Paste your script. See how long it runs at three speaking paces, and how many words you're working with. Rates go by word count, so that number is the one that matters.
Paste a script and the clock starts.
Nothing you paste leaves your browser. The count happens right here on the page.
Changed the script after it was recorded? The Voiceover Script Revision Calculator shows what needs recording again, and the price.
At a regular pace of 160 words a minute, the read most explainers, corporate videos and e-learning modules use. A commercial read runs faster, an audiobook slower, so use the calculator above for the pace your script actually needs.
Every common script length, worked out at the three paces the counter uses. Look up your word count, or flip the chart to see how many words fit the time you have.
| Words | Slow140 wpm | Regular160 wpm | Fast180 wpm |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 words | 0:43 | 0:37 | 0:33 |
| 150 words | 1:04 | 0:56 | 0:50 |
| 200 words | 1:26 | 1:15 | 1:07 |
| 250 words | 1:47 | 1:34 | 1:23 |
| 300 words | 2:08 | 1:52 | 1:40 |
| 400 words | 2:51 | 2:30 | 2:13 |
| 500 words | 3:34 | 3:07 | 2:46 |
| 600 words | 4:17 | 3:44 | 3:20 |
| 700 words | 4:59 | 4:22 | 3:53 |
| 750 words | 5:21 | 4:41 | 4:09 |
| 800 words | 5:42 | 4:59 | 4:26 |
| 900 words | 6:25 | 5:37 | 4:59 |
| 1,000 words | 7:08 | 6:14 | 5:33 |
| 1,200 words | 8:33 | 7:29 | 6:39 |
| 1,500 words | 10:42 | 9:21 | 8:19 |
| 2,000 words | 14:16 | 12:28 | 11:05 |
| 2,500 words | 17:50 | 15:35 | 13:51 |
| 3,000 words | 21:23 | 18:42 | 16:38 |
| 4,000 words | 28:31 | 24:56 | 22:10 |
| 5,000 words | 35:39 | 31:10 | 27:43 |
Times in minutes and seconds. Regular is the usual pace for explainers, corporate and e-learning; fast suits commercials; slow suits audiobooks and long narration.
| Running time | Slow140 wpm | Regular160 wpm | Fast180 wpm |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 seconds | 35 | 40 | 45 |
| 30 seconds | 70 | 80 | 90 |
| 45 seconds | 105 | 120 | 135 |
| 1 minute | 140 | 160 | 180 |
| 90 seconds | 210 | 241 | 271 |
| 2 minutes | 281 | 321 | 361 |
| 3 minutes | 421 | 481 | 541 |
| 5 minutes | 701 | 802 | 902 |
| 10 minutes | 1,403 | 1,604 | 1,805 |
| 15 minutes | 2,104 | 2,406 | 2,707 |
| 30 minutes | 4,208 | 4,813 | 5,414 |
| 1 hour | 8,415 | 9,626 | 10,827 |
How many words fit, rounded to the nearest word. Leave a little room for breaths and a pause before the sign-off.
About 1 minute 52 seconds at a regular voice over pace of 160 words a minute. Read slowly, as an audiobook narrator would, it takes 2 minutes 8 seconds. At a brisk commercial pace it comes in at 1 minute 40 seconds.
About 3 minutes 44 seconds at a regular voice over pace of 160 words a minute. Read slowly, as an audiobook narrator would, it takes 4 minutes 17 seconds. At a brisk commercial pace it comes in at 3 minutes 20 seconds.
About 4 minutes 22 seconds at a regular voice over pace of 160 words a minute. Read slowly, as an audiobook narrator would, it takes 4 minutes 59 seconds. At a brisk commercial pace it comes in at 3 minutes 53 seconds.
About 6 minutes 14 seconds at a regular voice over pace of 160 words a minute. Read slowly, as an audiobook narrator would, it takes 7 minutes 8 seconds. At a brisk commercial pace it comes in at 5 minutes 33 seconds.
About 120 words at a regular pace. A fast commercial read fits up to 135 words, and a slow, warm read about 105. If your script is longer than that, trim the copy rather than asking the voice actor to rush it.
About 240 words at a regular pace. A fast commercial read fits up to 270 words, and a slow, warm read about 210. If your script is longer than that, trim the copy rather than asking the voice actor to rush it.
Paste it into the counter at the top of this page and it shows the running time at slow, regular and fast pace as you type. Nothing you paste leaves your browser. If you only know the word count, type the number instead, or find it in the charts on this page.
The counter says 2:15. The brief says 2:00. Every voice actor knows that gap, and there are only two honest ways to close it.
Hitting a 30 second spot on the nose without sounding rushed is a craft: where to breathe, which words to lean on, how to shave seconds and keep the sell. That is exactly what the coaches at Voice Master Academy drill, read after read, until it is second nature.
Even a great take runs long. Tighten the pauses, take out the breaths, nudge a phrase, and a 2:15 becomes a clean 2:00 with no re-record. Voice Edit Suite is built for exactly that kind of surgery, and it will check your home studio for free while you are there.
Every voice actor on the roster works to the same published rates, set by word count. No bidding, no haggling, no surprise on the invoice.
Post the script, hear real reads of it, usually within the hour, and book the voice you like. You've paid nothing until then.
Tell the actor slow, regular or fast when you book, and give them a line of direction. The read comes back the way you heard it in your head.
Around 160 words a minute for an explainer or corporate read. Commercials run faster, about 180, because the copy is tight and the energy is up. Audiobooks and long narration settle in nearer 140 so the listener can stay with the story.
About 80 words at a regular pace, or up to 90 for a fast commercial read. If your 30 second spot is 110 words, the actor will have to rush it, so cut the copy rather than the breath.
Roughly 160 words. A two minute explainer is about 320 words and a ten minute training module is about 1,600. The quick reference table above runs the whole scale.
Voice over rates on The Voice Realm are set by word count, not by studio time, so the number this tool gives you is the number your quote is built on. See the voice over rates page for the card.
Yes, and it is a learned skill rather than a trick. Good pacing comes from breath placement and knowing which words carry the sentence, so the read gets shorter without getting frantic. Voice Master Academy teaches it as part of its coaching, and the calculator above tells you how many seconds you need to find.
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