Reading Time / Speaking Time Estimator
Paste an article, script, or speech below. Reading and speaking speed vary a lot by person and context, so both are adjustable — tune them to match your own pace.
How Reading Time / Speaking Time Estimator Works
This tool counts the words in whatever text you paste in, then divides that count by a reading speed and a speaking speed (both in words per minute) to estimate how long it takes to silently read the text versus read it aloud. It's aimed at anyone timing a speech, presentation, or video script against a target length.
Formula & Method
Word count is found by splitting the text on whitespace. Reading time is word count ÷ reading speed (wpm), and speaking time is word count ÷ speaking speed (wpm), each converted to minutes and seconds. The sliders default to 200 wpm for reading and 130 wpm for speaking -- reasonable averages for silent reading and spoken delivery respectively -- but both are adjustable since actual pace varies a lot by person, language, and content type (a technical script is read more slowly than casual prose).
Worked Example
For a 1,000-word script at the default speeds: reading time is 1,000 ÷ 200 = 5.0 minutes, shown as "5 min." Speaking time is 1,000 ÷ 130 ≈ 7.69 minutes, which rounds to "7 min 42 sec" once converted to whole seconds. This is why a script that reads quickly on the page can still run close to 8 minutes when actually delivered aloud.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Why are the reading and speaking speeds different?
- Silent reading is naturally faster than speech because there's no need to physically pronounce each word -- the eyes can skim ahead. Speaking speed is also constrained by breathing, pacing, and clarity, which is why the default speaking speed (130 wpm) is noticeably lower than the default reading speed (200 wpm).
- What words-per-minute speed should I use for my own speech?
- Conversational speaking averages around 120-150 words per minute, but slower, more deliberate delivery (formal presentations, content meant to be easy to follow) can be well under 120, while fast, energetic speech can exceed 160. Adjust the slider to match how you actually plan to deliver the material -- if unsure, time yourself reading a paragraph aloud and back-calculate your wpm.
- Does formatting like headings or bullet points affect the word count?
- No -- the tool only counts words separated by whitespace, so headings, bullets, and paragraph breaks are all just treated as ordinary text. It doesn't account for the natural pause after a heading or between list items when estimating speaking time.