Reading speed test
Read a short passage from a classic at your usual pace, answer three quick questions, and see your words per minute. It takes about two minutes, and nothing you do here is sent anywhere.
How the test works
You read the opening of Pride and Prejudice, about 300 words, the way you would read a book: not skimming, not racing. The timer runs from Start to Done, and your speed is the words in the passage divided by the minutes you took.
Three questions follow, so you can tell a real reading from a skim. A fast speed with the answers wrong is not a fast speed. Under the result you will see how long a few well-known books take at your pace, and what 15 minutes a day comes to.
What is the average reading speed?
For adults reading English silently, the best estimate is about 238 words a minute for non-fiction and 260 for fiction, from a review of 190 studies by the psychologist Marc Brysbaert (2019). Most adults fall between 175 and 300 words a minute. Reading aloud is slower, about 183.
Speed changes with the text. Old prose like Austen's, or a hard argument, slows everyone down, and that is fine: understanding is the point. Claims of 1,000 words a minute and more come with far less understanding, which is why this test asks questions.
At 238 words a minute, Pride and Prejudice (122,000 words) takes about eight and a half hours, The Great Gatsby about three and a half, and War and Peace close to forty.
How to read more, without rushing
- Read a little every day. Fifteen minutes a day is a book a month for most people, which is more than speed reading tricks will add.
- Read on your phone when you would scroll. Doomreader turns books into short cards you scroll like a feed, so the minutes you would spend on a feed become pages.
- Set a daily goal you can keep. In Doomreader, Your reading shows your speed and how many minutes your goal takes, and keeps your streak.
- Pick books you want to read. Interest does more for speed than any technique.
Questions
How is reading speed measured?
In words per minute: the words in a passage divided by the minutes it took to read it with understanding. This test times you on a passage of about 300 words and checks your understanding with three questions.
What is a good reading speed?
Anything in the usual adult range of about 175 to 300 words a minute is normal. The average for English non-fiction is about 238. A good speed is one at which you still follow what you read.
Can I read faster?
Mostly through practice: reading more, and more often, makes reading easier and a little faster. Techniques that promise several times your speed usually cost understanding.
Is my result sent anywhere?
No. The test runs in your browser. If you tap Use it for my daily goal, your speed is kept in this browser on this device, where Doomreader's Your reading page shows it. Only usage analytics (that a test was taken, the speed rounded to tens) are sent, and you can turn those off in the app's settings.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes, on any phone, tablet or computer with a current browser.