counter-word

YouTube title & description character counter

Titles cap at 100 characters but truncate near 60 in most places they appear. Descriptions allow 5,000, with about 150 visible before “show more”.

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Numbers appear here once you add text.

Title: 100 allowed, 60 usable

YouTube permits 100 characters in a title, but search results, suggested videos and mobile home feeds all cut it much shorter — commonly around 60 characters, and less on narrow screens.

Front-load the subject. A title whose meaning depends on its final words will be meaningless wherever it is truncated.

Description: 5,000 allowed, 150 visible

The first two or three lines appear above the fold and are the only part most viewers see. Put the summary and the single most important link there.

The remaining space is useful for chapters, timestamps, credits and secondary links. Chapter timestamps in particular produce a segmented progress bar and are one of the few description elements with a visible interface effect.

Limits for every other platform are collected under social media character counters.

Emoji count as two characters in both titles and descriptions. In titles they also consume visual width, which brings the truncation point forward well before the 100-character ceiling.

Common questions

What is the YouTube title character limit?

100 characters. In practice, keep titles under 60 so they survive truncation in search results and on mobile.

How long can a YouTube description be?

5,000 characters. Only around the first 150 are visible before viewers must click “show more”.

Other platform limits