How it works
Pick a text type and a length, then type the words shown on the page into the box below them. The clock starts with your first character, so take as long as you like to get settled. When time runs out, your results appear.
Text types
- Common words: random everyday words in lowercase, with no punctuation.
- With punctuation: the same kind of words arranged into mock sentences, with capitals, full stops, question marks, exclamation marks, commas and semicolons.
- Numbers: about one word in four is replaced by a number of one to four digits.
- Daily challenge: a punctuated text that stays the same all day, based on your device's local date. It is always 60 seconds, so the length buttons are switched off.
The other three modes can run for 15, 30 or 60 seconds, and each new test gets a fresh random text.
Controls
- Type each word exactly as shown, and press Space to move to the next one. Capitals and punctuation have to match.
- Backspace fixes mistakes, and can take you back into an earlier word.
- Restart or Esc starts a new test straight away.
- Pasting and dropping text into the box are blocked.
Correct letters turn dark. Wrong letters and extra letters turn red and are underlined. Letters you skipped by pressing Space early are struck through.
On a phone, tapping the box hides everything except the words, the timer and your live numbers, so they stay visible above the keyboard.
How your score is calculated
One "word" is always counted as five characters, including spaces, so long words and short words are treated fairly.
- Net WPM is the main score: correct characters still in place at the end, divided by five, divided by the minutes elapsed. On a 60-second test, 250 correct characters scores 50 net WPM.
- Raw WPM counts every character you entered, right or wrong, including ones you later deleted.
- Accuracy is correct entries as a percentage of all entries. A backspace is not an entry.
Fixing a typo helps your net WPM, because the correct letter is in place at the end. It does not help accuracy, because the wrong key was still pressed.
Errors are judged one word at a time, so one slip never throws off the rest of the text. Pressing Space early is an error and the skipped letters count as missed. Typing past the end of a word adds extra errors. A space at the start of a word is simply ignored.
Your results
The results panel shows net WPM, raw WPM, accuracy, correct characters, errors left in place, and your personal best. It also lists up to five characters you missed most often. Personal bests are kept separately for each mode and length, so a 15-second sprint does not compete with a 60-second run. If two runs tie on net WPM, the one with higher accuracy wins.
Tips
- Aim for accuracy first. Each correction costs time twice: once to delete and once to retype.
- Read one word ahead. Keeping your eyes slightly in front of your fingers smooths out the pauses between words.
- Fix typos only when you notice them at once. Going back several words usually costs more than it gains.
- Use your weak-key list. If the same characters keep showing up under Most-missed, slow down on those letters for a few runs.
- Judge progress at 60 seconds. A 15-second run can swing a lot on one good or bad word.
- Practice punctuation separately. Reaching for Shift and punctuation keys is a different skill, so expect a lower score in that mode at first.
- Keep your hands relaxed. Tension tends to bring on mistakes, particularly in the last few seconds.
Questions
Why is my raw WPM higher than my net WPM?
Raw counts everything you typed, including errors and deleted characters. Net counts only correct characters left in place. The gap between them is the cost of your mistakes.
Why did accuracy not go up after I fixed a typo?
Accuracy records every key you pressed, so a corrected mistake still counts as a mistake.
Does the clock stop if I switch tabs?
No. Once the test starts, the clock keeps running.
Can I take the test on my phone?
Yes. It reads whatever your on-screen keyboard enters, and curly quotes and long dashes are converted to plain ones. If your keyboard autocorrects anyway, turning that off will give you a truer score.
Why is the daily challenge always 60 seconds?
So that everyone doing the same day's text is working to the same length and results are easy to compare.