How many words is a 5 minute speech?

You've been given five minutes. It might be a wedding toast, a work update or a presentation task at an interview, and the first question is how much to write. A 5 minute speech is shorter on the page than most people expect, and drafts tend to come out far too long.

This guide gives you the number, a quick list of word counts for other lengths and a simple way to check your own speaking pace, which matters more than any average.

Speech length to word count

At a steady 130 words a minute, here's roughly how many words fit each length:

• 1 minute: about 130 words
• 2 minutes: about 260 words
• 3 minutes: about 390 words
• 5 minutes: about 650 words
• 7 minutes: about 910 words
• 10 minutes: about 1,300 words
• 15 minutes: about 1,950 words
• 20 minutes: about 2,600 words

These are starting points. A slower speaker at 120 words a minute fits 600 words into five minutes, while a quicker one at 150 fits 750. Your own pace is the number that counts, and you can measure it in a minute (see below).

How fast do people talk?

Most people talk somewhere around 120 to 160 words a minute in everyday conversation. A speech usually works best at the slower end of that, with clear pauses between ideas, because listeners can't rewind you.

Nerves push the other way. Adrenaline speeds most people up, so a speech that took five minutes at the kitchen table can be over in four on the day. That's one of the more common signs of stage fright, and it's why the people listening often miss the line you worked hardest on. If you know you rush, how to speak slower has drills that help.

Why your 5 minute speech should be shorter on paper

The word count assumes you talk without stopping. Real speeches don't work like that. Time goes on:

• pauses between points, which make a speech easier to follow
• laughter after a joke, which you should wait for
• applause, raised glasses and toasts at a wedding
• changing slides, taking a sip of water or finding your place in your notes
• the odd line you add on the spot

So treat 650 words as the most you should write. If you expect laughs or a toast, cut another 50 to 100 words. Nobody minds a speech that finishes a little early, and a lot of people notice one that runs over.

How to time a 5 minute speech

1. 1Count the words in your draft. Any word processor will do it for you.
2. 2Read it aloud with a timer. Stand up and speak at the pace you'll use on the day, pauses included. Reading in your head is much faster and tells you nothing.
3. 3Work out your words a minute. Divide the words by the minutes. A 700-word draft that takes 5 minutes 30 seconds is 700 ÷ 5.5, or about 127 words a minute.
4. 4Cut or add to fit. Multiply your own words a minute by the minutes you have. At 127, a five-minute slot holds about 635 words, so that draft needs about 65 words cut.
5. 5Time it again a day or two before. A second run tells you whether the cuts worked and whether you're speeding up as the speech gets familiar.

If you record a rehearsal in Stagefright, it measures your pace in words a minute and your pauses for you, so you can see your real speed without doing the sums.

What to cut when your speech runs long

Start with the background. Most drafts spend too long setting things up before the point arrives, and listeners need less context than you think. Then look for a second example that makes the same point as the first, and keep the stronger one. Long lists, dates and numbers are easier to read than to hear, so trim those too.

Keep your opening, your main point and your last line. Once it fits, rehearse the trimmed version out loud a few times so the new joins feel natural. Our guide on how to practise a speech has a routine for the week before.

How long should a best man speech be?

Five minutes is a comfortable length for most wedding speeches, and up to around ten is fine if the material is strong. Guests rarely wish a speech had gone on longer. At five minutes you have roughly 600 to 650 words, which is enough for a welcome, two or three stories and a toast. Our guide to best man speech nerves covers getting through it on the day.

How many slides for a 5 minute presentation?

There's no fixed rule. A common rule of thumb is about one slide a minute, so around five for a five-minute talk, plus a title slide if you need one. Fewer slides with less on each leave you free to talk to the room rather than read from the screen. If you're presenting at an interview, check whether they've set a slide limit and stay inside it.