room: a page with three subheadings can easily hold 100 words fewer.
How many pages is my essay?
Divide the word count by the words per page:
| Words | Single spaced | Double spaced |
|---|---|---|
| 250 | ½ page | 1 page |
| 500 | 1 page | 2 pages |
| 1,000 | 2 pages | 4 pages |
| 1,500 | 3 pages | 6 pages |
| 2,000 | 4 pages | 8 pages |
| 5,000 | 10 pages | 20 pages |
Handwritten pages hold far less: count on 200 to 250 words per side of lined paper, depending on your handwriting.
Why assignments ask for words, not pages
A "two-page" essay is easy to stretch with a bigger font, wider margins or generous spacing. A word count is fairer: 1,000 words is 1,000 words in any font. That is why schools, magazines, grant applications and publishers usually set a word limit.
Check whether a limit includes footnotes, references and headings, and whether it is in words or characters. A text of 500 English words is roughly 2,500 to 3,000 characters without spaces. The word counter shows words, characters with and without spaces, sentences and paragraphs.
Words and speaking time
Giving a speech or presentation? Most people speak at 120 to 150 words per minute. A single-spaced page of 500 words takes about 3.5 to 4 minutes to read aloud. For a five-minute speech you need roughly 650 to 750 words, or about three double-spaced pages.
A novel page is a different format: a typical paperback holds 250 to 300 words per page, so an 80,000-word novel runs to roughly 270 to 320 printed pages.
Frequently asked questions
How many words is a page double spaced?
About 250 words at 12 points with 1-inch margins. With Times New Roman it can be closer to 275.
How many pages is 1,000 words?
About 2 pages single spaced or 4 pages double spaced, at 12 points with standard margins.
How many words fit on a handwritten page?
Roughly 200 to 250 words per side of lined paper. Small handwriting fits more.
How do I count words quickly?
Paste your text into the word counter. It shows the word count, characters, sentences, paragraphs and an estimated reading and speaking time. Your text stays in your browser.