Typing
How typing speed is measured, and how to test yours fairly
What words per minute really counts, why accuracy matters more than raw speed, how Korean and Japanese typing speed is measured differently, and how to test fairly.
A “word” is five characters
Typing tests report words per minute (WPM), but they don’t count real words. If they did, a passage full of short words like “it is on” would score far higher than one with “responsibility”. The convention, used since typewriter exams, is that one word = five characters, including spaces and punctuation.
So WPM = characters typed correctly ÷ 5 ÷ minutes. Typing 1,000 correct characters in two minutes is 1,000 ÷ 5 ÷ 2 = 100 WPM.
Gross speed, net speed and accuracy
Tests differ in how they treat mistakes, which is why the same person can get quite different scores on different sites.
- Gross WPM counts everything you typed, right or wrong.
- Net WPM subtracts errors, or counts only correct characters.
- Accuracy is the share of characters you typed correctly.
Typing Speed Test uses the strict version: only characters typed correctly and in the right position count towards speed, and accuracy is correct characters ÷ all typed characters. Mashing keys can’t raise the score. A skipped letter shifts everything after it, so fixing a slip early pays off.
Other languages count differently
Five-character words make sense for English and other alphabetic languages, but not everywhere.
- Korean speed is usually given in keystrokes per minute (타/분). Each Hangul syllable takes two to five key presses on the standard keyboard, so the test counts those presses: 한 is ㅎ + ㅏ + ㄴ, three strokes.
- Japanese is typed through an input method that converts kana to kanji, so the number of key presses varies with the method and with how often you convert. The usual measure is characters per minute after conversion.
That is why a Korean score of 300 and an English score of 60 aren’t comparable numbers, and why the test changes its unit with the page language.
How to test fairly
- Use the same duration every time. Short tests flatter you because you don’t get tired; 60 seconds is a good standard, 120 seconds shows your stamina.
- Test on the keyboard you actually use. A laptop keyboard and a mechanical one can differ a lot.
- Take three runs and keep the median, not the best one.
- Watch accuracy first. Above 95 % is a sensible target before you push for speed.
Getting faster
Keep your eyes on the screen, rest your index fingers on the F and J keys (the ones with small bumps) and return to them after each word. Short daily practice beats long occasional sessions. To see how long your own writing is, paste it into Word & Character Counter.