Many blogs and news sites show a small “5 min read” label under the headline. It sets expectations and helps readers decide whether to start now or save the article for later. How reading time is calculated is simple, but the number it relies on is worth understanding.
How reading time is calculated: the formula
Reading time is word count divided by reading speed:
Reading time (minutes) = words ÷ words per minute
A 1,190-word article read at 238 words per minute takes exactly 5 minutes. So how long does it take to read 1,000 words? About 4 minutes and 12 seconds. Most sites round to the nearest minute. We show minutes and seconds in the word counter because short texts like emails and cover letters often take well under a minute.
Why 238 words per minute?
For years, estimates of reading speed in words per minute varied widely: 200, 250, or even 300, often without a clear source. In 2019, psychologist Marc Brysbaert published a review that pooled the results of 190 studies of silent reading in English, covering nearly 18,000 participants. The average for adults reading non-fiction was about 238 words per minute, and about 260 for fiction.
That makes 238 a reasonable average reading speed for web articles, which are usually non-fiction. It’s an average, though. Real readers vary widely:
- Skimming for a specific fact can exceed 400 words per minute.
- Careful reading of technical, legal, or unfamiliar material is often closer to 150–200.
- Reading in a second language is typically slower.
If you know your audience, adjust the speed. The Reading Time Calculator lets you set your own.
Speaking time
Speaking time uses the same formula with a slower rate. The average speaking rate for presentations, lectures, and voice-overs is about 150 words per minute. Conversational speech can run faster, and slow, deliberate delivery for a large room or a nervous audience is often around 120–130.
Practical rules of thumb at 150 words per minute:
- A 5-minute talk needs about 750 words.
- A 10-minute speech needs about 1,500 words.
- A 30-second video script holds roughly 75 words.
Leave room for pauses, applause, and slides. Many speakers aim for 10–15% fewer words than the math suggests. You can hear exactly how your script sounds with Text to Speech.
Handwriting time
Handwriting speed is much slower than typing or speaking. Adults writing legibly by hand typically manage somewhere between 10 and 20 words per minute, and our calculator defaults to 13. That estimate is most useful for timed exams: a 45-minute essay at 13 words per minute, allowing 10 minutes to plan, comes to about 450 words.
If you’re preparing for a handwritten exam, time yourself copying a paragraph for one minute and use your own number instead.
What reading time doesn’t account for
Word-based estimates ignore a few things:
- Images, charts, and code take time to study but add no words.
- Difficulty changes speed. Dense sentences slow readers down, which is one reason to check your readability score as well.
- Formatting helps. Clear headings and short paragraphs make text faster to scan.
Reading time is an estimate, not a promise. It’s still one of the easiest ways to respect your reader’s time: tell them what they’re committing to, and then make every minute worth it.