Social Media Character Limits 2026 | X, Instagram, YouTube, and More

Ever typed out the perfect social media post only to find it's too long? Knowing the character limits for each platform helps you craft your message efficiently. This article provides a complete reference of character limits across major social media platforms.

Character Limits at a Glance

Platform-by-Platform Details and Tips

X (Twitter)

Character limits:

• Free accounts: 140 characters
• Premium: 25,000 characters
• Each character counts as one (including CJK characters)
• URLs are automatically shortened (counted as 23 characters)

Optimal length: 70–100 characters

Posts in the 70–100 character range tend to get more engagement than those that use the full 140 characters. Leaving room for quote tweets is also a smart strategy.

Instagram

Character limits:

• Caption: 2,200 characters
• Hashtags: up to 30
• Comments: 2,200 characters
• Stories: text stickers have their own limits

Optimal length: 125–150 characters (feed posts)

Instagram captions are truncated after about 125 characters in the feed. Place your most important information at the beginning.

LINE

Character limits:

• Messages: 10,000 characters
• Group name: 20 characters
• Status message: 500 characters
• Timeline posts: 10,000 characters

Optimal length: Keep messages concise

LINE is a messaging app, so overly long messages tend to be ignored. Put key information first.

YouTube

Character limits:

• Video title: 100 characters
• Description: 5,000 characters
• Comments: 10,000 characters

Optimal length: Title under 60 characters, description 200–500 characters

YouTube search results show about 60 characters of a title. Place important keywords at the beginning.

TikTok

Character limits:

• Caption: 4,000 characters
• Bio: 80 characters

Optimal length: 100–150 characters

As a short-video platform, concise captions tend to perform better.

How to Check Your Character Count Efficiently

Check your post length with sakutto's character counter before publishing.

Tips:

• Draft your post, then check the character count
• If you're over the limit, trim unnecessary phrases
• Compare counts with and without spaces and line breaks

Techniques for Saving Characters

When character limits are tight, these techniques help you stay within bounds:

• Cut filler words: Remove unnecessary connectors — a line break often works just as well
• Avoid wordy phrases: "You are able to" → "You can"
• Use abbreviations: Common abbreviations are generally acceptable on social media
• Separate hashtags: On Instagram, you can put hashtags in the first comment instead of the caption
• Shorten URLs: Use URL shorteners on platforms other than X (which auto-shortens)

FAQ

How are emoji counted?

It varies by platform. On X (Twitter), one emoji counts as 2 characters. On Instagram, it counts as 1. Check each platform's specifications for exact counting rules.

How are URLs counted?

On X (Twitter), all URLs count as 23 characters regardless of actual length. On most other platforms, the URL's actual length is counted.

Can I post more than 140 characters on X?

Yes, with X Premium you can post up to 25,000 characters. For free accounts, you can use threads (chained posts) to share longer content.

Do hashtags count toward the character limit?

Yes, on most platforms hashtags are included in the character count. On X (Twitter), the "#" symbol and the text that follows it are all counted.

Summary

Character limits vary widely across social media platforms. Use sakutto's character counter to check your post length before publishing, and you'll never have to rewrite a post because it was too long.