Does my word count include footnotes in Word on Mac? How to check it yourself

Here is the honest answer. Microsoft's Word help page explains how to see a word count, but it does not say whether footnotes are included. Google Docs says it leaves footnotes out. Apple's Pages help page does not say either. So you have two checks to make: the rule your submission uses, and a test in the app you write in.

Why the answer changes from one tool to the next

Each tool sets its own counting rule. Google Docs counts the body text and skips headers, footers and footnotes. Word's help page covers the status bar and selections. It does not describe how footnotes or text boxes are counted. When two apps disagree, neither one is broken. Each counts by its own rule, and your school may use a third one.

Your school or journal has the rule that matters most. Auckland Law School says footnotes are counted, while the bibliography, title page, abstract, table of contents and appendices are excluded. ANU's CASS coursework policy says bibliographies, footnotes and endnotes are not included in the word count. The same footnote can count at one school and not at another. Read the rule before you trust any number on screen.

What Word for Mac shows about word count

Start with what Microsoft's page confirms. The count shows in the status bar at the bottom of the window. Click the word count to open the Word Count box. To count part of a document, select the text and choose Tools > Word Count. Selecting words shows the count for the selection and for the whole document.

A community answer on Microsoft's Q&A site says live word count was removed from Word for Mac in Word 2016. That answer came from a community member, not Microsoft staff. Check it on your own copy. In practice, you select a passage to see its count, then read the status bar.

The footnote setting is the open question. Some guides describe a footnote option in the count box. Microsoft's page does not confirm that option, so do not rely on it. The test below gives you an answer for your own setup.

Test footnotes in your own Word file

1. Open a blank document and type one short sentence. Count its words by hand.
2. Move the cursor to the end of that sentence. On the References tab, click Insert Footnote, then type one short sentence in the note.
3. Press ⌘A to select all. Click the word count in the status bar to open the Word Count box. Write down the total.
4. Select only the body sentence and write down its count. Then select only the footnote text and write down its count.
5. Compare the numbers. If the total equals the body count plus the note count, footnotes are included. If the total matches the body count alone, they are not.
6. Delete the test text, or close the file without saving it. Do not reuse the test file for your real draft.

Run the test in the same version of Word you will submit from. Settings and layouts can differ between installs. Keep a screenshot of the Word Count box next to the test file, so you can explain your reasoning if a question comes up later.

How Google Docs and Pages handle footnotes

In Google Docs, choose Tools > Word count. Google's help page says that unless you select a section, word count applies to everything except headers, footers and footnotes. If your school counts notes, the number on screen will read low. Copy the notes into a blank document, count that document, then add the totals yourself.

In Pages on Mac, choose View > Show Word Count. Selecting text updates the count to reflect only the selected text. Apple's help page does not say whether footnotes or text boxes are counted. Run the same footnote test in Pages before you rely on the number. The steps are the same in any of the three apps.

What the rule costs you in time and marks

Formatting time adds up. A survey of researchers published in PLOS ONE found a median of 14 hours of formatting per manuscript, which comes to 52 hours per person per year. The median cost was US$477 per manuscript. That work covers formatting in general, not word cuts. It still shows how small rule checks add up over a year of submissions.

Reformatting after a rejection is a separate cost. Clotworthy and colleagues cite about four hours of total time to resubmit one article. Their model puts losses from reformatting at about US$230 million in 2021. The model rests on assumed inputs, so read it as a rough scale, not a measured total.

Penalties are more direct. Auckland Law School deducts 5 marks for every 10% (or part thereof) over the limit, subject to a 5% leeway above the limit. The school also says no student will fail an assessment because of that penalty. ANU CASS allows the initial 10% excess without penalty, then applies a 10% penalty. These are two schools' rules, not a standard for every course.

Worked example: reading a penalty rule

Take Auckland's wording and apply it step by step. Any part of a 10% step counts as a whole step. A paper that runs past the leeway into a second step loses another 5 marks. The leeway matters. If the wording is unclear to you, ask the instructor how the leeway is applied before you trim.

Common mistakes that push you over the limit

• Counting the body and forgetting the notes when your school counts them.
• Trusting a number from another app. Each tool sets its own rule.
• Reading a selection count as the count for the whole paper.
• Assuming Google Docs matches Word or Pages. Its whole-document count excludes footnotes.
• Cutting to the exact limit. Leave room for the edits you make after review.
• Forgetting that a title page, abstract or bibliography may be excluded from the count.
• Skipping the written answer. Ask what counts, and keep the reply in your email.

A check to run before you submit

1. Read the rule. Find out whether footnotes, endnotes and the bibliography count.
2. Run the footnote test in the Word version you will submit from.
3. Select the body and read the count. Then use Tools > Word Count on the whole document.
4. Check the tolerance rule, such as a leeway or a grace percentage.
5. Trim the longest notes first if footnotes count, since they add words fast.
6. Recount after each cut, and save a copy before you start.
7. Recount the final file you will upload, not the draft you cut from.

Where Lazur helps with footnote counts

Lazur sees your screen while you hold the shortcut. Hold ⌥ ⌘ to ask about anything on screen, and Lazur answers out loud. Ask where the word count is, and Lazur draws a circle and a label around it. Ask how to select only the body text, and Lazur guides you one click at a time, waiting for each click.

Lazur does not click buttons for you, and it does not edit your files. It cannot know your school's rule either. Read the rule yourself, then ask Lazur to explain a dialog you do not understand, such as the Word Count box. For Mac setup tips, see Word for writers on Mac.

What Lazur sends, and regulated work

Lazur listens and looks at the screen only while you hold the shortcut. Audio and the screenshot are sent to AI providers to answer and are not stored. Content is never used to train AI models. If your draft holds client or patient information, follow your employer's rules on what you can share before you hold the shortcut.

Next steps for a clean count

Start with the rule, not the number. Then run the footnote test in the app you will submit from. Once you know how footnotes count, cut in the places the rule allows and recount the final file. Google Docs users can read Google Docs for writers on Mac for setup. If the answer is still unclear, ask in writing and keep the reply.