diff --git a/Changelog.md b/Changelog.md
--- a/Changelog.md
+++ b/Changelog.md
@@ -1,5 +1,9 @@
 # Revision history for fast-myers-diff
 
+## 0.0.2 -- 2025-01-15
+
+- Edit distance functions
+
 ## 0.0.1 -- 2024-09-08
 
 - Added `NFData` instance for `PolyDiff`
diff --git a/fast-myers-diff.cabal b/fast-myers-diff.cabal
--- a/fast-myers-diff.cabal
+++ b/fast-myers-diff.cabal
@@ -1,11 +1,11 @@
 cabal-version: 1.12
 
--- This file has been generated from package.yaml by hpack version 0.36.0.
+-- This file has been generated from package.yaml by hpack version 0.36.1.
 --
 -- see: https://github.com/sol/hpack
 
 name:           fast-myers-diff
-version:        0.0.1
+version:        0.0.2
 synopsis:       A fast implementation of the Myers diff algorithm.
 description:    A fast implementation of the diffing algorithm described in 'An O(ND) Difference Algorithm and Its Variations' by Eugene W. Myers.
 category:       Testing
diff --git a/src/Myers/Diff.hs b/src/Myers/Diff.hs
--- a/src/Myers/Diff.hs
+++ b/src/Myers/Diff.hs
@@ -22,6 +22,12 @@
     getVectorDiffBy,
     getGroupedVectorDiffBy,
 
+    -- * Distance
+    getTextEditDistance,
+    getStringEditDistance,
+    getEditDistance,
+    getEditDistanceBy,
+
     -- ** Internals
     Edit (..),
     getEditScript,
@@ -140,6 +146,30 @@
 -- | Diff two 'Vector's with grouped results using a custom equality operator
 getGroupedVectorDiffBy :: forall a b. (a -> b -> Bool) -> Vector a -> Vector b -> Vector (PolyDiff (Vector a) (Vector b))
 getGroupedVectorDiffBy eq old new = computeGroupedDiffFromEditScript old new (getEditScriptBy eq old new)
+
+-- | 'Text edit distance
+getTextEditDistance :: Text -> Text -> Word
+getTextEditDistance actual expected = getStringEditDistance (T.unpack actual) (T.unpack expected)
+
+-- | 'String' edit distance
+getStringEditDistance :: String -> String -> Word
+getStringEditDistance actual expected = getEditDistance (V.fromList actual) (V.fromList expected)
+
+-- | Compute the total size of the edit script vector from 'getEditScript.
+getEditDistance :: (Eq a) => Vector a -> Vector a -> Word
+getEditDistance = getEditDistanceBy (==)
+
+-- | Compute the total size of the edit script vector from 'getEditScriptBy'.
+getEditDistanceBy :: (a -> b -> Bool) -> Vector a -> Vector b -> Word
+getEditDistanceBy eq old new =
+  -- This 'fromIntegral' is safe because you'd need a ridiculously large edit
+  -- script for it to cause trouble, and that would crash the program before
+  -- 'fromIntegral' could.
+  (fromIntegral :: Int -> Word) $ sum $ V.map editCost $ getEditScriptBy eq old new
+  where
+    editCost = \case
+      Delete _ c -> c
+      Insert _ _ c -> c
 
 -- | Compute the edit script to turn a given 'Vector' into the second given 'Vector'
 getEditScript :: forall a. (Eq a) => Vector a -> Vector a -> Vector Edit
diff --git a/test/Main.hs b/test/Main.hs
--- a/test/Main.hs
+++ b/test/Main.hs
@@ -85,6 +85,13 @@
     exampleSpec "foofoo" "foo" [Delete 1 1, Delete 3 1, Delete 5 1] [Both 'f' 'f', First 'o', Both 'o' 'o', First 'f', Both 'o' 'o', First 'o']
     exampleSpec "foo" "foofoo" [Insert 1 1 1, Insert 2 3 1, Insert 3 5 1] [Both 'f' 'f', Second 'o', Both 'o' 'o', Second 'f', Both 'o' 'o', Second 'o']
 
+  describe "getStringEditDistance" $ do
+    prop "is 0 for identical strings" $ \t ->
+      getStringEditDistance t t `shouldBe` 0
+
+    it "returns 6 for these two completely different strings" $
+      getStringEditDistance "abc" "def" `shouldBe` 6
+
   describe "getVectorDiff" $ do
     let exampleSpec :: Vector Char -> Vector Char -> Vector (Diff Char) -> Spec
         exampleSpec old new expected =