Reading Time Calculator
Get silent-reading and read-aloud time estimates for any draft, based on word count.
Reading time uses a 238 words-per-minute silent-reading average. Speaking time uses 150 words per minute, closer to how a script or voiceover actually sounds out loud.
How it works
Paste your draft, or just type in a word count if you already know it, and the calculator gives you two numbers: how long it takes to read silently, and how long it takes to read out loud. Silent reading uses 238 words per minute, the average from Marc Brysbaert's 2019 meta-analysis of reading-speed studies. Speaking uses 150 words per minute, a pace closer to how a script actually sounds when someone reads it for a voiceover or a podcast.
Worked example: a 476-word blog post lands at 2 minutes of silent reading (476 divided by 238 is exactly 2, rounded up). A shorter 100-word product description rounds up to 1 minute, since 100 divided by 238 is under half a minute and the calculator always rounds up rather than down, so a post never claims a shorter time than it actually takes. A 300-word video script comes out to 2 minutes of speaking time at the slower spoken pace.
FAQ
Why does the calculator round up instead of to the nearest minute?
Rounding down would let a 4-minute-40-second post claim "4 min read", which undersells how long it actually takes and can make readers feel misled. Rounding up keeps the stated time honest: nobody finishes faster than promised.
Where does the 238 words-per-minute number come from?
It's the overall average from a large 2019 meta-analysis of reading-speed studies by Marc Brysbaert, which pooled results across hundreds of samples. Individual readers vary a lot, faster for easy text, slower for dense or technical writing, so treat the estimate as a reasonable middle, not a guarantee for any one reader.
Why would I need a speaking-time estimate?
If you're turning a written piece into a video script, a podcast segment, or a voiceover, the silent-reading number is the wrong one to plan around. People speak more slowly than they read, so the 150 word-per-minute figure gives a better sense of how long the recording will actually run.
Does a shorter reading time help AI-written content look more human?
A stated reading time isn't about whether text reads as AI-generated, it's about setting the right expectation before someone clicks in. That said, tighter, less padded writing (the kind you get after cutting AI filler) usually also produces a shorter, more honest reading time.
If you're trimming a draft down before publishing, our guide to cutting filler and hedging and why AI paragraphs are all the same length both help you get to a leaner word count. Or start from our free humanizer prompt to edit the draft before you time it.