Typing Speed Requirements by Job and Country

Short answer: most office jobs that state a typing requirement ask for 35–50 WPM at 95% accuracy or better. Data entry, live chat and secretarial roles want 50–70 WPM, and transcription 65 WPM and up. The ranges below are the ones that keep appearing in job adverts — use them to set a target, then check the listing you are actually applying for.

Typing speed by job

One role deliberately missing from that table is court reporting. Court reporters write on a stenotype machine, pressing several keys at once to form whole syllables. The US Registered Professional Reporter certification requires 180–225 words per minute at 95% accuracy — a different skill from QWERTY typing altogether.

Requirements by country

United States

US clerical postings that give a number usually ask for 35–45 WPM; administrative-assistant and data-entry roles often ask for 50+ WPM with an accuracy floor around 95%. Federal clerk-typist positions have traditionally used 40 WPM as the proficiency standard. If you apply through a staffing agency, expect them to run their own timed test before placing you, and numeric roles to quote 10-key speed in keystrokes per hour. Practise on the USA typing test, which uses American spelling.

United Kingdom

There is no national standard. NHS administrative posts at Bands 2–4 commonly state something in the 35–50 WPM range, while audio typists and medical secretaries are asked for more. Civil Service administrative grades may include a practical typing or data-entry exercise, and recruitment agencies often test you when you register. Because the UK keyboard puts " and @ in different places from the US one, practise on the keyboard you will be tested on — the UK typing test uses British spelling, and our UK vs US keyboard guide covers every key that moves.

Canada

Some federal and provincial clerical postings include a keyboarding assessment, and where a speed is stated it is commonly around 40 WPM. Bilingual roles may assess French writing separately. Most English-speaking Canadians type on a US-style layout. Try the Canada typing test.

Australia

Admin and Australian Public Service roles that test typing commonly look for around 40–60 WPM with high accuracy. Some employers ask for a result assessed against AS2708, the Australian keyboarding standard, through an approved provider. Australia uses British spelling but the US keyboard layout. The Australia typing test is good preparation, though not an AS2708 certificate.

Ireland and New Zealand

Clerical and administrative postings in both countries commonly look for around 40 WPM with strong accuracy, while data-entry and secretarial roles often ask for 50–60 WPM. Requirements are set per employer or recruitment competition. Ireland uses the UK layout; New Zealand uses the US layout. Practise on the Ireland or New Zealand typing test.

When the advert says KPH instead of WPM

Data-entry adverts often use keystrokes per hour. One WPM is about 300 KPH, so divide by 300 to convert:

For any other figure, use the typing speed converter.

What an employer typing test looks like

• Length: usually 1 to 5 minutes. Five minutes is the most common, because it shows whether you can hold a pace.
• Format: copy a passage shown on screen. Some add a data-entry form, a spelling check or a numeric section.
• Corrections: many platforms disable backspace or penalise every uncorrected error, so accuracy counts heavily.
• Verification: tests are often supervised, or repeated at interview. A figure you cannot reproduce live works against you.

How to close the gap before your assessment

1. Benchmark yourself on a 5-minute test — not a 30-second sprint, which will flatter you.
2. If accuracy is under 95%, slow down first. Net WPM usually goes up when errors go down.
3. Drill your weakest keys with AI-personalised lessons for 15–20 minutes a day.
4. Rehearse under test conditions with the typing test for jobs, including a few runs without backspace.
5. Once you hit your target, record it on a score card and add it to your resume.