In the modern age, being able to type efficiently on computers, cellphones and other digital devices is essential. As part of this, quick typing speeds can be a great determiner of a person’s digital skills and productivity. Through this report, WordsRated looks at average typing speeds as a whole and across different industries, alongside techniques you can utilize to increase your words per minute (wpm).
- Using a standard PC keyboard, average typing speeds have been found to be around 52 words per minute.
- However, in the 1970s and 1980s, professionally trained typists would typically reach speeds of 60-90 wpm.
- One study found that the vast majority of people (88.90%) typically use 5 or more fingers when typing, leading to faster speeds than those who don’t.
- More than 50% of people only stare at the screen while typing.
- What’s more, those who only stare at the screen achieve much faster typing speeds than those who look at the screen and keyboard or solely at the keyboard.
- The rollover technique (where multiple keys are pressed simultaneously but released at different times) is used by the fastest typers for 40% to 70% of keystrokes.
- Interestingly, whether or not a person uses the touch type method doesn’t appear to affect how frequently the rollover technique is used.
- When using mobile devices, average typing speeds are around 38 wpm, significantly lower than when using a traditional keyboard.
- The number of words per minute achieved when using mobile can be boosted by predictive text and auto-correct systems, which search a database of words for the user.
- However, in cases where these systems fail, average typing speed can be notably lowered due to the need to correct errors.
Average typing speed
What is the average typing speed?
- The average typing speed is estimated to be around 52 words per minute using a standard keyboard.
- However, different estimates have also been given, which vary depending on the method of typing test undertaken.
- Although rarer, people unfamiliar with keyboard layouts and typing may struggle to reach 20 wpm as they need to stare at the keyboard.
- At the other end of the scale, speed-typers can reach words per minute in the 3-digits.
Typing speed by industry
- According to a study of 980 full-time workers, people who work in the legal industry are the fastest typers, averaging 60.60 words per minute.
- Arts, entertainment and recreation (2nd) averaged 56.70 wpm and education (3rd) averaged 56.30 wpm.
- Manufacturing workers ranked lowest, averaging 46.30 wpm.
- In terms of the percentage of time spent typing during the workweek, technology and telecommunications workers ranked highest (each 82.20%) and hotel, food services and hospitality workers ranked lowest (42.70%).
| Industry | Average words typed per minute (wpm) | Percentage of time spent typing during workweek |
| Legal | 60.60 | 61.60% |
| Arts, entertainment and recreation | 56.70 | 50.10% |
| Education | 56.30 | 65.10% |
| Medical and health care | 55.90 | 54.50% |
| Scientific | 55.90 | 70.60% |
| Technology | 55.50 | 82.20% |
| Government and public administration | 55.10 | 56.90% |
| Marketing and advertising | 55.10 | 52.70% |
| Information services and data processing | 54.60 | 72.70% |
| Telecommunications | 52.00 | 82.20% |
| Wholesale and retail | 51.70 | 61.60% |
| Transportation and warehousing | 51.20 | 52.30% |
| Finance and insurance | 49.40 | 78.60% |
| Hotel, food services and hospitality | 48.70 | 42.70% |
| Manufacturing | 46.30 | 62.80% |
A graph is given below to compare average typing speeds by industry:
A graph is given below to compare the average time spent typing during the workweek by industry:
If you are looking to increase your typing speed, why not build a training list of terms using our Word Generator tool? Once you have your list ready, practice typing out the list in full while competing against the clock to improve your word output.
Typing amount vs. earnings
- When looking at typing amount in contrast to earnings, workers earning less than $49,999 did not surpass 65.00% of the work week spent typing.
- The percentage of the work week spent typing jumps to between 66.00% – 66.60% for those earning between $50,000 and $99,999.
- However, those earning upwards of $100,000 spend on average 87.30% of the work week typing.
| Earnings | Percentage of work week spent typing |
| < $25,000 | 64.30% |
| $25,000 – $34,999 | 61.60% |
| $35,000 – $49,999 | 59.80% |
| $50,000 – $74,999 | 66.00% |
| $75,000 – $99,999 | 66.60% |
| $100,000 and over | 87.30% |
A graph is given below to show the percentage of the work week spent typing by earnings:
Typing speed by generation
- For the given data, average typing speed increases for each generation.
- This is true for both male and females, which both show increased typing speeds for each successive generation.
- Millennials show the quickest typing speeds on average, 56.50 wpm for males and 55.00 wpm for females.
- However, baby boomers have the slowest average typing speeds, 38.00 wpm for males and 43.60 wpm for females.
| Generation | Male typing speed (wpm) | Female typing speed (wpm) |
| Baby boomers | 38.00 | 43.60 |
| Generation X | 48.50 | 51.70 |
| Millennials | 56.50 | 55.00 |
A graph is given below to compare average typing speeds by generation:
Typing speed and work-life balance
Days bringing work home
- A person that brings work home with them often has more opportunities to work on their typing ability.
- However, bringing work home with regularity can be a sign of being overworked.
- The highest average wpm (55.40) is seen in those that never bring home work during the week.
- In contrast, a wpm of 49.80 is seen in those that bring work home 5 or more times per week, which is also the lowest for the given data.
| Number of days | Average words typed per minute (wpm) |
| None | 55.40 |
| 1 | 52.20 |
| 2 | 52.00 |
| 3 | 53.80 |
| 4 | 51.10 |
| 5 or more | 49.80 |
A graph is given below to show average typing speed (wpm) by the number of days work is brought home:
Average lunch break duration
- People that do not take a lunch break have the highest average wpm (58.90).
- For those that do take breaks, increasing the length of the break tends to increase wpm.
- People who took breaks of 46 mins and over had an average wpm of 54.50.
- In contrast, those that took breaks of 1 – 10 mins had an average wpm of 49.30.
| Duration | Average words typed per minute (wpm) |
| No lunch break | 58.90 |
| 1 – 10 mins | 49.30 |
| 11 – 20 mins | 54.00 |
| 21 – 30 mins | 52.60 |
| 31 – 45 mins | 54.10 |
| 46 mins and over | 54.50 |
A graph is given below to show average typing speed (wpm) by lunch break duration:
Typing techniques
Eye position
- When typing, the majority of people (54.80%) prefer to focus their eyes on the computer screen.
- 40.50% of people focus their eyes on the screen and the keyboard.
- Just 4.80% of people focus their eye position solely on the keyboard.
- In terms of the average words typed per minute for each eye position, focusing on the screen results in a significantly higher wpm (61.00).
- Focusing on keyboard and screen provides an average wpm of 44.10.
- Those that focus on the keyboard alone achieve the lowest wpm (39.50).
| Eye position | Average words typed per minute (wpm) | Percentage |
| Keyboard | 39.50 | 4.80% |
| Computer screen | 61.00 | 54.80% |
| Both | 44.10 | 40.50% |
A graph is given below to show average words typed per minute (wpm) by eye position:
Fingers used to type
- The number of fingers used to type can have a great effect on the average words typed per minute.
- The difference between those that use 5 – 9 fingers or 10 fingers is negligible (54.70 and 54.60 wpm, respectively).
- However, those that use less than 5 fingers when typing see their wpm drop to 40.90.
- 61.10% of people use 10 fingers to type, which is significantly higher than the other methods.
- 27.80% of people use 5 – 9 fingers and 11.10% use less than 5 fingers to type.
| Fingers used to type | Average words typed per minute (wpm) | Percentage |
| < 5 | 40.90 | 11.10% |
| 5 – 9 | 54.70 | 27.80% |
| 10 | 54.60 | 61.10% |
A graph is given below to show average words typed per minute (wpm) by fingers used to type:
Typing speed FAQ
What is a fast typing speed?
- Generally, any typing speed over the average could be considered to be a fast typing speed.
- However, people that can achieve upwards of 60 words per minute should typically be considered to be fast typers.
- 70 words per minute and over would be considered by many people to be very fast speeds.
What is the fastest typing speed?
- Officially, Guinness recognizes the fastest typing speed attained as 170 wpm.
- In terms of endurance, they recognize the speed of 150 wpm for a duration of 50 minutes as a record.
- Both records were achieved by Barbara Blackburn between 1976–1985.
- Due to her feats, she was also known as the “World’s Fastest Typist”.
- Despite this, since these records were set, many faster speeds have been attained albeit unofficially.
How to improve typing speed?
- There are a number of methods that can be implemented in order to improve a person’s typing speed. These include:
- Avoidance of errors – When you make an error while typing, it takes additional time to correct. Slowing down your typing speed slightly to reduce the chance of hitting the wrong keys can save you more time in the long run.
- Focus on the screen – People that type by looking solely at the keyboard or by looking at both keyboard and screen type at slower rates. By just using the screen, your motor system will begin to automatically detect where the next button press should be and your eyes will detect errors at a quicker rate.
- Use the rollover technique – Try to use different fingers when moving to successive keys rather than moving a single finger from key-to-key. When pressing down on one key, begin pressing the next key with a different finger.
- Test yourself – Occasionally take the time to perform online typing tests to find words per minute speed. Doing so will help you identify how many errors you commit and your overall typing speed in comparison to other people.
- Practice frequently – Whether intentionally or secondary to other tasks, typing frequently should help you to improve speed and accuracy. If you typically type using bad habits, focus on eradicating these.
- Keep in mind that writing longer word-lengths during tests (such as words of 10 letters) can greatly decrease wpm output.
What is a good typing speed for jobs?
- Although some jobs require faster typing speeds than others, a good typing speed would be around the average mark (52 wpm).
- For jobs that are extremely time sensitive, typing speed can be a major plus to employers.
- However, many jobs do not give that much importance to typing speed and are much more interested in a person’s specific knowledge for a role.