What is a good typing speed in words per minute?

For general office work, 40–60 WPM is considered good. Professional typists average 65–75 WPM. Competitive typists on dedicated typing speed tests regularly break 100 WPM, and the world record exceeds 250 WPM on short bursts. Above 70 WPM with 95% accuracy is excellent for most purposes.

How is WPM calculated in a typing test?

Words per minute in a typing speed test is standardized as: (number of correctly typed characters ÷ 5) ÷ (elapsed time in minutes). Dividing by 5 converts characters to "words" using the average English word length. This formula is used by TypeRacer, Monkeytype, and all other major platforms.

Can you improve your typing speed?

Yes, significantly. Studies show that deliberate practice — focusing on weak keys, maintaining correct posture, and using all fingers properly — can increase typing speed by 20–30 WPM within a few weeks of daily 15-minute sessions. Touch typing (not looking at the keyboard) is the single biggest accelerator.

Can You Type This Fast? — Typing Speed Test — Play Free

The classic typing speed test has been a benchmark for typists since the dawn of personal computing — and this free browser version makes it easier than ever to measure yours. Type the displayed passage as fast and accurately as you can within the time limit. Your score is measured in words per minute (WPM), the universal standard used by employers, typing courses, and competitive typists worldwide. The average office worker types around 40 WPM; professional typists often exceed 80. Where do you land?

How to Play

Press Start, then begin typing the displayed passage in the text field — the cursor moves automatically as you type.
Correct characters appear in green; mistakes appear in red. Try to fix errors as you go, but speed matters too.
The timer counts down from 60 seconds (or 30 / 120 on other difficulty settings). The round ends when time runs out or you finish the passage.
Your WPM is calculated as (correct characters ÷ 5) ÷ (elapsed minutes), the standard formula used by all major typing tests.
Accuracy is tracked separately — aim for above 95% to be considered a clean typing run.

Why It's Hard

Typing at speed requires two simultaneous skills your brain constantly negotiates: planning the next word while executing the current one. This "parallel processing" breaks down under time pressure, causing you to skip letters or transpose pairs. Unfamiliar words and punctuation force you to slow down to "look-ahead" — a switch from automatic motor patterns to conscious letter-by-letter attention. That gear shift is the main source of speed loss for intermediate typists.

Tips

1Keep your eyes on the passage, not the keyboard — trusting muscle memory is what separates fast typists from slow ones.
2Aim for rhythm over bursts: a steady 60 WPM consistently beats sprinting to 90 WPM and crashing to 30 WPM on hard words.
3Fix errors immediately rather than ignoring them — uncorrected mistakes drag your accuracy score down more than the time cost of backspacing.

FAQ

What is a good typing speed in words per minute?: For general office work, 40–60 WPM is considered good. Professional typists average 65–75 WPM. Competitive typists on dedicated typing speed tests regularly break 100 WPM, and the world record exceeds 250 WPM on short bursts. Above 70 WPM with 95% accuracy is excellent for most purposes.
How is WPM calculated in a typing test?: Words per minute in a typing speed test is standardized as: (number of correctly typed characters ÷ 5) ÷ (elapsed time in minutes). Dividing by 5 converts characters to "words" using the average English word length. This formula is used by TypeRacer, Monkeytype, and all other major platforms.
Can you improve your typing speed?: Yes, significantly. Studies show that deliberate practice — focusing on weak keys, maintaining correct posture, and using all fingers properly — can increase typing speed by 20–30 WPM within a few weeks of daily 15-minute sessions. Touch typing (not looking at the keyboard) is the single biggest accelerator.