Average typing speed by age and grade
Check your own speed
| Length | Link |
|---|---|
| 1 minute | 1 minute typing test |
| 3 minutes | 3 minute typing test |
| 5 minutes | 5 minute typing test |
Typing speed by grade and age
| Grade or group | Ages | Words a minute | Accuracy | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 5 to 6 | 2 to 5 | not given | Typing.com |
| 1st grade | 6 to 7 | 5 to 7 | not given | Typing.com |
| 2nd grade | 7 to 8 | 7 to 10 | not given | Typing.com |
| 3rd to 5th grade | 8 to 11 | 8 to 20 | 85% or more | Typing.com |
| 6th to 8th grade | 11 to 14 | 20 to 30 | 90% or more | Typing.com |
| High school | 14 to 18 | 30 to 40 words a minute | 95% or more | Typing.com |
| College and adults | 18 and over | 40 or more words a minute | 98% or more | Typing.com |
| Adults who took an online test | mostly 11 to 30 | 51.56 words a minute on average | not given | Aalto University, Observations on Typing from 136 Million Keystrokes (CHI 2018) |
These numbers belong to their sources, not to Peabody. Typing.com's rows are a guide it gives for planning, read on 10 November 2026, and it gives no accuracy figure below 3rd grade. The last row is a research study of volunteers, read on 10 November 2026: 168,960 volunteers who chose to take an online typing test, reported in a 2018 study from Aalto University: mean age 24.5, about two thirds from the US. Volunteers are not a sample of all adults. They are averages or guides, not targets, and children vary a lot with practice and with the keyboard in front of them.
How to read a typing test result
| What you see | What it means | What to do next |
|---|---|---|
| Words a minute | The letters and spaces typed right, divided by five, for one minute. | Compare it with the row for the grade, and with your own last result. |
| Accuracy | Right key presses out of all key presses. | Aim for the accuracy in the table before you push for speed. |
| Under the range for the grade | Common, and a good place to start from. | Practise the lessons and test again next week on the same keys. |
| Inside the range | Right where the guide puts that grade. | Keep the accuracy up and let speed come on its own. |
| Above the range | Ahead of the guide for that grade. | Keep practising; try a longer test for a steadier number. |
| Accuracy under the guide's figure | More wrong keys than the guide suggests. | Slow down a little. Careful typing gets faster with practice. |
What counts as a good typing speed
- Accuracy first. A fast result with many wrong keys costs time later, because every mistake has to be fixed.
- Your own number next week matters more than the table. The table is a place to start from, not a mark to pass.
- Numbers show from 3rd grade. Peabody's tests show words a minute and accuracy from 3rd grade, and stars only below it, because a young child's speed changes week to week.
Why there is no Peabody average here
Peabody's typing tests send nothing and keep nothing, so there are no test results here to average. A visitor's lessons and games stay in their own browser, and a signed-in child's lessons stay in their own family's log. Peabody does not pool anyone's results to make an average, so every figure above is an outside source's, named and linked.
The tests are free through the end of 2026, with no sign-up. To get faster, try the typing lessons or the typing games for kids.
Questions people ask
What is the average typing speed?
It depends who is counted. A study of 168,960 online volunteers found 51.56 words a minute on average. For students, Typing.com's guide runs from 2 to 5 words a minute in kindergarten to 30 to 40 words a minute in high school.
What is a good typing speed for a 10 year old?
A 10-year-old is usually in 4th or 5th grade. Typing.com's guide gives 8 to 20 words a minute for 3rd to 5th grade, with 85% or more right.
What is the average typing speed for a 12 year old?
A 12-year-old is usually in 6th or 7th grade. The guide gives 20 to 30 words a minute for 6th to 8th grade, with 90% or more right.
What is the average wpm for adults?
Typing.com's guide says 40 or more words a minute for college students and adults, with 98% or more right. The online study above found 51.56 words a minute on average among volunteers, who are not all adults.
Is 40 words a minute good?
By the table, 40 words a minute is the top of the guide's range for high school (30 to 40 words a minute) and the guide's mark for college students and adults (40 or more words a minute). It is above the range for 6th to 8th grade (20 to 30 words a minute).
How is words a minute worked out?
Count the letters and spaces typed right, divide by five to get words, then divide by the minutes. Typing 300 right characters in three minutes is 60 words, which is 20 words a minute.
Does accuracy matter more than speed?
For learning, yes. Typing.com says accuracy matters more than speed at the start, because the time gained by going fast is lost to fixing errors.
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Checked against how Peabody works on 10 November 2026. Written with help from AI, from Peabody's own code and library. Peabody is a learning app, not an assessment: if you're worried about your child's learning, talk to their teacher. How Peabody's pages are made.