Estimate the reading time of your voice over, narration, or spoken script. Turn words into minutes, adjust your speaking pace, and leave room for pauses.
Paste only the words that will be spoken. Choose a words-per-minute pace, then add the total seconds you need for extra pauses or visual holds. The estimate updates as you edit. Use the example to explore the controls, or download a text timing summary for your production notes.
The timer counts word-like segments, including words with accents and non-Latin text. Punctuation alone does not add words. Hyphenated terms may count as separate words, and numbers are counted as written rather than expanded into how they will be spoken. Older browsers may undercount languages without spaces. You can enter up to 50,000 characters. For the most useful result, write out numbers and abbreviations as you intend to say them.
Spoken time in seconds = word count ÷ words per minute × 60. Add your extra pause seconds to get the total estimated runtime. For example, 150 words at 150 WPM takes one minute before extra pauses. The displayed runtime rounds up to the next whole second.
The 120, 150, and 180 WPM presets are starting points for a measured, conversational, or brisk read. They are choices for planning, not guarantees about a performer. Adjust the pace to match your delivery and include only extra holds beyond the phrasing already reflected in that pace.
Add a target in seconds to see a word budget at your chosen pace. The timer subtracts your pause time before calculating how many spoken words fit. A 60-second target with 10 seconds of pauses at 150 WPM leaves a budget of 125 words.
If your copy is over the budget, trim words, reduce extra holds where appropriate, or reassess the pace. If pauses alone exceed the target, the script cannot fit even with no spoken words. The budget rounds down to whole words; the duration comparison uses the unrounded estimate.
This voice over script timer estimates spoken delivery. It does not predict the running time of a finished film or automatically exclude scene headings, character names, action lines, or stage directions. Remove anything that will not be spoken before timing your copy.
Emotion, performance, pronunciation, language, dialogue exchanges, and editing can change the final duration. Read the script aloud with a stopwatch or rehearse with your performer to verify it. Calculations happen in your browser; this tool does not upload or save your script.
At 150 WPM, a one-minute read has a budget of 150 words before extra pauses. At 120 WPM, the budget is 120 words. Add pauses and the available word count falls: 10 pause seconds at 150 WPM leaves 125 words. Rehearse to check the delivery.
Start with a preset, then measure your own read. Divide the number of words you spoke by the minutes you took to read them to estimate your WPM. Match the pace to the performer, language, subject, and intended tone.
No. Punctuation helps identify words but does not add separate pause time. Your chosen WPM should reflect normal phrasing. Use extra pause seconds for deliberate silence, visual holds, or other time you need to reserve beyond that reading pace.
It can estimate the spoken passages you paste, but it cannot calculate the finished runtime of a screenplay or video. Scene headings and action lines are still counted if you paste them. Time the spoken copy separately, reserve visual holds, and verify the result in rehearsal or an edit.
The timer is free and requires no sign-up. Its calculations run locally in your browser, and the tool does not upload or save your text. Refreshing or leaving the page clears the script. You can download a text timing summary when you choose.