Social Media Character Limits
Every platform caps how long a post, bio or caption can be, and the numbers differ widely: X allows 280 characters on a free account, Instagram captions allow 2,200, and a single SMS is 160. This table lists the limits that matter for posts, bios, titles and captions, plus the truncation points where text is hidden behind a "more" link.
Two numbers matter for each field and only one is usually published. The hard limit is where the platform stops accepting text. The truncation point is where it stops *showing* text — Instagram hides a caption behind "more" after roughly 125 characters, so a 2,200-character caption is allowed but most of it is never read unless someone taps.
Where both are known, both are listed. Write to the truncation point; use the hard limit as the ceiling.
Posts and captions
16 entriesThe main body of a post. Truncation is where the platform collapses the text.
| Platform | Field | Hard limit | Visible before truncation |
|---|---|---|---|
| X (Twitter) | Post, free account | 280 | All 280 |
| X (Twitter) | Post, Premium | 25,000 | About 280, then "Show more" |
| Caption | 2,200 | About 125 | |
| Comment | 2,200 | About 125 | |
| Post | 3,000 | About 200 on desktop, 140 on mobile | |
| Post | 63,206 | About 480 | |
| TikTok | Caption | 2,200 | About 100 |
| Threads | Post | 500 | All 500 |
| Bluesky | Post | 300 | All 300 |
| Mastodon | Post | 500 by default | Server-configurable |
| Pin description | 500 | About 50 in feed | |
| Post title | 300 | All 300 | |
| Post body | 40,000 | Collapsed past a few lines | |
| Discord | Message, free | 2,000 | All 2,000 |
| Discord | Message, Nitro | 4,000 | All 4,000 |
| Message | 65,536 | Collapsed past about 700 |
Profiles and bios
9 entriesShort fields where the limit is genuinely binding.
| Platform | Field | Hard limit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| X (Twitter) | Bio | 160 | Display name is 50 |
| Bio | 150 | Username is 30 | |
| Headline | 220 | Shown under your name everywhere | |
| About section | 2,600 | Truncates after about 265 | |
| Bio | 101 | Page description is 255 | |
| TikTok | Bio | 80 | One of the tightest anywhere |
| YouTube | Channel description | 1,000 | |
| Profile about | 500 | ||
| Threads | Bio | 150 | Inherited from Instagram |
Video and media
7 entriesTitles and descriptions on video platforms.
| Platform | Field | Hard limit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube | Video title | 100 | About 70 shown in search results |
| YouTube | Video description | 5,000 | About 157 shown before "Show more" |
| YouTube | Shorts title | 100 | Fewer shown on mobile |
| YouTube | Community post | 3,000 | |
| TikTok | Video title overlay | 150 | Distinct from the caption |
| Reels caption | 2,200 | Same as feed captions | |
| Vimeo | Title | 128 |
SMS and messaging
7 entriesThe encoding decides the limit, which is why one emoji can halve your message.
| Standard | Encoding | Per message | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| SMS | GSM-7 | 160 | Plain Latin text, the standard case |
| SMS | GSM-7 concatenated | 153 per part | Longer messages split; each part loses 7 characters to a header |
| SMS | UCS-2 (Unicode) | 70 | Triggered by one emoji or non-GSM character — the message more than halves |
| SMS | UCS-2 concatenated | 67 per part | |
| RCS | Unicode | 8,000 or more | Carrier dependent |
| Push notification | iOS | About 178 shown | No hard limit; the lock screen truncates |
| Push notification | Android | About 240 shown | Varies by launcher |
Notes
- Platforms change these without announcement. The figures were checked in August 2026; verify anything business-critical against the platform's own documentation before relying on it.
- Almost every platform counts characters, not words, and a URL usually counts in full. X is the exception: links count as a fixed 23 characters regardless of their real length.
- Emoji frequently count as more than one character. Most platforms count UTF-16 code units, so an emoji outside the Basic Multilingual Plane counts as two, and a family emoji built from several joined code points can count as eleven or more.
Frequently asked questions
Why does one emoji cut my SMS from 160 characters to 70?
Because it forces the encoding to change. Plain Latin text uses GSM-7, which packs characters into seven bits and fits 160 per message. A single character outside that set — any emoji, and some accented letters — forces UCS-2, which uses sixteen bits per character and fits only 70.
Do links count towards the limit?
On most platforms, yes, at their full length. X is the notable exception: every link counts as 23 characters no matter how long it is, because it is rewritten through the t.co shortener.
How many characters do emoji count as?
Usually more than one. Most platforms count UTF-16 code units, so an emoji above U+FFFF counts as two, and a composite such as a family or a flag counts as the sum of its parts — often eleven or more for a four-person family.
Should I write to the hard limit or the truncation point?
The truncation point, for anything you need people to read. A 2,200-character Instagram caption is permitted, but only the first 125 or so appear before "more", and most people never tap it. Put the point first and use the remaining space for detail.
Are these limits the same on mobile and desktop?
The hard limits are. The truncation points are not — LinkedIn shows roughly 200 characters on desktop and about 140 on mobile, so write to the mobile figure if that is where your audience is.
Related tools
All tools →- Character Counter Count characters with and without spaces, live as you type. In your browser
- Word Counter Count words, sentences and paragraphs while you write. In your browser
- Text Cleaner Strip formatting, smart quotes and invisible characters. In your browser
- Unicode Escape and Unescape Convert characters to \uXXXX escapes and back. In your browser
- Readability Checker Score how hard your writing is to read. In your browser
More reference tables
All references →Last reviewed .