Tally Counter
A digital tally counter that keeps its number. Click, tap or press the spacebar instead of drawing tally marks on the back of an envelope.
Daily history — last 30 days
Keyboard: Space + ↑ → add · − ↓ ← subtract · Z undo
A tally counter keeps a running total while you do something else. Traditionally that meant a handheld clicker, or four lines and a diagonal stroke on paper — tally marks. This online tally counter does the same job, keeps the number safe, and lets you run several tallies at once.
Each tally you keep is saved in your browser with its own name, so you can have one for stock, one for attendance and one for a game, and come back to all three tomorrow exactly where you left them. It works as a hand tally counter on a phone and as a tally tracker on a laptop, with no app to install.
Common tally jobs
- Attendance and headcount
- A tally counter clicker at the door. Count people in, and read the total without losing your place.
- Stock and stocktakes
- Walk the shelves and click once per item, then export the tally sheet as a spreadsheet.
- Surveys and observation
- Counting cars, birds or behaviours in the field, where a tally mark counter has to be quick.
- Scores and games
- Points, rounds and lives, with a separate tally for each player.
- Habits and lab counts
- One press each time something happens, then read the 30-day tally chart.
- Class and teaching
- Show what 5 tally marks look like, then let the counter do the counting.
Frequently asked questions
What is a tally counter?
It is a device that adds one to a total each time you press it. A digital tally counter does the same as the metal handheld kind, but it can hold several counts at once, undo a mistake, and remember the number after you close the page.
What are tally marks?
Tally marks are a way of writing counts by hand: four vertical lines with a fifth drawn diagonally across them, so each group is worth five. Reading a tally chart is fast because you count the groups, not the lines. This tool keeps the number for you instead.
Is there a tally counter app I need?
No. This is an online tally counter, so there is no tally app or tally counter app to install and nothing to sign up for. Add it to your home screen and it opens full-screen the way an app tally counter would, and the tally counter online keeps working with no signal.
Can I keep more than one tally at a time?
Yes. Add a counter for each thing you are counting and rename it. Each keeps its own total and step size, so a counter tally online session can track three or four things without them getting mixed up.
Does the tally count get saved?
Yes, straight away and automatically. Refreshing, closing the tab or restarting the computer will not reset it, which is the main thing a paper tally sheet cannot promise.
Can I count in fives like a tally mark chart?
Yes. Open Settings and set the step size to 5, and every press adds five. You can also set a number to stop at so the tally counter digital display refuses to go past your target.
Can I export my tallies?
Yes. Export CSV gives you one row per day and one column per tally, which opens in Excel or Google Sheets — a tally sheet you did not have to rule out by hand.
Does it work offline?
Yes. Once the page has loaded it keeps working with no signal, so a stockroom or a field survey is no problem.
What do tally marks mean?
Each mark means one of whatever is being counted, and every fifth mark is drawn diagonally across the previous four so the marks read in groups of five. Four uprights crossed by a diagonal therefore means five — a group sometimes called a five-bar gate — and you total a chart by counting the closed groups in fives and adding the leftovers.
What does a tally chart look like?
Two columns: the thing being counted on the left, its tally marks on the right, usually with a third column giving the total as a figure. Rows of crossed-through groups of five make the marks quick to add up by eye. Export CSV here gives you the same table as a spreadsheet, with a row per day.
What is a tally chart?
A tally chart records how often something happens by making one mark per occurrence, grouped in fives, then totalling each row. It is the paper version of what this page does — one counter per row of the chart, with the totals kept and added up for you.
How do you make tally marks?
Draw one short upright line for each of the first four counts, then draw the fifth as a diagonal across those four to close the group. Start a fresh group after every five, and count the closed groups in fives at the end. On screen you press + instead, and the running total is added up as you go.
How do you use a tally counter?
Press once for each thing you count — the button, the spacebar and the up arrow all add one. Press − if you counted one too many, or undo to step back through your last few presses. The total stays put when you close the tab, so a stocktake can be finished tomorrow.
What is a tally counter used for?
Anywhere a number has to go up one at a time while your attention is elsewhere: stocktakes, people through a door, birds on a survey, cars in a car park, laps, reps and rows in knitting. It earns its place wherever writing figures down would be slower than a single press.
How does a tally counter work?
A mechanical one turns a geared wheel by one notch per press, which is why it can only go up and cannot undo. This one adds one to a number held in your browser instead, so it can also subtract, undo, count in steps other than 1, and keep several tallies running at the same time.
Why do Hindus use tally counters?
To count japa — the repetition of a mantra a set number of times, most often 108. Traditionally that is done on a japa mala of 108 beads, with a 109th guru bead marking where a round starts and ends; a hand tally counter or a page like this does the same job once the count runs into thousands and the rounds themselves need adding up. Set the number to stop at to 108 and it will flag each completed round.