Ставка зависит от количества знаков с пробелами.

Here ставка means rate, fee, or price rate, not bet.

Russian ставка is a very flexible word. Depending on context, it can mean:

• bet / stake in gambling
• rate / fee in work or payment contexts
• interest rate in finance
• salary rate or hourly rate in employment

In this sentence, the context depends on the number of characters clearly suggests a pricing meaning, such as a translation, editing, or typing rate.

The verb зависеть means to depend on, and it is normally used with the preposition от.

So the pattern is:

• зависеть от + genitive

Examples:

• зависеть от цены = to depend on the price
• зависеть от времени = to depend on the time
• зависеть от количества = to depend on the quantity

That is why you see от количества, not от количество.

Because от requires the genitive case.

The dictionary form is:

• количество = quantity, number, amount

But after от, it changes to:

• от количества

So:

• количество знаков = number of characters
• зависит от количества знаков = depends on the number of characters

This is a very common pattern in Russian.

Because количество is followed by the genitive plural of the thing being counted.

The noun is:

• знак = sign, mark, character

After количество, it becomes:

• количество знаков = number of characters/signs

This is similar to other Russian quantity expressions:

• много книг = many books
• несколько человек = several people
• количество слов = number of words
• количество знаков = number of characters

So in this sentence:

• количества is genitive singular because of от
• знаков is genitive plural because it depends on количество

Yes. Although знак often literally means sign or symbol, in technical or work-related contexts it often means a character of text.

For example:

• количество знаков = number of characters
• 5000 знаков = 5000 characters

This is especially common in:

• translation
• editing
• copywriting
• publishing
• academic formatting

So in this sentence, знаков is best understood as characters.

С пробелами literally means with spaces.

In English, when talking about text length, this usually means:

• including spaces

So количество знаков с пробелами means:

• the number of characters, counting spaces too

This is a standard phrase in Russian when discussing text length.

There is also the opposite:

• без пробелов = without spaces

For example:

• 1000 знаков с пробелами = 1000 characters including spaces
• 1000 знаков без пробелов = 1000 characters excluding spaces

It is the instrumental plural.

The preposition с can mean with, and in that meaning it normally takes the instrumental case.

The noun is:

• пробел = space

Plural:

• пробелы = spaces

Instrumental plural:

• пробелами

So:

• с пробелами = with spaces

This is one of the most useful meanings of с to remember:

• с кем?
• с чем?
• with whom?
• with what?

Yes, sometimes. Both can refer to characters, but знаков is especially common in this kind of practical text-count context.

Compare:

• количество знаков = very standard for text length
• количество символов = also possible, often slightly more technical or closer to symbols/characters

In many real situations, Russians would understand both. But знаков с пробелами is a very fixed, common phrase in publishing, translation, and freelance work.

No, Russian word order is fairly flexible, although the version you have is the most neutral and natural:

• Ставка зависит от количества знаков с пробелами.

You could rearrange it for emphasis, for example:

• От количества знаков с пробелами зависит ставка.

This sounds more emphatic, like It is on the number of characters including spaces that the rate depends.

For ordinary neutral statements, the original order is best.

A natural stress pattern is:

• Ста́вка зави́сит от коли́чества зна́ков с пробе́лами.

Word stresses:

• ста́вка
• зави́сит
• коли́чество → коли́чества
• зна́к → зна́ков
• пробе́л → пробе́лами

Stress matters a lot in Russian, so it is worth learning these with the words.

It is neutral-to-formal and very natural in business or professional contexts.

You might see it in:

• a translation price list
• a freelancer’s website
• an editing service description
• a contract or work agreement

It sounds concise and professional. In casual speech, a person might say something a little looser, but this sentence itself is perfectly normal and idiomatic.