The Reading Time Calculator estimates how long a piece of text takes to read silently and to read aloud. Paste an article, essay, blog post or speech and get instant word and character counts plus both timing estimates — all calculated locally in your browser.
How it works
Reading time is simply word count divided by reading speed:
reading time = words ÷ words-per-minute
The default speed is 238 words per minute, the published average for adult silent reading of non-fiction. Use the slider to match your audience — around 150 wpm for slower readers, up to 350+ for speed readers.
Reading vs. speaking time
Reading aloud is slower than reading silently. A natural presentation or podcast pace is about 130 words per minute, so the tool also shows a speaking time estimate. That makes it useful for both writers (“is this a 5-minute read?”) and speakers (“will this script fit a 3-minute video?”).
Everything runs locally in your browser — the text you paste never leaves your device.