WPM vs CPM: Typing Speed Measures
Side by side
| WPM | CPM | |
|---|---|---|
| Stands for | Words per minute | Characters per minute |
| Unit | 5 characters including spaces = 1 word | 1 keystroke = 1 character |
| Typical average | About 40 | About 200 |
| Professional speed | 60–80 | 300–400 |
| Used by | Employers, certificates, most typing tests | Non-English tests, some competitive typing |
| Conversion | — | CPM = WPM × 5 |
| Better for comparing languages | Less so | Yes — word length varies by language |
When to pick each one
Choose WPM when
- Job applications and typing certificates
- Comparing against published averages
- Tracking your own progress over time
Choose CPM when
- Comparing typists across different languages
- Languages with very long compound words, such as German
- Measuring raw keystroke throughput
Working between the two
The maths is one step. CPM = WPM × 5, and WPM = CPM ÷ 5. So 40 WPM is 200 CPM, and 300 CPM is 60 WPM.
- 40 WPM = 200 CPM. The usual adult average.
- 60 WPM = 300 CPM. Comfortable office speed.
- 80 WPM = 400 CPM. Fast.
- 100 WPM = 500 CPM. Top few percent.
Measure yours on the 1 minute typing test, check the real distribution of scores, or read how WPM is calculated.
Measure yours on the typing test, then see how it compares against real results from every saved test.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I convert WPM to CPM?
Multiply by five. A typist at 60 WPM is typing 300 CPM, because the WPM standard defines one word as five characters including the space after it.
Why is a word defined as five characters?
It makes scores comparable. Real words vary from two letters to twelve, so a test full of short words would inflate the score. Fixing a word at five characters removes that variable entirely.
Which should I quote on a CV?
WPM. It is what employers and assessments use, and a CPM figure will simply be divided by five by whoever reads it.