Paste a speech, toast, presentation script or video voice-over, and this speech time calculator converts words to minutes: it estimates how long the text takes to say aloud at a slow (110), average (130) or fast (160) words-per-minute pace. The result is shown in minutes to one decimal place and updates as you edit, so you can cut or expand a script until it fits your slot. Everything is calculated in your browser; there is no audio recording, and your script is not sent to our server.
Speaking time is the word count divided by your pace: 110, 130 (the default) or 160 words per minute. Chinese characters are timed at 250 per minute at the average pace, scaled the same way, and added for mixed text. Examples at the average pace:
Work the formula backward to get a word budget: multiply the minutes you have by 130. Then leave room for anything that is not your script.
Pick Slow (110), Average (130) or Fast (160) to match your delivery; Average is a fairly unhurried pace. Your own pace depends on nerves, the room, the language and how much you pause. To calibrate, time yourself reading one paragraph aloud and divide its word count by the minutes it took. For an exact personal rate, rescale the average figure: minutes at Average × 130 ÷ your rate. At 150 words per minute, for example, a 10.0-minute estimate becomes about 8.7 minutes.
How long common word counts take to say aloud at each pace (slow / average / fast):
Only words are timed. Rehearse with a clock before the real event, especially when the slot is strict.
About 650 words at 130 words per minute. If you naturally speak faster, you can fit more; if you plan long pauses or audience interaction, write fewer. Time a practice run to find your real figure.
About 7.7 minutes at 130 words per minute. The same text takes about 4.4 minutes to read silently, which is why a script that looks short on the page can run long on stage.
Choose Slow (110), Average (130) or Fast (160) words per minute. For an exact personal rate, multiply the Average result by 130 and divide by your own words per minute.
Divide the word count by your speaking rate in words per minute. At an average 130 words per minute, 650 words take about 5 minutes; at a fast 160, about 4. Paste your script above to get the figure for your exact text.
Speaking time estimates saying the words aloud at 130 words per minute; reading time estimates silent reading at 225. Both appear in the same panel, along with word and sentence counts.
Yes. Chinese (Han) characters are timed at 250 characters per minute. In a script that mixes Chinese and English, the two parts are timed separately and added together.
You can import a TXT, DOC or DOCX file up to 10 MiB. Importing sends the file to our server to extract its text and requires sign-in; pasting the script directly keeps it in your browser. Review the imported text and remove anything you will not say aloud.
Paste your speech or presentation notes and trim until the estimate fits your slot.
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