How to Improve Your Typing Speed

6 min read · Updated September 26, 2026 · by the SolveCalcPro editorial team

Typing faster saves hours every month and makes computer work less tiring. The path is not mysterious: learn proper technique, practise a little every day and measure progress honestly. This guide explains the numbers and gives a plan you can follow.

How typing speed is measured

Typing speed is measured in words per minute (WPM), where a “word” is standardised as five characters including spaces. WPM = (correct characters ÷ 5) ÷ minutes. Accuracy is the share of keystrokes that were correct. Typing 240 correct characters in a minute is 48 WPM. Raw speed counts every character; net speed counts only the correct ones — the more honest figure. Try the typing test to see yours.

What counts as a good speed

Speed	Level
Under 30 WPM	Beginner — hunt-and-peck is common
30–45 WPM	Below or around average
45–65 WPM	Average to good — fine for most office work
65–90 WPM	Fast — strong professional level
90+ WPM	Very fast — often the result of years of practice

Accuracy matters as much: at 95% accuracy a fast typist wastes much of the gain correcting errors.

Technique first

Home row: rest fingers on A S D F and J K L ;, with thumbs on the space bar.
Eyes on the screen: look at the text, not the keys. Cover the keyboard if you must.
All ten fingers: each finger owns a set of keys; return to the home row after each reach.
Posture: relaxed shoulders, forearms level, wrists neutral.

A four-week plan

Week 1 — accuracy: 10–15 minutes a day on the easy text style, aiming for 97%+ accuracy even if slow.
Week 2 — rhythm: keep accuracy above 95% and nudge speed up; type at a steady rhythm rather than in bursts.
Week 3 — range: alternate normal and hard text so capitals, numbers and punctuation stop slowing you down.
Week 4 — consolidate: take three 60-second tests daily and record the average. Expect a 10–20% gain from consistent practice.

Short daily sessions beat one long weekly one. Pair them with focused blocks from the Pomodoro timer.

Common plateaus

Most people plateau around 40–50 WPM when they rely on partial touch typing. Breaking through usually means slowing down to fix weak keys, practising common letter pairs and words, and resisting the urge to glance at the keyboard.