A Threads post holds 500 characters. Need more room? Attach up to 10,000 characters of formatted text to a post, or split your idea into a thread. Here's every Threads limit, what counts as a character, and a counter that splits long text for you.
Filter by where you're writing. Checked October 2026.
Characters in a single post, including spaces, emoji and links.
Replies have the same limit as posts.
Extra formatted text attached to a post, read with Read more.
Up to five unique links in one post.
One topic tag per post, up to 50 characters, no periods or ampersands.
Photos and videos you can add to one post.
Longest video you can upload to a post.
Characters in your profile bio.
Links you can add to your profile.
Topics you can show on your profile.
Characters in a username (managed with Instagram for most accounts).
People in one group message.
Posts an app can publish for you in 24 hours via the Threads API.
The API counts emoji by their bytes, so one emoji can use 4+ characters.
Paste your text. See how it counts, then turn anything over 500 characters into a numbered thread or a post with a text attachment. Nothing leaves your browser.
Text attachments launched for everyone in September 2025. They're free - no subscription needed. Icons can vary slightly by app version.
Tap the compose button (or New thread on threads.com).
Use the post itself - up to 500 characters - for the part everyone sees in the feed.
It's in the row of icons under your post, next to photos and GIFs.
Paste or type up to 10,000 characters. Select text to make it bold, italic, underlined, struck through or highlighted.
A link in your attachment is shown prominently, so readers can go to the full piece.
Your post appears with the attachment in a box underneath and a Read more button.
Bold, italics, underline, strikethrough and highlighting.
A link is displayed clearly - Threads doesn't hide external links.
People read it without leaving the app, then reply as normal.
No subscription needed, unlike long posts on X.
Photos and videos go in the post, not the attachment.
Attachment text isn't indexed by search engines or shared to the fediverse.
| ✍️ Single post | 🧵 Thread | 📄 Text attachment | 🔗 Link to your site | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Length | 500 characters | 500 per post, as many posts as you need | 500 + 10,000 characters | Unlimited |
| How it shows in the feed | The whole post | The first post, with the rest underneath | Your post plus a preview box with Read more | Your post with a link preview |
| Replies | On the post | On each part of the thread | On the post | On the post (and your site) |
| Found in search engines | Post can be indexed | Posts can be indexed | Attachment text isn't indexed | Your page is indexed |
| Best for | Quick takes, questions | Step-by-step tips, stories, live updates | Essays, excerpts, announcements | Articles you want to rank and keep |
Each one counts as 1 character.
Each new line counts as a character too.
At least 1. Via the API, emoji count by UTF-8 bytes - often 4 each.
Counted at full length. Threads doesn't shorten them.
@username counts like normal text.
Don't count toward the 500 - they have their own 10,000 limit.
Free-account post limits, with the longest option each app offers. Bars use a log scale so short limits stay visible.
X allows 280 characters on free accounts and up to 25,000 with Premium. Full comparison: Threads vs X vs Bluesky.
The first line decides whether people stop scrolling. Put the point there.
"Really", "just", "I think that" - delete them and you'll gain 10-20%.
If you have three points, that's a thread or an attachment.
Short lines are easier to read on a phone - but each break costs a character.
Keep the takeaway in the post and the background in the attachment.
It invites replies, which helps your post reach more people.
Stuck for what to say? Try 50 Threads post ideas.