Free tool · Rehearsal
Speaking time calculator: how long will your talk take?
Paste your script or enter a word count. You see how long it takes at three paces, whether it fits your slot and what each slide may hold.
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- No account needed
- Runs in your browser
How to use the speaking time calculator
Add your words
Paste your script, or switch to word count and type the number. Pasted text is counted in your browser and is not sent anywhere.
Set your slot and your slides
Move the slider to the minutes you have and set the number of slides. Both feed the budget per slide.
Add pauses if you want
Switch on the 10 percent allowance for breaths, slide changes and a sip of water. Leave it off to see the pure speaking time.
Read the verdict
The big number is the time at a normal pace. Below it you see the slow and the fast pace, whether you fit, by how much you are over and how many words to cut.
Check the budget per slide
The tiles show the time and the words each slide may take. Trim the longest slides first, then time one real run.
Sources
How it works and what it rests on
Where a number is our own rule of thumb, we say so.
The calculator divides your word count by a speaking rate and turns the result into minutes and seconds. For English it uses 110 words per minute for a slow pace, 130 for a normal one and 160 for a fast one. German words are longer, so for German it uses 100, 120 and 145. For 1,300 English words that is 10 minutes at the normal rate.
These rates are our own planning figures, not measurements. Speaking rates vary with the speaker, the topic and the room, and a presenter who explains a chart speaks more slowly than one who tells a story. Time one rehearsal and compare: if you needed 12 minutes for a script the calculator puts at 10, plan with 12.
The word count treats every piece of text between spaces as a word if it contains a letter or a digit, so a lone dash or bullet is not counted. Numbers and abbreviations count as one word each, although they take longer to say, which is one more reason to allow for pauses. The 10 percent allowance is a rule of thumb of ours.
The budget per slide divides your slot by the number of slides, and the words that fit the slot by the same number. It ignores that slides differ: a title takes seconds and a chart needs minutes. The slide count calculator splits the minutes by the role of each slide, and the guide to the number of slides explains the allowances.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
How many words is a 10-minute speech?
About 1,300 words in English at a normal pace of 130 words per minute, and about 1,200 in German at 120. Allow for pauses and slide changes and the English figure drops to roughly 1,180. If you talk over slides, aim lower still, because you stop to point at things.
How many words per minute is a normal speaking speed?
For presentations we plan with 130 words per minute in English, with 110 as slow and 160 as fast. In German, which has longer words, we use 120, with 100 as slow and 145 as fast. These are planning figures, so time one rehearsal and replace them with your own pace.
How long is a 1,000-word speech?
About 7 minutes 40 seconds at a normal English pace of 130 words per minute. At a slow pace of 110 it takes about 9 minutes, and at a fast pace of 160 about 6 minutes 15 seconds. Add 10 percent if you pause between points.
How many words should be on each slide?
Far fewer than you say. A 10-minute talk on 10 slides has room for about 130 spoken words per slide at a normal pace, and that includes everything you say aloud. The slide itself should carry only the message and its proof, so keep the full sentences in your notes.
How do you shorten a talk that is too long?
Cut in this order: introductions that repeat the title, slides that make the same point as another, and detail the audience can read afterward. Every 130 words you cut take one minute off the talk. Speaking faster is not a fix, because it moves the problem to the audience.
Does the calculator work for German text?
Yes. Choose German under the language of your talk and the calculator plans with 120 words per minute at a normal pace instead of 130, because German words are longer. The pasted text is counted the same way in both languages.
Keep reading
Delivering the talk
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- Free toolSlide count calculator
Enter your time slot, the minutes for questions and the format. This free calculator returns the number of slides, a range and a minute plan per slide.
- GlossaryAppendix
The appendix is the backup section after the closing slide: data, methods and details you show only if someone asks. See what belongs in it and what does not.
Put it into a finished deck
Describe your talk in a sentence, add your files and get an editable PowerPoint deck. The brief from this page is filled in for you.
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