Speech Time Calculator
Paste your speech, or enter a word count, and find out how long it will take to deliver — at your speaking rate, not someone else's guess.
Most timing advice quotes a single number of words per minute, but real delivery varies. A wedding toast, a conference talk and a classroom lesson do not move at the same pace, and neither do two speakers reading the same script. This calculator therefore lets you set the rate: the default is 140 words per minute, a common conversational pace, and the slider runs from 100 to 200 words per minute so you can match a slow, formal delivery or a brisk one.
The reverse mode answers the opposite question. If you have ten minutes on stage, how many words can you actually say? Enter the minutes you have and the rate you speak at, and the calculator gives you a word budget to write to.
Word counts here follow the same rules as the word counter: English words are counted as runs of letters and digits, and each Chinese, Japanese or Korean character counts as one word unit in the total. The English count, the character count and the combined total are all shown, so mixed-language speeches are not hidden behind a single number.
Text is processed only in the browser and is never uploaded to a server. Nothing you paste leaves this device.
If you paste text, the pasted text wins and the word-count box is ignored.
Reading comparison rate: 200 words per minute, the same rate used by the word counter.
Words needed for that slot, at the rate above, appear in the results.
Enter text or a word count to see a duration.
Results
Durations are estimates: speaking rate varies by speaker and language, and pauses are not counted.
How to use
- Paste your speech into the text box, or type a word count if you already know it.
- Set your speaking rate with the slider or the number box; 140 words per minute is the default.
- Read the speaking duration, and compare it with the reading duration at 200 words per minute.
- For a time slot, enter your minutes in the reverse box and write to the word budget it gives you.
- Rehearse aloud with a timer before you rely on the number, and add time for pauses.
Frequently asked questions
What speaking rate should I use?
The default is 140 words per minute, a common conversational pace in English. Slower, formal delivery is often around 110 to 130 words per minute, while fast speakers may reach 160 to 180. These are estimates, not rules, and your own rate is the best guide: time yourself reading a known passage aloud and divide its words by the minutes you took.
Does this calculator work for Chinese text?
Yes, with the same counting rules as the word counter: each Chinese, Japanese or Korean character counts as one word unit in the total, shown alongside the English word count. The duration is therefore an estimate in those units, not a measurement of a real delivery, and speaking rates in different languages are not directly comparable.
Why is speaking time longer than reading time?
Reading is silent and usually faster than speaking aloud. This page compares speaking at your chosen rate with reading at 200 words per minute, the same reading rate used by the word counter, so the gap between the two figures is the cost of saying the words out loud.
Does the result include pauses?
No. The result is words divided by rate, with no allowance for pauses, applause, questions or slides. If your talk includes any of those, add time for them after you get the base duration, and rehearse the full talk, pauses included, before the day.