Social Media Character Limits in 2026
Updated 19 August 2026 · 7 min read
Every platform counts differently, truncates at a different point, and moves the goalposts without announcing it. This is a current reference for the limits that matter in 2026 — including the distinction almost every other list gets wrong, which is the gap between the maximum a platform accepts and the much smaller amount it actually shows before cutting your text off.
The complete reference table
The column that matters most is the third one. Hitting the maximum is rarely the problem; being truncated at 125 characters when you wrote 2,200 is.
| Platform | Field | Maximum | Visible before cut |
|---|---|---|---|
| X (Twitter) | Post | 280 | All 280 |
| X Premium | Post | 25,000 | ~280, then Show more |
| Caption | 2,200 | 125 | |
| Bio | 150 | All 150 | |
| Post | 63,206 | ~477 | |
| Post | 3,000 | ~210 | |
| Headline | 220 | ~60 in search | |
| TikTok | Caption | 2,200 | ~100 |
| YouTube | Title | 100 | ~70 |
| YouTube | Description | 5,000 | ~157 |
| Pin description | 500 | ~50 | |
| Threads | Post | 500 | All 500 |
| Bluesky | Post | 300 | All 300 |
| Mastodon | Post | 500 (server default) | All 500 |
| Title | 300 | All 300 | |
| Text post | 40,000 | Collapsed after ~400 | |
| Status | 700 | All 700 | |
| Discord | Message | 2,000 (4,000 Nitro) | All |
Search and email limits
These are not enforced by any character counter — the platform accepts more and simply truncates the display, which is why so many search results end in an ellipsis mid-sentence.
| Field | Practical limit | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Google title tag | ~60 characters | Measured in pixels (about 580px), not characters. Wide letters cut sooner. |
| Google meta description | ~160 characters | About 105 on mobile. Google rewrites it more often than not. |
| Email subject line | ~60 characters | Mobile clients commonly show only 35 to 40. |
| Email preheader | ~100 characters | Shown next to the subject in most inboxes. |
| SMS (single segment) | 160 characters | Drops to 70 if any non-GSM character is used. |
| Push notification | ~40 title, ~120 body | Varies by operating system and device. |
Three counting rules that catch people out
1. Links are usually a fixed cost
On X, every URL counts as exactly 23 characters no matter how long it is, because links are automatically wrapped. A 200-character tracking URL costs you 23. This means URL shorteners save you nothing on X — they only make the link less trustworthy to click.
2. Emoji can cost more than one character
A simple emoji is one character to most counters. Compound emoji built from several joined code points — many family, profession and skin-tone variants — can consume anywhere from two to eleven. Platforms that count in UTF-16 code units rather than visible glyphs will see a much longer string than you do.
3. Line breaks are characters too
Every newline counts, and heavily formatted posts with blank lines between paragraphs can spend 20 to 30 characters on whitespace alone. On a 280-character platform that is a full sentence given away to formatting.
Writing to a limit without sounding clipped
Cutting to length is an editing problem, not a counting problem. In order of how much space they free up: delete the throat-clearing opener, because posts almost never need a preamble; replace phrases with single words, so in order to becomes to; cut qualifiers such as very, really and just, which almost always weaken the sentence; and move supporting detail into a reply or a second slide rather than compressing it into unreadable shorthand.
What not to do is strip vowels or abbreviate aggressively to squeeze under a limit. It reads as low effort, and on most platforms it measurably reduces engagement.
Frequently asked questions
How many characters is a tweet in 2026?
280 for standard accounts. X Premium subscribers can post up to 25,000 characters, but only the first ~280 show in the timeline before a Show more link, so the practical limit is unchanged for anything you want read at a glance.
Why does my Instagram caption get cut off?
The maximum is 2,200 characters but only about 125 display in the feed before the more link. Front-load the important part in that first line.
Do spaces count as characters?
Yes, on every platform listed here. Spaces, line breaks and punctuation all count toward the limit, which is why a well-formatted post costs more than its word count suggests.
Do hashtags count toward the limit?
Yes, in full including the # symbol. On short-limit platforms a handful of long hashtags can consume a fifth of your available space.