The limit number alone is not enough
Network character limits are often listed like "X is 280, Instagram is 2,200." In practice, though, what counts as one character differs by network. X counts a Japanese character as 2, and YouTube descriptions are counted in bytes, not characters. Some networks count a URL as a fixed length.
When posting the same text to several networks, "I thought it would fit but it doesn't" or "it got cut off" is usually caused by this difference in counting. First get the overall picture from the list, then look at how each network counts.
Limits of seven networks at a glance
All figures are as of October 2026, confirmed in each company's official help and developer documentation.
| Network | Body limit | How it is counted |
|---|---|---|
| X | 280 (25,000 for Premium) | Japanese character = 2, URL = 23, emoji = 2 |
| Threads | 500 characters | Each visible character = 1 |
| 2,200 characters | Each visible character = 1 | |
| Facebook Page | 63,206 characters | Each visible character = 1 |
| 3,000 characters | Each visible character = 1 | |
| YouTube | Title 100 characters, description 5,000 bytes | Description in bytes (a Japanese character is about 3 bytes) |
| TikTok | Caption 2,200 | In the API documentation, counted in UTF-16 units |
Converted into roughly how many characters fit when writing only in Japanese, X is 140 full-width characters and a YouTube description is about 1,600 characters, much less than the other networks.
X counts by "weight"
According to X's developer documentation "Counting characters", X's limit of 280 is not a number of characters but a total of weights assigned to each character.
| Character | Weight |
|---|---|
| Half-width letters, digits and symbols | 1 |
| Japanese, Chinese and Korean characters | 2 |
| Emoji | 2 (also 2 for emoji combined with skin tones and so on) |
| URL | 23, regardless of length |
So Japanese-only text hits the limit at 140 full-width characters, and mixing in letters and digits lets more fit. A URL counts as 23 however short or long it is, so shortening a URL does not reduce your X character count. Premium raises the limit to 25,000, but long posts are collapsed in the feed.
Threads, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn count visible characters
Threads: 500 characters
A Threads post is 500 characters. In Japanese too, one character is 1, so you can write more than three times what fits in 140 full-width characters on X. Longer text can be attached as a "text attachment" of up to 10,000 characters. A post can have up to 5 links, and one topic (a topic tag) of 1 to 50 characters (Threads basics).
Instagram: 2,200 characters
An Instagram caption can be up to 2,200 characters. But in the feed only the first few lines of the caption are shown, and only people who press "more" read the rest. Hashtags also have a rule: Instagram's help says up to 5 per post. The older advice of "up to 30" is not the current rule (how to use hashtags).
Facebook Page: 63,206 characters
A Facebook Page post can be up to 63,206 characters. You will hardly ever worry about the limit, but whether a post catches attention in the feed comes down to the photo and the opening (Facebook Page basics).
LinkedIn: 3,000 characters
A LinkedIn post can be up to 3,000 characters. That is long enough to explain how a piece of work came about, but long posts are collapsed after two or three lines, so put the key point in the opening (LinkedIn basics).
Video networks count title and description differently
YouTube descriptions are counted in bytes
YouTube's developer documentation "Videos resource" gives a title limit of 100 characters and a description limit of 5,000 bytes, separately. A Japanese character is usually 3 bytes, so a description written entirely in Japanese hits the limit at about 1,600 characters. < and > cannot be used in the title or description either.
TikTok descriptions: 2,200
TikTok's developer documentation "Direct Post API" gives the video caption limit as 2,200 UTF-16 units. An ordinary Japanese character is one unit, but most emoji are two units, so using many emoji reaches the limit a little sooner.
Fields other than the body have limits too
Character limits are not only for the body. These are the limits for fields commonly used in SNS TOWN's composer.
| Field | Limit |
|---|---|
| X poll options | Up to 4, 25 characters each |
| LinkedIn poll options | Up to 4, 30 characters each (separate from the question) |
| Image description (ALT) | 1,000 characters for X, Facebook and others; 200 for LinkedIn |
| Threads topic | One, 1 to 50 characters |
| YouTube title | 100 characters |
An image description is for people who cannot see well to learn what is in the image through a screen reader. You do not need to write up to the limit. One or two sentences saying what the photo shows are enough.
When you post the same text to several networks
Because counting differs, text written to fit X, the strictest, also fits the other networks as it is. Conversely, text that uses all 500 characters of Threads will not fit on X.
| Where you wrote it | When you post it to other networks |
|---|---|
| X, within 140 full-width characters | Fits as is on Threads, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn |
| Threads, 500 characters | Cut it down to fit X |
| Instagram, 2,200 characters | Rewrite to the key points for X and Threads |
But whether text fits and whether it suits that network are different things. Text trimmed for X can look thin on Threads or LinkedIn. The limit is the line for "how much you can write", not a target length. How to think about lengths people actually read is covered in how to write posts people read.
How SNS TOWN's composer counts
SNS TOWN's composer switches how it counts characters to match the network you chose in the header.
- X is counted with the same weights as X (Japanese 2, URL 23, emoji 2). It reads from X whether the connected account is free or Premium and switches the limit between 280 and 25,000. The remaining count is shown in full-width characters, as on X's Japanese screen, and anything over is shown in red and cannot be posted.
- Other than X counts each visible character as 1 and stops at Threads 500, Instagram 2,200, Facebook 63,206, LinkedIn 3,000 and TikTok 2,200. For YouTube, a separate 100-character title field is shown.
Before posting, the pre-post check confirms that nothing is over length and that images or video are attached on networks that need them. When you post the same text to X and Threads with cross-posting, it checks that it fits each network's count before posting.
Frequently asked questions
Is X 140 characters or 280?
The limit is 280, and since a Japanese character counts as 2, Japanese-only text is 140 characters. Letters and digits count as 1, so English-only text fits up to 280 characters.
Does shortening a URL reduce the X character count?
No. X counts a URL as 23 regardless of length. Think of short URLs as something to use when you want to count clicks.
How many characters does an emoji count as?
On X, each one counts as 2. On networks like Threads and Instagram that count a visible character as 1, it is 1. In TikTok's API, most emoji are 2 units.
Why can't I write 5,000 characters in a YouTube description?
YouTube's description limit is 5,000 bytes, not 5,000 characters. A Japanese character is about 3 bytes, so Japanese-only text hits the limit at about 1,600 characters.
How many hashtags can I add on Instagram?
Instagram's help says up to 5 per post. Choosing ones that describe the topic of the post helps people find it more than adding more.
Should I write up to the limit?
The limit is the line for what you can write, not the length people read. Long posts are collapsed in the feed, so on any network, make sure the first two or three lines tell readers what it is about.
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