Typing Tests
Measure your typing speed and accuracy. Choose a quick test on common words, the standard one minute test, a five minute stamina test or an English sentence test with punctuation, like the ones used for jobs and exams. Every result shows net words per minute, raw speed, accuracy and errors, with the average scores to compare with.
Pick a test below: each one runs right here in your browser.
- Typing Speed TestType common words for 30 seconds to 5 minutes and get your WPM and accuracy.
- 1 Minute Typing TestThe standard 60 second test on real English sentences.
- 5 Minute Typing TestFive minutes of sentences to measure the speed you can sustain.
- WPM TestA 15 to 60 second words per minute test, with the formula explained.
- English Typing TestSentences with capitals and punctuation, 1 to 5 minutes, like a job typing test.
Which typing test should you take?
The typing speed test is the general one: common English words, 30 seconds to 5 minutes, your choice. The 1 minute typing test is the standard length used by typing courses and most published averages, on real sentences with capitals and punctuation. The 5 minute typing test uses the same sentences for the length of a typing certificate or job test and shows the speed you can actually sustain.
The WPM test is a 15 to 60 second test with a full explanation of how words per minute is calculated and why different sites give different numbers. The English typing test is the sentence test with a choice of 1, 2 or 5 minutes, the format of typing exams and recruitment tests.
How typing speed is scored
- WPM: correct characters divided by 5 (one "word" is five characters, spaces included) and by the minutes. This is net WPM, the figure to quote.
- Raw WPM: everything typed, errors included. The difference between raw and net is what your mistakes cost.
- Accuracy: correct characters as a share of all characters typed. Job tests usually require 95% or better.
- Errors: wrong, missing and extra characters in the words you completed.
A best score is saved in your browser for each test and length, but only when accuracy is 90% or better, so a fast run full of mistakes does not become your benchmark. The anonymous site averages and the leaderboards accept results from 85% accuracy.
What is a good typing speed?
The adult average is about 40 WPM; jobs that test typing usually ask for 40 to 60.
| Net WPM | Level | Who types this fast |
|---|---|---|
| Under 30 | Beginner | Two-finger or hunt-and-peck typing, looking at the keys. |
| 30-50 | Average | Most adults. The average is about 40 WPM. |
| 50-70 | Good | People who type every day. Jobs that test typing usually ask for 40 to 60. |
| 70-100 | Fast | Touch typists who write all day: programmers, writers, transcriptionists. |
| Over 100 | Very fast | Competitive typists. The best sustain 150 or more for a minute. |
On sentences with punctuation, scores run 5-10 WPM lower than on plain words, so compare like with like. Accuracy matters more than speed: 60 WPM at 98% is better typing than 75 WPM at 90%.
How to type faster
Learn touch typing: fingers on the home row, each key always struck by the same finger, eyes on the screen. Two-finger typing stalls around 50 WPM; touch typing goes past 100. Practice for ten minutes a day rather than an hour once a week, and practice accuracy first, since speed follows once the finger movements are automatic. Keep wrists straight and floating, use a light touch, and make sure the keyboard itself is not dropping or doubling keys, which you can check with the keyboard tester.
Related tests
The spacebar clicker measures how fast you can press one key, and the reaction time test measures how fast you respond. Both live in the benchmarks hub, alongside the memory tests.
Frequently asked questions
What is the average typing speed?
How is WPM calculated?
Which test length should I use?
Why do different websites give me different WPM?
Can I take the tests on a phone?
Are typing tests available in other languages?
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