Reading Time Calculator
How long will it take to read? Enter a word count and your reading speed.
Tip: one printed page is roughly 250–300 words; one double-spaced manuscript page is about 250.
Not sure? Take the reading speed test first.
Estimated reading time
44 min
Reading time by word count
Typical reading times at three common speeds. The average adult reads about 200–250 words per minute.
| Words | 200 WPM | 300 WPM | 500 WPM |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | 5 min | 3 min | 2 min |
| 5,000 | 25 min | 17 min | 10 min |
| 10,000 | 50 min | 33 min | 20 min |
| 25,000 | 2 hr 5 min | 1 hr 23 min | 50 min |
| 50,000 | 4 hr 10 min | 2 hr 47 min | 1 hr 40 min |
| 80,000 | 6 hr 40 min | 4 hr 27 min | 2 hr 40 min |
| 120,000 | 10 hr | 6 hr 40 min | 4 hr |
How long is a typical book or article?
| Material | Typical word count |
|---|---|
| News article | 800–1,500 |
| Long-form essay | 3,000–6,000 |
| Short story | 5,000–10,000 |
| Novella | 20,000–50,000 |
| Typical novel | 70,000–100,000 |
| Epic fantasy novel | 150,000–300,000 |
Cut these times in half
The numbers above assume traditional page reading, where your eyes jump from word to word. With RSVP — words flashed one at a time at a fixed point — most people comfortably read 1.5–3× faster. Try SpeedRead free: paste any text or upload a PDF and see the estimated time drop as you raise the speed.