CalcWhenSentence Counter
The text “The train was late. Nobody minded, because the platform cafe made excellent tea, the announcements were honest, and the rain had finally stopped.” contains 2 sentences — the second one runs 19 words, which the panel below would flag as its longest.
How it works
Paste your text and get the sentence count, the average sentence length, and the longest sentence in the piece. Those three numbers diagnose most dense writing: when the average creeps past about 20 words, readers start re-reading; when one sentence runs to 60, it is usually two sentences wearing a trench coat.
Teachers use it to check paragraph assignments; speakers use it because long sentences are hard to say in one breath; editors use it to find the sentence that needs splitting before a reader trips on it.
The method
Text is split at sentence-ending punctuation (. ! ?), and fragments containing at least one word character count as sentences — so a final fragment without terminal punctuation still counts. Averages divide total words by the sentence count.
Frequently asked questions
What counts as a sentence?
Any stretch of text ending in ., ! or ? — plus a trailing fragment with words in it, even without punctuation. Abbreviations like “Dr.” can inflate the count slightly, which is a known trade-off of the simple rule.
What is a good average sentence length?
For general readers, roughly 14–20 words. Academic and legal writing runs longer; writing for the web usually reads best shorter. The number is a diagnostic, not a grade.
Does it count questions and exclamations?
Yes — ? and ! end sentences exactly like a full stop.