Small Free Text Tools That Save Me Time in Docs and Code

Wordlyo — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 07:52:31 +0000

I keep a small set of browser text tools open when I write documentation, READMEs, and release notes. None of them need an account, and they all run locally in the browser, which matters when the text is a draft config or an internal note. These are the ones I actually use every week.

Converting case without retyping

Half my case problems are naming conventions. A database column arrives as user_first_name, a JSON key wants userFirstName, and a heading needs Title Case. I paste the string into a case converter and pick snake_case, camelCase, PascalCase, or one of the plain writing cases instead of editing character by character. It is a ten-second fix that used to interrupt my flow every time.

Cleaning pasted lists

Logs, CSV exports, and copied config values always arrive with duplicates. The remove duplicate lines tool takes a pasted list and returns the unique lines in order. I use it before diffing two lists, because a diff full of duplicates tells you nothing.

Checking length before you publish

Docs and posts both have limits that are easy to blow past: a meta description, a README summary, an abstract for a talk. A quick pass through a word counter gives me words, characters, and an estimated reading time, so I can trim before the platform trims for me.

The pattern

None of these tools is complicated, and that is the point. The win is not features, it is that they are already open, they work on pasted text, and nothing leaves the browser. If you write docs or wrangle text files regularly, bookmarking two or three of them pays for itself within a week.

All three tools above are from Wordlyo, a small free tools site I help run. No sign-up, no uploads, everything runs on the page.

I Built a Word Counter That Runs 100% in Your Browser — Here's What I Learned

Wordlyo — Sun, 18 Oct 2026 18:07:39 +0000

I recently built Wordlyo, a free word counter, as part of a small suite of text tools. No backend, no database, no tracking — everything runs in vanilla JavaScript in the browser. It was a small project, but it taught me a few things about text processing that I think are worth sharing.

1. Counting words is trickier than `split(' ')`

The naive approach — text.split(' ').length — breaks on multiple spaces, tabs, newlines, and leading/trailing whitespace. The robust version is boring but correct:

function countWords(text) {
  const words = text.trim().split(/\s+/);
  return text.trim() === '' ? 0 : words.length;
}

\s+ handles spaces, tabs, and newlines in one pass. The empty-string guard matters: ''.trim().split(/\s+/) returns [''], which would count as one phantom word.

2. Real-time counting needs debouncing (or doesn't)

Conventional wisdom says debounce input handlers. But for a word counter, the operation is O(n) on the text length and browsers handle it in well under a millisecond for any realistic paste. I update on every input event with no debounce, and it stays smooth even with 100k+ words. The lesson: measure before you optimize. performance.now() around your handler will tell you the truth in ten seconds.

3. Reading-time estimates are just division

A useful extra: estimated reading time. Average adult reading speed is around 200–250 words per minute. So:

const minutes = wordCount / 225;

Display it as "X min read" and round up. Users love this more than the raw count — it answers "how long will this take me?" instead of "how many tokens are here?"

4. Speaking time is a different constant

For speech scripts, conversational pace is roughly 130–150 words per minute (slower than reading). I added a speaking-time estimate using 140 wpm after writing a companion guide on how many words fit in a 5-minute speech. Same division, different constant, completely different use case — presenters and students.

5. Privacy is a feature you get for free

Because everything runs client-side, there's nothing to leak. No text ever leaves the device. I put "runs entirely in your browser" front and center, and it's the thing users mention most. In an era of cloud-everything, local-first tools feel refreshingly honest — and they're simpler to build and host (it's just static files).

6. Character counting has real-world tables

A character counter becomes ten times more useful with platform limit tables next to it: tweet/X post limits, meta description ranges, SMS segments. Reference data turns a dumb counter into a tool people bookmark.

Takeaway

Small utility projects are underrated learning vehicles. You touch regex, performance measurement, UX copy, and SEO fundamentals — all in a weekend-sized project. If you've been meaning to build something, a text tool is a great start: the problem space is well-defined, the feedback loop is instant, and real people will actually use it.

The full tool is live at wordlyo.com/word-counter if you want to poke at it. Happy building.

DEV Community: Wordlyo