Adding a Word Count Column to Your Windows Folders

The following procedure will help you add a word count column to your Windows File Explorer view, which can come in handy for translators and other professionals.

In Windows File Explorer, select the View tab, and then Details.

There are 4 default columns shown in the Details view: Name, Date modified, Type and Size. We will now add a Word Count column.

Right-click anywhere on the column name bar. Then, in the menu that opens up, click More. 

This will open an alphabetical list of columns that you can add to your view. Scroll all the way to the bottom and check the box next to word count. Click OK to close the Choose Details window.

And that's it! Now you'll see the word count for each file in its own column.

As you can see in the screenshot, this works for Word and Powerpoint files. Unfortunately, though, it doesn't work for other common types of files, such as Excel or PDF.

A word of caution: Windows File Explorer takes the word count from the document properties, so there may be a discrepancy between that number and the word count shown by the program where the document was created. Because of this, it would be advisable to consider these word counts estimates only and rely on dedicated programs such as PractiCount or AnyCount for more accurate counting.

As a final note, to make this feature available in other folders*, click the Options button in the ribbon and select Change folder and search options.

Then, in the View tab, select Apply to Folders.

*Special thanks to Iwan Davies for pointing this out.