Reading Time Calculator

Calculate how long your article takes to read — with an embeddable 'X min read' label.

What this tool does

The Reading Time Calculator tells you how long your content takes to read. Paste your text and get the reading time at slow, average (238 words per minute, the figure from published reading-rate research), and fast paces, plus word count and a ready-to-copy 'X min read' label for your blog template. An adjustable speed setting lets you match whatever assumption your platform uses.

Reading time labels became a web standard because they work. A '6 min read' badge sets honest expectations, and readers who start an article knowing its length finish it more often than readers ambushed by an endless scrollbar. Medium's own data popularized the insight that completion — not raw traffic — predicts whether content builds an audience. Reading time is also a useful editorial mirror: when your 'quick update' calculates at 14 minutes, the label is telling you something the draft didn't.

Everything runs locally in your browser with no signup and no storage. Check the time, copy the label, and if the number says your piece is bloated, our Sentence Shortener will help you earn a smaller one. For pacing feedback while you write, SirWritesALot's editor tracks it live.

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