# Speech Time Calculator – Words to Minutes for Scripts & Talks

> Free speech time calculator. Paste a script to convert words to minutes, see speaking and reading time, and check it fits a 15-second Reel or a 5-minute talk.

Canonical: https://scheduleforyou.com/tools/speech-time-calculator

Paste a script, voiceover or talk to see how long it takes to say out loud and to read, then check it against a Reels, TikTok, Shorts or speech length.

This page has a speech and reading time calculator that runs in the browser; use the HTML page to run it. The text below is the guide that goes with it.

## How the speech time calculator works
This speech time calculator turns the words in your script into minutes and seconds. At a normal speaking pace of about 150 words per minute, 150 words take one minute, a 3-minute speech is about 450 words, and 1,000 words take about 6 minutes 40 seconds. Paste your text into **Your script or caption** and the result updates as you type, so you can trim a line and watch the time drop.

### What you see
- **Speaking time**: how long the script takes to say out loud at the pace you picked.
- **Reading time**: how long it takes to read silently, useful for captions and on-screen text.
- **Words**: the word count. Hyphenated words and numbers like 3.5 count as one word.
- **Characters (no spaces)**: handy when a caption or title has a character limit.
- **Japanese characters**: kana and kanji, counted separately because Japanese is paced by characters, not words. A script that mixes Japanese and English is timed as the sum of both.

### Pick a speaking pace
Under **Speaking pace**, choose **Slow**, **Normal** or **Fast**. The calculator uses these rates:

| Pace | English | Japanese |
|---|---|---|
| Slow | 130 words a minute | 250 characters a minute |
| Normal | 150 words a minute | 300 characters a minute |
| Fast | 170 words a minute | 350 characters a minute |
| Reading silently | 238 words a minute | 500 characters a minute |

Normal is the default and a good fit for a relaxed talking-head video or a prepared speech. Slow suits a wedding toast, a eulogy or a talk with slides; fast suits an energetic voiceover.

### Check it against a target length
Under **Target length**, pick a chip in the **Short video (Reels · TikTok · Shorts)** row (15s, 30s, 60s, 90s or 3 min) or, under **Longer**, choose 5 min or **Custom** and type up to 10 minutes. A bar fills as you write and the verdict tells you exactly where you stand: "12 words over (0:05 too long). Cut a little.", "20 words to spare", or "Right on target." With an empty box it tells you how much fits, for example "Room for about 150 words" in 60 seconds at a normal pace.

### Nothing leaves your browser
The counting and timing run on your device. Your script isn't uploaded or stored, so unpublished scripts and client work stay private.

## Words to minutes: conversion table
To convert words to minutes, divide the word count by your speaking rate: minutes = words ÷ words per minute. At 150 words per minute, 600 words is 4 minutes. The table below shows common lengths at each pace (minutes:seconds).

| Words | Slow (130 wpm) | Normal (150 wpm) | Fast (170 wpm) | Reading (238 wpm) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | 0:46 | 0:40 | 0:35 | 0:25 |
| 150 | 1:09 | 1:00 | 0:53 | 0:38 |
| 250 | 1:55 | 1:40 | 1:28 | 1:03 |
| 500 | 3:51 | 3:20 | 2:56 | 2:06 |
| 750 | 5:46 | 5:00 | 4:25 | 3:09 |
| 1,000 | 7:42 | 6:40 | 5:53 | 4:12 |
| 1,500 | 11:32 | 10:00 | 8:49 | 6:18 |
| 2,000 | 15:23 | 13:20 | 11:46 | 8:24 |

These are estimates for continuous speech. Real talks run longer once you add pauses, audience laughter, slide changes or a demo, so leave about 10% of slack in anything with a hard time limit.

## How long is a 3 minute speech?
A 3-minute speech is about 450 words at a normal pace of 150 words per minute. If you speak slowly, plan on about 390 words; if you talk fast, about 510. The same rule scales to other lengths:

| Speech length | Words at a normal pace |
|---|---|
| 1 minute | 150 |
| 2 minutes | 300 |
| 3 minutes | 450 |
| 5 minutes | 750 |
| 10 minutes | 1,500 |
| 20 minutes | 3,000 |

### Shape a 3-minute speech
Spend about 30 seconds (75 words) on the opening, two minutes (300 words) on two or three main points, and 30 seconds on the close. Write it out, paste it in, set the target to **3 min**, and cut until the verdict turns green. Then read it out loud once with a timer: nerves usually speed people up, so if you rush on the day you'll still finish on time.

## Words per minute calculator: find your own pace
The calculator times your script at one of three preset paces; it doesn't listen to you or measure your speed. To work out your own words per minute, paste a script you know, read it out loud as you would on camera, and time it with your phone's stopwatch. Divide the word count by the minutes it took. For example, 420 words in 3 minutes is 140 words per minute.

### Match the preset to your result
If you land under 140 words a minute, use **Slow**; between 140 and 160, **Normal**; above 160, **Fast**. Recheck now and then. Most people speak faster when they're recording a casual video than when they're presenting to a room.

### What counts as a good pace?
There's no single right speed. Around 150 words a minute sounds conversational and is easy to follow. Faster delivery can work for punchy short videos, but if viewers keep rewinding or turning on captions to keep up, slow down or cut words instead of talking faster.

## Timing scripts for Reels, TikTok, Shorts and YouTube voiceovers
Short videos leave no room for filler, so knowing your word budget before you film saves retakes. At a normal pace, here's how much fits:

| Video length | English words | Japanese characters |
|---|---|---|
| 15 seconds | 37 | 75 |
| 30 seconds | 75 | 150 |
| 60 seconds | 150 | 300 |
| 90 seconds | 225 | 450 |
| 3 minutes | 450 | 900 |

### Front-load the hook
The first two or three seconds decide whether people keep watching, and that's only five to eight words. Write the hook last, once you know what the video delivers, and time it on its own.

### Use reading time for on-screen text
Text overlays and captions are read, not heard. At about 238 words a minute, a 40-word overlay needs roughly 10 seconds on screen. Paste the overlay text alone and check **Reading time** before you decide how long to hold it. To put that text on a cover or thumbnail, use [add text to image](https://scheduleforyou.com/tools/add-text-to-image).

### Write the caption and title too
A tight script deserves a caption that matches. The [TikTok caption generator](https://scheduleforyou.com/tools/tiktok-caption-generator) gives you starting points, and the [YouTube title checker](https://scheduleforyou.com/tools/youtube-title-checker) flags titles that will be cut off. If you're filming Shorts, our guide on [how to post YouTube Shorts](https://scheduleforyou.com/blog/post-youtube-shorts) covers length and format.

## Frequently asked questions
### How many words is a 3 minute speech?
About 450 words at a normal speaking pace of 150 words per minute. A slow speaker fits about 390 words in three minutes and a fast one about 510.

### How do I convert words to minutes?
Divide the number of words by your speaking rate. At 150 words per minute, 300 words takes 2 minutes and 1,000 words takes about 6 minutes 40 seconds. For silent reading, divide by about 238 instead.

### How many words per minute is a normal speaking pace?
Around 150 words per minute is a common figure for conversational English, and it's the calculator's **Normal** setting. Presenters often slow to about 130, and energetic voiceovers can hit 170 or more.

### How long does it take to say 1,000 words?
About 6 minutes 40 seconds at 150 words per minute, about 7 minutes 42 seconds at a slow 130, and about 5 minutes 53 seconds at a fast 170. Reading 1,000 words silently takes a little over 4 minutes.

### How many words fit in a 60-second Reel or TikTok?
About 150 words at a normal pace, 130 if you speak slowly, and 170 if you speak fast. Leave a beat at the start and end so the cut doesn't clip your first or last word.

### Does it work for Japanese or mixed-language scripts?
Yes. Japanese is counted in characters (kana and kanji, without punctuation or spaces) at about 300 characters a minute for a normal pace, and any English words are timed separately and added on.

### Is my script saved or uploaded?
No. Everything runs in your browser, and nothing you paste is sent anywhere or kept after you close the page.

## Schedule the video once the script fits
When your script fits and the video is edited, Schedule For You publishes it at the time you choose: Reels to Instagram, videos and photo posts to TikTok, and uploads to YouTube, where vertical videos within the Shorts length are generally treated as Shorts. The same queue covers X, Threads, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Bluesky and Google Business Profile, with a caption for each platform. It doesn't write scripts or edit video; it posts what you upload. Plans start at $19/month. [Start your 7-day free trial](https://scheduleforyou.com/signup). A card is required and you aren't charged until day 8.

## Related

- [All free tools](https://scheduleforyou.com/tools)
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