App Store Character Counter: Check Every Listing Field Against Its Limit

1. Step 1

   Choose the App Store or Google Play Tab

   The App Store tab has six boxes: App Name, Subtitle, Keywords, Promotional Text, Description and What's New. The Google Play tab has four: App Name, Short Description, Full Description and Release Notes. Each tab keeps its own text while the page is open, so you can switch between the two stores.

2. Step 2

   Type or Paste Into a Box

   The count changes with every key you press. Paste the text exactly as you plan to submit it. Spaces, punctuation and line breaks are all counted, because the stores count them too.

3. Step 3

   Read the Count Beside the Field Name

   Each box shows how much you have used out of the limit and how much is left, for example 21 of 30 characters with 9 left. When you go past the limit the count turns red and tells you how far over you are. The App Name box on the App Store tab also tells you when a name is shorter than the 2 characters Apple requires.

4. Step 4

   Check the Keywords Box in Bytes

   Keywords is the one field the counter measures in bytes, with a limit of 100. Under the box you see how many keywords you entered. The counter warns you about four things: a space next to a comma, a keyword of two characters or fewer, the same keyword listed twice, and a keyword that is already a word in the app name or subtitle you typed in the boxes above.

5. Step 5

   Trim, Then Copy

   Cut the text until the count is back under the limit. Every box has a Copy button, so you can move each field straight into App Store Connect or Play Console.

6. Step 6

   Leave a Small Margin if You Use Emoji

   The counter counts characters the way you see them, so one emoji is one character. Apple does not publish how its own form counts emoji. If a field holds emoji and sits exactly at its limit, cut two or three characters to be safe.

The 30 character name limit is also a review rule: guideline 2.3.7 of Apple's App Review Guidelines says app names must be limited to 30 characters. If you need text for the last row, the app release notes generator writes it from your list of changes.

Google adds that its limits apply to full width and half width characters alike, so a Japanese character and an English letter each count as one. Google Play has no keyword field. In its place you pick up to five tags from Google's own list, as the help page on choosing a category and tags explains.

Text is half of a listing. For the images, use the App Store screenshot size checker or the full table of App Store screenshot sizes.

A quick way to estimate by hand: count the characters, then add 1 for every accented, Cyrillic or Greek letter and 2 for every Chinese, Japanese or Korean character. Apple's product page guidance says to leave special characters such as # or @ out of the keyword list unless they are part of your brand, because they carry no extra weight in search.

The counter flags two character keywords, and in Japanese that catches full words such as 登山 and 地図. It does so because Apple's reference asks for keywords longer than two characters, and the Japanese edition of the same page repeats the rule with no exception. Treat that warning as a prompt to check, since many real Japanese words are two characters long.

• Separate Keywords With Commas and No Spaces

  Apple's guidance is to separate terms with commas and no spaces. A space is still allowed inside a phrase of two words, such as real estate. In a 15 keyword list, a space after every comma costs 14 bytes, which is room for two more keywords.

• Leave Out Words Already in Your Name and Subtitle

  The search guidance says not to repeat words that are in your app name, subtitle or category. The reference gives the reason: the app is already searchable by its name. Type your name and subtitle into the counter first, and it will mark any keyword that repeats a word from them.

• Keep Every Keyword Longer Than Two Characters

  The reference describes the field as one or more keywords, each greater than two characters. Short forms such as ai or tv are worth rethinking, and the counter lists any it finds. It also lists a keyword you entered twice.

• Skip Plurals, Filler Words and the Word App

  Apple lists what wastes the field: the plural of a word you already included, which it treats as a duplicate, generic terms such as app or game, the names of categories, and filler words such as the and to. If you have trail, you do not need trails.

• Stay Away From Other Apps and Trademarks

  Names of other apps or companies are not allowed in the field. Apple's search guidance calls improper keywords a common reason for rejection and names trademarked terms, celebrity names and competing app names. Guideline 2.3.7 of the App Review Guidelines adds that Apple may modify inappropriate keywords at any time.

• Weigh Popular Terms Against Specific Ones

  Apple describes the trade plainly. Popular, functional terms such as jobs or social can bring a lot of traffic but are highly competitive, above all for a newer or smaller app. Less common terms bring less traffic and are easier to rank for. A mix of both usually serves a small app best.

• Write a Separate List for Each Language

  Keywords can be localized, and a new language does not inherit them: Apple's page on localizing app information says a new language takes its properties from the primary language except for the description and keywords. The same page says people can search with your localized keywords in every country or region where the App Store supports that language.

1. Step 1

   Start With the Words Your Users Already Say

   Write down how people describe the app in reviews, support emails and replies to your posts. Those phrases are often closer to real searches than the words in your own pitch.

2. Step 2

   Type Each Candidate Into the App Store Search Field

   On an iPhone, type the start of a word into the App Store search field and note the completions it offers, then look at which apps rank for each one. A completion that keeps appearing is a sign people search for it, and a page of large, famous apps is a sign the term will be hard for a small app.

3. Step 3

   Read Keyword Popularity in Apple Ads

   Apple says the keyword suggestion tool inside an Apple Ads account displays keyword popularity based on App Store searches. It is the only popularity signal that comes from Apple itself, so use it to rank your shortlist.

4. Step 4

   Let Search Match Find Terms You Missed

   If you run a small campaign, Apple describes Search Match as matching your ad to relevant searches using your product page metadata, similar apps in your genre and other search data. Apple suggests running it in an ad group kept for discovery and moving the search terms that perform into your other groups.

5. Step 5

   Check the Recommendations Page After a Few Weeks

   Once campaigns have run for a while, Apple's Recommendations page lists keywords people use in App Store searches for apps like yours. Terms that describe your app and are not yet in your name, subtitle or keyword field are candidates for the next version.

6. Step 6

   Count the Shortlist Here Before You Submit

   Paste the final list into the Keywords box above. It flags repeats of words in your name and subtitle, keywords of two characters or fewer, and anything over 100 bytes. The App Store description generator can draft a first list from a description of your app, and the guide to App Store optimization covers how the fields rank together.

Google Play works without a keyword field. Google's help page on getting discovered on Google Play search says the text in your store listing helps users discover your app, and that ranking also draws on ratings, reviews and downloads. It suggests search best practices in the description while warning against keyword spam.

• In the Counter on This Page

  The count for that box turns red and shows how many characters or bytes you are over. Nothing is cut off, so you can keep editing until the text fits.

• In App Store Connect

  Apple words its limits as hard rules: the name must be no more than 30 characters, the subtitle cannot be longer than 30, and guideline 2.3.7 of the App Review Guidelines repeats the 30 character name limit. Apple's help pages do not describe what the form does with a longer text, so count before you paste.

• In Play Console

  Google's best practices for a store listing say each description field in Play Console contains a counter to help you stay within the limit. The metadata policy states that the app title must be 30 characters or less.

• When the Text Fits but Still Gets Cut

  Fitting the limit does not mean all of it shows. Google's page on getting discovered on Google Play search warns that long titles may be shortened on some devices. On the App Store, only the start of the description is visible before a visitor taps to read the rest. Put the most important words first in every field.

• When the Text Fits but Breaks a Rule

  A field can be the right length and still be rejected. Google's help page on setting up your listing says repetitive or irrelevant keywords in the app name or description can get an app suspended. Apple's guideline 2.3.7 tells developers not to pack metadata with trademarked terms, popular app names or pricing information.

• A Space After Every Comma in the Keyword Field

  It is how people type lists, and each space wastes a byte. In the English example above, 14 spaces pushed a full list 14 bytes over the limit.

• Counting Keywords in Characters When You Write With Accents

  A German list of exactly 100 characters came to 103 bytes in the example above. If your counter says 100 and the field holds umlauts, check the bytes.

• Repeating the App Name in the Keywords

  The name is already searchable. Every word of it that you repeat in the keyword field takes bytes from a word that could have brought new searches.

• Putting Keywords in the Promotional Text

  Apple says promotional text has no effect on search ranking. Use its 170 characters for news a shopper can act on, such as a new feature or a limited time event.

• Stuffing the Description With Search Terms

  Apple's product page guidance says not to add unnecessary keywords to the description. Google's best practices give an example of what to avoid: a row of near identical phrases about car racing, one after another.

• Emoji, All Capitals or the Word Free in a Google Play Title

  The metadata policy bans emoji and emoticons in the title and says to avoid all capital letters unless that is your brand. Google's best practices add that words such as free and no ads promote a deal and do not belong in a title.

• Pasting App Store Release Notes Into Google Play

  What's New on the App Store holds 4,000 characters. Google Play release notes hold 500. A long note pasted across gets cut in the middle of a sentence unless you write a short version first.

• Checking Only the English Text

  Translations often run longer. The English subtitle Track every trail you walk is 26 characters. A direct German translation, Zeichne jeden Weg auf, den du gehst, is 35, which is 5 over the limit. Count every language you ship.

Where two Apple pages disagree, the lower number is the safe one. All rows were read on October 12, 2026. Campaign names in App Store links have a limit of their own, and the App Store campaign link generator is the tool for those.

1. Step 1

   In a Document Editor

   In Google Docs, open the Tools menu and choose Word count. Google's help page on counting words says the box shows both characters and characters without spaces. Use the first number, since the stores count spaces.

2. Step 2

   In the Terminal

   The wc command counts both units. In the POSIX specification for wc, the option wc -m writes the number of characters and wc -c writes the number of bytes. Feed it your keyword list with printf, because echo adds a line break that makes the count one too high.

3. Step 3

   With Arithmetic, for the Keyword Field

   Count the characters, commas included. Add 1 for each accented, Cyrillic or Greek letter. Add 2 for each Chinese, Japanese or Korean character. The total is the size in bytes. The number of keywords is the number of commas plus one.

4. Step 4

   In the Store's Own Form, Last

   Whatever you counted with, the form in App Store Connect or Play Console has the final word. Paste each field there before submission day, so a surprise costs you a minute and not a release.

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