30 Second Typing Test

When a 30 second test makes sense

Use it as a warm-up before a longer test, to compare keyboards, or to check your speed on a phone. Because there is no time to tire out, most people score a few words per minute higher on a 30 second test than on a 5 minute one. If you need a number for a job application, back it up with a 3 minute or 5 minute test.

Make every second count

• Rest your fingers on the home row before you start. The timer only begins with your first key.
• Do not stop to fix one wrong letter. Backspace costs more time than the error.
• Keep your eyes one or two words ahead of where you are typing.

How we score your test

Every serious typing test uses the same unit: one "word" equals five keystrokes, spaces included. That keeps a test fair whether the text is full of short words or long ones. Here is exactly what each number on your results means:

• WPM counts only the characters in words you typed correctly (plus the spaces after them), divided by 5, divided by minutes. This is the headline number and the hardest one to inflate.
• Gross WPM counts every character you typed, right or wrong. The gap between gross and WPM shows how much speed your mistakes cost you.
• Net WPM is gross WPM minus uncorrected errors per minute, the formula many employers and older typing tests use.
• Accuracy is the share of keystrokes that were correct, including ones you later fixed with backspace.
• CPM is correct characters per minute, and keystrokes per hour (KPH) is the figure data entry employers ask for.
• Consistency shows how steady your pace was from second to second. Higher is smoother.
• Errors are wrong, missing and extra letters left in words when you pressed space. A space that skips unfinished letters counts as a wrong keystroke.

Fair on phones: curly quotes and dashes inserted by iPhone and Android keyboards count the same as the plain keys, the test ignores where you tap inside the text, and leaving the page stops the clock instead of ruining your score. Swipe typing and word suggestions are allowed but labeled, because whole words arriving at once is not comparable with typing key by key. Pasted text is ignored.

Other test lengths

• ⏱️1 Minute Typing Test1 minute
• ⏱️2 Minute Typing Test2 minutes
• ⏱️3 Minute Typing Test3 minutes
• ⏱️5 Minute Typing Test5 minutes
• ⏱️10 Minute Typing Test10 minutes

Frequently asked questions