Fact · Typing and writing speed
54.6words per minute
In the typing speed on computer keyboards dataset, the 5 published figures for “Office and professional workers” have a median of 54.6 words per minute, ranging from 38 to 61.
Calculated from 5 data points on October 19, 2026
- What it measures
- Each figure is one row of the dataset: a published measurement for a stated group, traced to its source. The median is the middle value of the 5 figures for this group.
- How it is calculated
- Median of 5 values (38, 39.5, 54.6, 54.7, 61) = 54.6.
- What it does not show
- Studies measure different tasks (copying is faster than composing), count words differently, and recruit different people; online typing tests attract people who practise. Treat a median across studies as a typical reported figure, not a population average.
A statistic of the dataset Typing Speed Statistics: Average WPM by Group, calculated by code from its published rows.
Calculated from
- In Typing.com's survey of full-time workers, those who typed with all 10 fingers averaged 54.6 words per minute on a one-minute typing test, and 61 percent of respondents used that method.
- In Typing.com's survey of full-time workers, male baby boomers were the slowest group by generation and gender, averaging 38 words per minute on a one-minute typing test.
- In Typing.com's survey of full-time workers, those who typed with five to nine fingers averaged 54.7 words per minute on a one-minute typing test, just faster than those who used all 10 fingers.
- In Typing.com's survey of full-time workers, the fewer than 5 percent who mainly looked at the keyboard while typing averaged 39.5 words per minute on a one-minute typing test, the slowest of the three methods the survey compared.
- In Typing.com's survey of full-time workers, those who mainly typed without looking down at the keyboard averaged 61 words per minute on a one-minute typing test, about 17 words per minute faster than those who looked at both the keyboard and the screen.