Paste any text directly and the word counter fills in for you. Useful for time-boxing revision, planning podcasts from articles, and deciding whether a long blog post fits inside a 15-minute meeting. For a deeper look at pacing, the Reading Level Checker tells you how complex the same text is.
Calculator
Formula used
Time = words ÷ wpm
How to use the Reading Time Calculator
- Paste a passage or enter a word count directly.
- Adjust the reading, audio and speaking speeds to match your context.
- Read the three durations in the result panel.
- Use the table to see how much you can fit in 5, 15, 30 or 60 minutes.
About this tool
The Reading Time Calculator is built for speed and accuracy: every calculation runs in your browser, so your data never leaves your device and the result updates as you type. It works equally well on a phone, a tablet or a desktop, and it is free to use as many times as you like.
Common use cases
- Time-boxing revision for a class.
- Planning podcasts from long articles.
- Choosing reading material for a flight.
- Deciding whether a piece fits in a meeting.
Tips for the best result
- Use the latest figures you have - even a small change in rate or term can shift the outcome by hundreds.
- For annual figures, divide by 12 to get a monthly number you can compare with the result.
- Bookmark this page and revisit the calculation as the inputs change.
Frequently asked questions
How many words per page?
Most printed pages run to 250-300 words. The calculator uses 275 as a sensible default for a printed novel; manuscripts with wide margins or lots of code blocks are lower.
What speed should I use?
Silent reading for pleasure is 250-300 wpm, focused study is 130-180 wpm, audiobooks average 150-160 wpm and public speaking 120-150 wpm. Edit the values to match how you actually read.
Related tools you may like
Study Hours CalculatorStudent · Knowing what to study is hard enough. The Study Hours Calculator tackles the logistics: ho…Essay Word Count EstimatorStudent · Most academic essays come with two numbers: a word limit and a page count. The Essay Word …Test Score Percentage CalculatorStudent · The Test Score Percentage Calculator does what the bottom of every graded paper does: divi…College Credit Hour CalculatorStudent · The College Credit Hour Calculator answers two questions every undergraduate asks: how far…Semester GPA CalculatorStudent · The Semester GPA Calculator focuses on a single term. Enter each course, the credit hours …Weighted Grade CalculatorStudent · A class grade is almost never a straight average. Most courses weight homework at 10%, qui…Character CounterText · The Character Counter is built for limits. Set a target length - 280 for a tweet, 160 for …Random Number GeneratorMath · The Random Number Generator produces numbers between a minimum and a maximum you choose. P…