How to shorten a post to fit 280 characters on X

You've written the post, and the counter turns red at 312. You need to lose 32 characters without losing the reason you wrote it.

Here's the order that works, with the cheapest cuts first. Paste the draft into the Twittermeter post meter as you go; the weighted count updates as you edit, so you can see what each cut buys.

How does X count the 280 characters?

X weighs characters: most Latin letters, digits and punctuation count as 1, emoji and Chinese, Japanese and Korean characters count as 2, and every link counts as 23.

That means a plain character counter can be off in both directions. A post with five emoji costs five more than it looks. A 90-character URL costs only 23. Spaces and line breaks count as one each. Our guide on how X counts characters covers the rules in detail.

Knowing the weights tells you where the expensive parts of a draft are before you start cutting words.

What should you cut first?

Cut the warm-up first: anything before your main point is usually the biggest and least useful block of characters.

Drafts often open with a run-up:

So, after a lot of feedback from all of you over the last few months, we're happy to finally share that dark mode is now available in the app.

That's 146 characters, and the news is in the last nine words. Try:

Dark mode is now in the app. Thanks to everyone who asked for it.

64 characters, same news, plus the thanks. You've saved more than 80 characters with one cut, and the post reads better because the point comes first.

Which words and phrases can go?

Remove filler phrases, swap long phrases for single words, and drop words the reader can supply.

Also look for words that repeat what the context already says. "New update now available" can be "Update out now". "Click the link below to read more" can usually be just the link.

Contractions help too. "We are" to "we're" saves a character, "do not" to "don't" saves one. They add up across a post, and they sound more natural.

Are emoji and special characters costing you?

Yes. Each emoji counts as two characters, and styled "bold" or "italic" letters copied from Unicode generators also cost two each.

A sign-off like "🎉🙌✨" costs six characters. A phrase written in Unicode bold letters costs about double its plain length, and screen readers often can't read it. If you're a few characters over, replacing three decorative emoji with one, or turning styled text back into plain letters, may be all you need.

Under X's current counting rules, an emoji built from several parts, such as a skin-tone or family emoji, still counts as two. The meter follows the same rule, so you can check any emoji you're unsure about.

What about hashtags, mentions and links?

Keep one or two hashtags at most, drop mentions that aren't part of the story, and keep links, since each one costs a flat 23.

Hashtags are often the first easy cut. Three hashtags of 10 characters each, plus spaces, cost over 30. Our guide on how many hashtags to use explains why one or two usually work better anyway.

Links can't be shortened further by using a link shortener: X counts every link as 23 characters. A bit.ly link and a long URL cost the same.

Should you write numbers as digits?

Yes. Digits are shorter and easier to scan than numbers spelled out.

"Three hundred" is 13 characters; "300" is 3. "Twenty percent" is 14; "20%" is 3. Dates work the same way: "December 8" beats "the eighth of December". On a phone, digits also catch the eye in a feed full of words.

When should you split the post instead?

If you need to cut more than about a third of the draft, the post probably contains two ideas, so split it.

Signs that a draft wants to be two posts:

1. It has two "and also" moments: an announcement and a request, or a result and a thank-you.
2. The second half would make sense on its own.
3. Cutting it to 280 removes the detail that makes it useful.

Post the main point first. Put the second idea in a reply to yourself, which starts a thread, or post it later the same day. Readers find two clear posts easier than one crammed post.

What's a quick routine for shortening any draft?

Lead with the point, cut filler, simplify decoration, then split if it's still too long.

1. Delete everything before the main point.
2. Run through the filler table above.
3. Swap words for digits and use contractions.
4. Trim emoji, styled letters and extra hashtags.
5. Check the weighted count in the meter.
6. Still over? Split into two posts.

Most drafts make it under 280 by step 3.

Questions

Twittermeter is independent and not affiliated with X Corp. X changes its limits and features from time to time. If something here doesn't match what you see in the app, X's help center has the final word.