How to Estimate Article Reading Time

About 4 min read

“5 min read” labels help readers decide whether to start an article. Producing one is just arithmetic, but the speed you choose matters more than the formula.

The formula

Reading time (minutes) = word count ÷ words per minute. Multiply the decimal part by 60 to get seconds.

Examples

• 1,000 words at 200 wpm = 5 minutes exactly.
• 1,190 words at 238 wpm = 5 minutes exactly.
• 1,500 words at 238 wpm = 6.30 minutes, or about 6 minutes 18 seconds.
• 600 words spoken at 130 wpm = 4.62 minutes, about 4 minutes 37 seconds.

Which speed to use

A 2019 review of reading studies by Marc Brysbaert reported an average of roughly 238 words per minute for silent reading of non-fiction in English. Many publishers use a figure between 200 and 250. For speaking aloud, figures around 130 to 150 words per minute are commonly suggested for presentations. These are averages, and your audience may read faster or slower.

Step by step

1. Paste the article into the Reading Time Calculator. The word count is shown immediately.
2. Set the reading speed for your audience. Use a lower figure for technical material.
3. Read the estimate, and round to a friendly number such as “6 min read”.
4. Optionally check the speaking time if you plan to present it.

Why estimates vary

• Difficulty. Dense or unfamiliar material slows people down.
• Layout. Tables, code blocks and lists change pace.
• Images and videos. The word count ignores them.
• Purpose. Skimming is much faster than studying.

Counting words consistently

Make sure you count the same text your reader sees. Remove navigation text and decide whether headings and captions count. Our guide on counting words accurately explains the usual rules.

How to present the estimate

Round to the nearest minute, and use “about” or “around” rather than implying precision. Under one minute, “1 min read” is fine.

Common mistakes

• Using one speed for every kind of content.
• Showing seconds, which implies false accuracy.
• Counting text that readers will not read.

Finding your own reading speed

You can measure a speed yourself. Pick a passage you have not read, count its words with the Word and Character Counter, set a timer, and read at your normal pace. Divide the words by the minutes. If a 400-word passage takes 2 minutes, your speed is 200 words per minute. Test with more than one passage, because difficulty changes the result.

Matching the speed to the content

• Light, familiar writing is read faster than dense or technical material.
• Readers in a second language usually read more slowly.
• Text on a small phone screen, or full of links, tends to be read more slowly or skimmed.
• Instructions that readers follow while doing something take much longer than the word count suggests.

Pick a lower speed for demanding material and a higher one for light reading, and be consistent across your site so the labels mean the same thing from article to article.

More worked examples

• 800 words at 200 wpm is 4 minutes.
• 800 words at 250 wpm is 3.2 minutes, which is 3 minutes 12 seconds.
• 2,400 words at 238 wpm is about 10.08 minutes, or roughly 10 minutes.

Content that is not plain text

Code blocks, tables, charts, images and videos all take time that the word count does not capture. Some publishers add a few seconds per image, and many readers spend longer on a diagram than on a paragraph. If your article is heavy with these, round your estimate up. For a how-to with steps that the reader performs, mention that the time to complete the task is separate from the reading time.

Spoken content

For a talk or a script, the speaking speed of around 130 words per minute is a better base than the reading speed. Pauses, slides, demonstrations and questions all lengthen the real time, so rehearse once and time yourself. Add a margin of a minute or two to a short talk and more to a long one.

Displaying the estimate

1. Count the words in the visible article text, leaving out menus, comments and unrelated page furniture.
2. Divide by your chosen speed and round to the nearest minute.
3. Show it simply, for example “5 min read”.
4. For pieces under a minute, use “1 min read” rather than seconds.

Conclusion

Count the words, divide by a sensible speed, and round. Treat it as a helpful guide, not a promise.

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