Typing Speed Test

How the typing speed test works

Pick a test by time (15, 30, 60 or 120 seconds) or by words (25, 50 or 100), then start typing the text in the box. The clock starts with your first key, so there is no countdown to rush you. Press Space after each word to move on. Backspace fixes the word you are on; once you have moved past a word it stays as you typed it, just like on paper.

The common words come from a list of 555 everyday English words, shuffled for every test. Turn on punctuation to add capitals, commas and periods, or numbers to mix in digits. Both are good practice for real writing. Sentences mode uses 46 short sentences written for this site, so you type natural text with its own capitals and punctuation. Esc, or Tab followed by Enter, gives you fresh text at any time.

A 60 second test gives a steady number. Short 15 second tests show your top speed, but one slow word moves the result a lot. Longer 120 second tests show how well you hold your pace.

How WPM and accuracy are calculated

Typing speed is measured with a standard word of five characters, spaces included, so long and short words count fairly. Typing research uses the same convention: the CHI 2018 study below counts "any five characters" as one word.

Correct characters are letters typed right in their place, plus the space after every word you typed in full. Incorrect characters are wrong letters, extra characters are letters typed past the end of a word, and missed characters are the letters of a word you left early with Space. Accuracy looks at every key you pressed, including the ones you deleted again, so a fixed typo still costs a little accuracy. Consistency compares your raw speed second by second: 100% means every second was equally fast, and the number drops the more your pace swings.

A worked example, scored by the same code this test runs. In a 15 second test, these were the words on screen and what was typed when time ran out:

• Correct characters: 42 letters + 8 spaces = 50. Net WPM = (50 ÷ 5) ÷ (15 ÷ 60) = 10 ÷ 0.25 = 40 WPM.
• All typed characters: 47 letters + 9 spaces = 56. Raw WPM = (56 ÷ 5) ÷ 0.25 = 44.8, shown as 45 WPM.
• Accuracy: without any Backspace, 50 of the 56 keystrokes were right (the space after "hose" counts as wrong, because it skipped a letter): 50 ÷ 56 = 89.3%, shown as 89%. Accuracy is rounded down, so 100% always means no mistakes at all.

What is a good typing speed?

The best data comes from a study by researchers at Aalto University and the University of Cambridge, in which 168,000 volunteers copied English sentences on physical keyboards (Dhakal, Feit, Kristensson and Oulasvirta, CHI 2018). The average speed was 51.56 WPM with a standard deviation of 20.2 WPM. About 44% of the participants used a desktop keyboard and 54% a laptop keyboard. The study counted five characters as a word, like this test, though it timed each sentence from the first to the last keypress, so treat the comparison as a rough guide.

Typing training made a smaller difference than you might expect: people who said they had taken a typing course were on average about 5 WPM faster than those who had not. The same group later studied phones: 37,370 volunteers averaged 36.2 WPM with 2.3% uncorrected errors on mobile keyboards (Palin and colleagues, MobileHCI 2019). So a phone score in the 30s is perfectly normal.

What counts as good for you depends on what you type. For writing emails and chat, a speed where you keep up with your own thoughts matters more than a record. For transcription or data entry, accuracy matters as much as speed, because every typo costs time to find and fix later.

WPM to CPM and keystrokes per hour

If a test or a job listing asks for characters per minute (CPM) or keystrokes per hour (KPH) instead of words per minute, convert your score. With the standard five-character word, CPM is WPM × 5 and keystrokes per hour is WPM × 300. The last column shows how long a 500 word page would take at that speed without breaks.

To see how long your own text is, paste it into the word counter, which also shows characters with and without spaces.

How to type faster

• Use more fingers. In the CHI 2018 study, people who said they type with more fingers were faster on average. Fast typists reported about 8 fingers, slow typists about 5.
• Keep your eyes on the text. If you keep glancing at your hands, slow down until you do not need to.
• Accuracy first, then speed. In the CHI 2018 study, faster typists generally made fewer errors. Every typo costs a Backspace and a second try, so fewer typos means more time for new words.
• Let your fingers overlap. The same study found that faster typists often press the next key before releasing the previous one, called rollover.
• Practice little and often. A few short tests a day are easy to fit in. Time a practice block with the stopwatch and use sentences or punctuation mode once common words feel easy.

Why your score differs between typing tests

This test shows net speed, so wrong letters left on screen lower your score. Another test that shows raw speed, or uses different text, will give a different number. Sentences, capitals, punctuation and numbers are harder than plain common words, so expect a lower number with them. Compare your scores within the same kind of test, which is why your best is saved separately for each length and text type.

Mistakes that drag scores down without people noticing: skipping a word you mistyped instead of fixing it (the whole rest of the word counts as missed), typing ahead while looking at your hands, and starting a long test cold. Take one short warm-up test first. If you want to type in capitals or clean up a pasted text afterward, the case converter does that in one click.

How to use the typing test

1. 1Choose Time or Words, the length, and the text: common words or sentences, with punctuation and numbers if you like.
2. 2Click the text, or tap it on a phone, and start typing. The timer starts with your first key and the box shows your progress as you go.
3. 3When the test ends, read your net WPM, raw WPM, accuracy and consistency, and see your speed second by second in the chart.
4. 4Press Next test, Esc, or Tab then Enter to try again. Copy result shares your score; Copy link shares the same test settings.

Built by Tobias Kurth, designer. Updated October 12, 2026.

Frequently asked questions