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Facebook Ads Character Counter

Paste your primary text, headline and link description and see exactly where each one gets truncated - Feed, Stories, Reels and carousel - with a live “See more” preview. Free, no signup, nothing stored.

0 / 125 rec

The body copy above the creative. Feed shows about 125 characters, then "… See more". Technical max ~3,000 characters.

0 / 40 rec

The bold line under the creative. Mobile Feed can clip it around 27. Technical max ~255 characters.

0 / 30 rec

Link description shows on Feed link ads; recommended ~30 characters. Technical max ~30 characters.

Live truncation preview

A generic ad mock - see exactly where Feed clips your copy as you type. Nothing is uploaded.

Your Brand

Sponsored

Your primary text shows here, then Meta collapses the rest behind “… See more”.
Your creative (4:5)

Your headline

Paste your ad copy above to see where each field gets clipped, per placement.

Meta ad character limits (2026)

Recommended lengths are where Meta starts truncating; the technical maximum is the hard ceiling before a field is rejected or force-trimmed.

Facebook and Meta ad character limits by field, 2026
FieldRecommendedTechnical maxWhere it clips
Primary text1253,000"… See more" in Feed after ~125 characters
Headline40 (~27 on mobile)255Mobile Feed clips the headline near ~27
Link description30 (20 carousel / in-stream)~30Hidden on Instagram Feed; absent in Stories & Reels

This text repeats across every ad in a bulk launch

When you launch a creative test, the same primary text, headline and description are applied to every ad and every ad set in the launch. One line that overflows here overflows in all of them - and you cannot eyeball 50 ads in Ads Manager. uplads renders the Feed “See more” clamp in its launch preview so you can spot it, but it does not count characters or rewrite copy for you. That check is this page, before the launch. uplads also accepts up to 5 primary-text and 5 headline variants per launch, so trim each variant here first.

How to use it

How to use this Facebook ads character counter

Four moves, all in the browser - nothing is uploaded.

  1. 1

    Paste each field separately

    Primary text, headline and link description each get their own box and their own live count.

  2. 2

    Watch the bar and the preview

    The meter turns amber then red past the recommended limit, and the mock ad shows which words fall behind the “See more” fold.

  3. 3

    Switch the placement

    Toggle Feed, Stories and Reels to load each one’s real limits - Feed clips at the fold, Stories and Reels overlay copy on the creative.

  4. 4

    Set the ad format

    Single, carousel or collection loads the right link-description limit, and the per-placement table gives a verdict for every field.

Reference

Facebook ad character limits in 2026

Three fields, three separate limits. The recommended length is where Meta starts truncating; the technical maximum is the hard ceiling.

Facebook and Meta ad character limits by field, 2026.
FieldRecommendedTechnical maxWhere it clips
Primary text1253,000“… See more” in Feed after ~125 characters
Headline40 (~27 on mobile)255Mobile Feed clips near ~27 characters
Link description30 (20 carousel / in-stream)~30Hidden on Instagram Feed; absent in Stories & Reels

Recommended length vs the technical maximum

⚡Write to the recommended length, not the maximum

A 600-character primary text is valid - Meta accepts it - but on a phone the reader sees ~125 characters and a “See more” link. Treat the recommended limit as your real budget and the maximum as a ceiling you never need.

Front-load the hook, the offer and the reason to act into the first 125 characters of the primary text and the first 27 of the headline. That is what survives on mobile, where most impressions happen.

Why limits change by placement

The same three fields are poured into every placement, and each has a different shape - which is why one global count can’t tell you what gets cut.

📰

Facebook Feed

The most forgiving placement, and the only one that reliably shows the link description.

📷

Instagram Feed

Hides the link description entirely - write the ad so it stands without it.

📱

Stories & Reels

Primary text overlays the creative behind the profile row and CTA, so only the first line reliably reads. No link description at all.

🎠

Carousel & in-stream

Squeeze the link description to about 20 characters, so keep it to one short benefit.

What truncation actually costs you

Truncation doesn’t get your ad rejected - it gets it weakened, and nothing tells you. The ad still spends, just on a version where the headline stops mid-word. A complete, scannable message earns the early engagement that lowers cost; a clipped one quietly underperforms. Checking the count before launch is the cheapest copy fix there is.

Why character counts are really a bulk-launch problem

Counting one ad is trivial; the cost shows up at volume. A weekly test is five concepts times three copy variants across several ad sets - and a bulk launch applies the same text to every ad, so one overlong headline is forty truncated ads. uplads renders the Feed “See more” clamp in its launch preview but deliberately won’t count or rewrite copy - that’s your call, here, before launch. Trim every variant against the limits, name them with the naming convention generator, and follow the creative testing guide for the workflow around it.

Keep the whole ad placement-correct

Aspect ratio checkerConfirm every cut fits its placement.Naming convention generatorConsistent, sortable names for every variant.UTM builderTag every ad so GA4 sees the click.

Frequently asked questions

What is the character limit for a Facebook ad?
There are three separate fields, each with its own limit. Meta recommends about 125 characters for the primary text (the body copy above the creative), about 40 characters for the headline, and about 30 characters for the link description (20 on carousel and in-stream). Those are the recommended lengths - the points where the text starts getting clipped in feed. The technical maximums are much higher (roughly 3,000 characters for primary text and 255 for the headline), but writing to the technical maximum means most of the ad copy is hidden behind a 'See more' tap.
Does the Facebook ad character count include spaces?
Yes. Every character counts toward the limit - letters, numbers, spaces, line breaks, punctuation and emoji. An emoji often counts as two characters because of how it is encoded. This counter counts exactly what Meta counts, so the number you see is the number that decides whether your copy gets truncated.
What is the recommended primary text length for Facebook ads?
About 125 characters. Facebook and Instagram Feed show roughly the first 125 characters of the primary text and then collapse the rest behind a '… See more' link that most people never tap. You can write more - the field accepts thousands of characters - but the hook, the offer and the reason to click should all live inside the first 125 so they survive the fold on mobile devices.
What is the Facebook ad headline character limit?
The headline recommended length is about 40 characters, and the technical maximum is 255. On mobile Feed the visible headline is often closer to 27 characters before it truncates, so a 40-character headline can still get clipped on a phone. Carousel cards and in-stream placements give the headline even less room. Keep the headline to a single, scannable benefit.
Do Facebook ad character limits change by placement?
Yes, and that is the main reason a single global counter is not enough. Feed gives you the most text room and shows the link description. Instagram Feed hides the link description entirely. Stories and Reels overlay the primary text on the creative where it competes with the interface, so only the first line reliably reads, and there is no link description at all. Carousel and in-stream cut the link description to about 20 characters. The checker above shows a verdict for each field in each placement so you are not guessing.
Is there a free Facebook ads character counter?
Yes. This one is free, needs no signup or email, and runs entirely in your browser - nothing you type is sent or stored. Unlike a generic social-post counter, it counts the three Facebook ad fields separately, applies the per-placement limits for Feed, Stories, Reels and carousel, and shows a live 'See more' preview so you can see exactly what gets cut before you build the ad.

Trimmed copy in, clean bulk launch out

Every variant cleared its limits - now applying that copy across a 50-ad test by hand is the slow part. uplads pushes your primary text, headline and description to every ad and ad set in one launch, with up to five variants Meta optimizes.

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