3-minute typing test

Why three minutes?

Many pre-employment typing tests run for three or five minutes on paragraph text. Three minutes is long enough that a burst of speed at the start cannot carry your score, and short enough to take several times while preparing. Passages include capital letters, commas and full stops, so the result reflects real writing rather than lists of easy words.

How the score is calculated

TypingSpark counts a "word" as five characters, including spaces and punctuation. That is the convention used by typing tests and employers, and it makes results comparable however long the actual words are.

• Gross WPM is every character in your final text divided by five, per minute.
• Net WPM takes gross WPM and subtracts one word per minute for each error you left uncorrected. This is the number most employers ask for.
• Accuracy is the share of your keystrokes that were correct, including mistakes you later fixed.

The timer starts on your first keystroke, not when the page loads, and pauses if you switch tabs. Read the full formulas.

Reading your result

The chart under your result shows your speed through the test. A line that falls steadily usually means you started too fast; try starting at a pace you can hold. The start, middle and end figures show whether your speed and error rate changed as the test went on.

If you are preparing for a specific job, the employment test simulator lets you set the exact speed and accuracy you need and tells you whether you met them.