ToolsResources / Academic Writing & Argument

Tool

Word-count allocator

Allocate a planning word budget across sections, then adjust the balance to fit your own brief. This is an estimate, not an assessment rule.

Choose a planning allocation

Use the word-count rules in your brief. References, captions and appendices may be counted differently. The suggested split below is editable; it is not a universal essay formula.

Loading the local allocator.

Word budget and section weights

Weights express relative shares. They do not need to total 100; at least one must be greater than zero.

To allocate manually, divide each section weight by the sum of the weights and multiply by the counted word budget. Round to whole words and adjust the largest section so the total matches.

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