Speaking Time Calculator
How long does your text take to speak. Enter words or minutes and pick your speaking pace.
Words converted to speaking time.
This table shows how many words match a given speaking time, depending on pace. In conversation, most people speak at roughly 120 to 150 words per minute.
| Word count | slow (110 WPM) | average (140 WPM) | fast (170 WPM) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0:55 | 0:43 | 0:35 |
| 250 | 2:16 | 1:47 | 1:28 |
| 500 | 4:33 | 3:34 | 2:56 |
| 650 | 5:55 | 4:39 | 3:49 |
| 1000 | 9:05 | 7:09 | 5:53 |
| 1300 | 11:49 | 9:17 | 7:39 |
| 2000 | 18:11 | 14:17 | 11:46 |
Words and minutes.
Enter a word count and the calculator shows the approximate speaking time. It also works the other way: enter a time and get an approximate word count.
The speaking pace is an assumption.
The calculator assumes about 130 words per minute for a conversation and about 120 for a talk. These are general assumptions about speaking pace, not a measurement of your voice. Adjust the value to match your own pace.
What it is good for.
Useful for talks, podcasts, or estimating how long a text takes to read aloud. Pauses, thinking time, and emphasis are not included, so the real time is usually longer.
Speak instead of type.
Now you know how long your text takes to say out loud. Hallig works the other way: you speak, and the text lands in your clipboard.
Common questions.
How many words is a 3 minute speech?
At 140 words per minute, that is about 420 words. Depending on pace, 120 to 150 words per minute, the range runs from 360 to 450 words.
How many words is a 5 minute speech?
At 140 words per minute, that is about 700 words. At a pace between 120 and 150 words per minute, the range runs from 600 to 750 words.
How many words is a 10 minute speech?
At 140 words per minute, that is about 1400 words. At a pace between 120 and 150 words per minute, the range runs from 1200 to 1500 words.
How long does it take to speak 1000 words?
At 140 words per minute, that takes about 7 minutes. Depending on pace, 120 to 150 words per minute, the range runs from roughly 6.5 to 8.5 minutes.
How fast does the average person speak?
In conversation, most people speak at 120 to 150 words per minute, and this calculator uses 140 as its default. A presentation usually runs slower, around 100 to 130 words per minute, because pauses and emphasis take more time.
Why does my speech take longer in real life?
The math only counts words, not the time between them. Breathing pauses, eye contact with the audience, and spontaneous reactions add time in practice, so the real speaking time is usually longer than the plain calculation.
Say it instead of typing it.
Hallig turns your voice into text. On iPhone, iPad, and Mac. No account, no subscription, no server.