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EPUB Word Count
Drop in any EPUB and get the full picture: word count, character count, chapters, images and an estimated reading time. Chinese, Japanese and Korean text is counted per character, Western text per word — the convention translators and publishers quote by. Everything is counted locally in your browser; the file never leaves your device.
01Select your EPUB
How to count words in an EPUB
Select your EPUB file
Open the book from your device. Nothing is uploaded — the file is read in your browser.
Get the full statistics
Words, characters, chapters, images and estimated reading time appear in seconds, even for large books.
Use the numbers anywhere
Quote the count in a translation bid, a royalty report or a reading plan — no watermark, no signup.
How words are counted
Western languages (English, German, French, Russian and other space-separated scripts) are counted as words: "don't" and "e-reader" count as one word each. Chinese, Japanese and Korean text is counted per character, which is how word counts are quoted for CJK books — a 300,000-character Chinese novel shows as 300,000.
The table of contents document is excluded: nav pages are navigation, not content, and counting them would inflate the total. If you need the character count with whitespace included, keep in mind the shown figure strips all whitespace.
Reading time estimates
Reading time uses 238 words per minute for Western text — the average adult silent-reading rate from reading-rate research — and 350 characters per minute for CJK text. A 95,000-word English novel comes out to roughly 7 hours.
Frequently asked questions
Is this EPUB word counter really free?
Yes. No accounts, no watermarking, no daily limits. The counting happens on your device, so there is no server cost to pass on to you.
Is my EPUB uploaded to a server?
No. The file is parsed entirely in your browser — you can verify it yourself: open your browser's network panel while counting, and you will see zero upload requests. This matters for unpublished manuscripts.
How do you count Chinese, Japanese or Korean books?
Per character, which is the standard convention for CJK publishing. A Chinese book described as "30万字" will show 300,000. Mixed-language books count Western words and CJK characters separately, then add both.
Why does another tool show a different word count?
Tools differ on what they include: table-of-contents text, HTML tags, hidden accessibility labels or whitespace. This counter skips the TOC document and all markup, counting only readable chapter text — the number a translator or editor would bill by.
How is reading time calculated?
At 238 words per minute for Western languages and 350 characters per minute for Chinese, Japanese and Korean — averages from adult silent-reading research. Your own speed may be faster or slower.
Can it count a DRM-protected EPUB?
No. DRM-encrypted books cannot be opened by any browser tool. If you have a legally purchased book, use the retailer's own app to read it.