📖 Reading Time Calculator

Paste text or enter a word count to estimate how long it takes to read, plus an estimated page count. Runs entirely in your browser.

Paste Text (word count is calculated automatically)

Or Enter Word Count Directly

Reading Speed (words per minute)

Words Per Page

The two assumptions behind the answer

Words are counted by splitting your text on whitespace, then divided by the two rates in the boxes - 200 words per minute and 275 words per page unless you change them:

minutes = words / words-per-minute
pages   = words / words-per-page

1,500 words at 200 wpm = 7.5 min -> 7 min 30 sec
1,500 words at 275 w/page        -> 5.5 pages

Neither figure is a measurement of you. 200 wpm is a deliberately conservative silent reading rate; meta-analyses of adult silent reading of English non-fiction put the average nearer 240. Set the box to your own speed and every result rescales.

Picking rates that match the job

Reading aloud runs 130 to 150 wpm, so use that for a presentation script rather than the default.
Textbook reading with notes is far slower than prose, often 100 wpm or less. The estimate assumes you read straight through once.
275 words per page is a double-spaced 12pt page with one inch margins. Single-spaced is roughly 500, so set that and the page count halves.

The word count box wins whenever it holds a number, and your pasted text is ignored until you clear it again. Splitting on whitespace also means "e.g." and hyphenated compounds count as one word each.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to read 1,000 words?

5 minutes at the default 200 wpm, or 4 minutes 12 seconds at 238, the figure most often quoted for adult silent reading of non-fiction. Aloud, allow closer to 7 minutes.

How many words is a 5 minute speech?

About 700, not 1,000. Set the speed box to 140 wpm for speaking, which is the pace a listener can follow, then read the word count back off the estimate.

Why does my document show a different word count?

Word processors count some things this tool does not, and headers, footnotes and captions may sit outside what you pasted. Differences of one or two percent are normal and do not change the minutes noticeably.