Is 20 WPM good?
It is a typical speed while you are learning to touch type. Most people get past it within a few weeks of daily practice.
- Level
- Learning
- Characters per minute
- 100
- Words per hour
- 1,200
- 500-word essay
- 25 minutes
What 20 WPM means in practice
20 words per minute is 100 characters a minute, or about 1.7 keystrokes every second. A double-spaced page of around 250 words would take about 12.5 minutes of pure typing. In typing tests, a "word" is always five characters including spaces, so the number does not depend on how long the actual words were. The WPM explainer shows the calculation step by step.
Speed only counts if it is accurate. 20 WPM at 98% accuracy is far more useful than the same speed at 90%, where roughly one keystroke in ten needs fixing. Check both numbers with the 1-minute typing test.
How to get faster
- Learn to touch type properly, starting with the home row. Hunt-and-peck typists usually stall around 30 to 40 WPM.
- Work through the 37 free lessons two keys at a time.
- Practise 10 to 15 minutes a day; short and regular beats long and rare.
More habits that help are in how to type faster.
20 WPM FAQ
Is 20 WPM good?
It is a typical speed while you are learning to touch type. Most people get past it within a few weeks of daily practice. For comparison, a 2018 study of about 168,000 volunteers by Aalto University and the University of Cambridge measured an average of about 52 WPM.
How many characters per minute is 20 WPM?
100 characters per minute, because one "word" in typing tests is five characters including spaces. That is about 1.7 keystrokes per second.
How long would a 500-word essay take at 20 WPM?
About 25 minutes of pure typing. Real writing takes longer because of thinking and editing.
How do I get from 20 to 40 WPM?
Touch type without looking, use the correct finger for every key and practise 10 to 15 minutes a day. Most learners gain several WPM a month with regular practice.