Choose number of words, font, font-size, and line-spacing.
The overview below provides an indication of the number of pages required (based on font: arial, font size: 12, single spaced):
Welcome to our Convert Words to Pages tool! This tool can help you estimate the page length of your essays, stories, speeches, or other articles based on word count. Use it to help make sure your essays hit the mark exactly as they’re supposed to.
If you’re using this tool, there’s a good chance you’re trying to meet a specific page length or range for an essay. Meeting those restraints can be hard: how are you supposed to fit your organic, unique ideas into a rigidly structured essay? Luckily, you’re not the first person to be put in this position, and there are a lot of tips and tricks you can try to make sure your essay or story ends up just the right length.
If you find your essay is too long, here is how to shorten your essay:
Adverbs and adjectives might seem like they strengthen your writing, but in truth they can bog it down. Remove any unnecessary adverbs and adjectives to trim down your piece.
It’s easy to find yourself rambling in an introduction or conclusion. But remember, these aren’t the key sections of your essay: they’re just window-dressing. Cut down on any areas where you restate arguments you made elsewhere in your paper, so you can use your words where they really count.
Sometimes it can be hard to remember to use active voice in your writing, especially when you’re writing a formal piece. But passive voice can often take up more space than you have to spare. Go through your essay with a critical eye and remove as many instances of passive voice as possible. As a bonus, active voice isn’t just more succinct -- it’s also more effective, meaning you’ll be turning in a stronger piece to your teacher or professor.
Transition phrases might seem essential to the flow of your paper, but you’d be surprised how well your essay fares without them. If you’re pressed for space, try trimming down your transitions, then read through the essay again to see how it the new flow feels.
On the flip side, you might find your essay isn’t quite the five or seven pages your professor asked for. If that’s the case, here is how to lengthen your essay:
Now is a great time to showcase all the research that didn’t make it into the first draft of your paper. Even if you think you’ve already proved your point, add an extra sentence or paragraph to prove it again. Your professor will appreciate how thorough you’ve been, and you’d be surprised how much space a little research will take up. Quotations in particular are a great way to beef up your paper, because special formatting means a couple lines can occupy as much as a paragraph’s worth of space.
Rather than using the conclusion solely as a place to restate your argument, think about the potential impacts or implications of your paper’s argument. For instance, if your paper argues that the development of solar power is ultimately more cost-effective than traditional fuel sources, use the conclusion to explore what a solar-powered society might look like in the future, or touch on other potential benefits of solar power outside of cost-effectiveness.
If you’re far short of your target page length, you might need a more substantial addition to your paper. A counterargument and refutation can be just that. Put simply, a counterargument is a paragraph in which you explore what an opponent to your essay might say. That counterargument is then followed by a refutation, or a paragraph in which you explain why your opponent’s argument is wrong. These structures are often used in argumentative and philosophical papers, but can be applied to many different writing forms.
For instance, for that essay about solar power, you might include a paragraph explaining why others might think the up-front cost of solar power makes it too expensive. You could then refute said argument by showing how long-term expenses are still significantly reduced for solar power. In addition to adding length to your essay, a counter argument can be a great way to show readers how deeply you’ve considered the material.
If all else fails, try breaking up long paragraphs into shorter ones. While this won’t add a ton of length to your paper, it can stretch out your page count just enough to hit your minimum number of pages.
What do you think about our Convert Words to Pages Tool? Was this tool useful for you, or are there features you’d like to see added? We’d love to hear from you! Reach out using the ‘Contact Us’ page linked below to share your suggestions.