How many words do we read per minute? A review and meta-analysis of reading rate

• Published in: Journal of memory and language Vol. 109; p. 104047
• Main Author: Brysbaert, Marc
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Inc 01.12.2019
• Subjects: Language differences; Oral reading; Reading rate; Reading speed; Silent reading; Words per minute; Reading rate; Language differences; Words per minute; Reading speed; Oral reading; Silent reading
• ISSN: 0749-596X; 1096-0821
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jml.2019.104047

•Reading speed has been overestimated.•For English silent reading it is 238 words per minute.•For reading aloud it is 183 words per minute.•There is no evidence for reading gears except for reading versus text scanning. Based on the analysis of 190 studies (18,573 participants), we estimate that the average silent reading rate for adults in English is 238 words per minute (wpm) for non-fiction and 260 wpm for fiction. The difference can be predicted by taking into account the length of the words, with longer words in non-fiction than in fiction. The estimates are lower than the numbers often cited in scientific and popular writings. The reasons for the overestimates are reviewed. The average oral reading rate (based on 77 studies and 5965 participants) is 183 wpm. Reading rates are lower for children, old adults, and readers with English as second language. The reading rates are in line with maximum listening speed and do not require the assumption of reading-specific language processing. Within each group/task there are reliable individual differences, which are not yet fully understood. For silent reading of English non-fiction most adults fall in the range of 175–300 wpm; for fiction the range is 200–320 wpm. Reading rates in other languages can be predicted reasonably well by taking into account the number of words these languages require to convey the same message as in English.