Email Read Time Estimator
See the word count, character count and reading time of any email or text instantly, as you type. Free, with no signup.
Paste your email or text
See the word count, character count and estimated read time of any email or text instantly, free, as you type.
How it works
Paste your text
Drop in an email, message or any text.
See the stats
Word count, characters, sentences and read time update live.
Check the verdict
We flag whether it's a good length for a cold email.
Trim and send
Cut it to the 50 to 125 word band Boomerang's study found replied best.
Shorter emails get more replies
Busy prospects skim. Knowing the read time helps you keep a cold email tight, and the tool shows the word count, character count and estimated reading time of any text as you type.
The verdict line uses one published number. Boomerang's 2016 study, quoted on our cold email statistics page, found emails between 50 and 125 words got response rates above 50% in general business correspondence. It is a study of business email, not cold email, so take the band as a starting point and test on your own list.
Length is one lever; deliverability is another
A short, sharp email still has to reach the inbox. Bounces and spam words undo even the best copy.
Verify your recipients before you send and keep your sending domain clean so your concise emails actually get seen.
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Common questions about email read time
How is reading time calculated?
Reading time is based on an average adult reading speed of about 200 words per minute. The tool counts the words in your text and divides by that rate, and also estimates speaking time at ~130 words per minute.
How long should a cold email be?
The 125-word line this tool uses comes from Boomerang's 2016 study, quoted on our cold email statistics page: emails between 50 and 125 words got response rates above 50% in general business correspondence. That is one study of business email, not cold email specifically, so treat it as a starting point. The tool flags when your text runs past it.
Does this count words and characters too?
Yes. As you type or paste, it shows the word count, character count, sentence count and both reading and speaking time.
Is the read time estimator free?
Yes, it's free, needs no signup, and updates live in your browser as you type.
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