What typing speed do jobs ask for?
There is no single standard, but the government requirements below sit at 35 to 40 words per minute for office jobs: 40 WPM for US federal and California state clerical jobs, 35 WPM in English for India's central government clerks. The tests run 5 or 10 minutes, and errors count against you. Data entry is often measured in keystrokes per hour instead: India's data entry operators need 8,000. A private employer gives its own figure, if it has one, in the job advert.
What each test asks for
- US federal jobs (OPM). Clerk-typist, office automation clerk or assistant, and job titles marked (Typing) or (Office Automation): 40 WPM, based on a 5-minute sample with three or fewer errors. Clerk-stenographers need the same 40 WPM plus a dictation speed. Data transcribers need 20 WPM at grade GS-2 or 25 WPM at GS-3 and GS-4, unless they show skill on a data transcribing machine.
- California state jobs (CalHR). Office Assistant (Typing) and Office Technician (Typing): at least 40 WPM on a 5-minute test, proctored in person or online. Shorter or unproctored tests are not accepted, certificates from the last four years are, and the department you apply to may test you itself.
- India's central government clerks (SSC CHSL). Lower division clerks and junior secretariat assistants type a given passage on a computer for 10 minutes: 35 WPM in English or 30 WPM in Hindi, about 10,500 and 9,000 keystrokes an hour. The test is qualifying: you must pass it, but it adds nothing to your marks.
- India's data entry operators (SSC CHSL). A 15-minute skill test on a given passage, counted on correct entries: 8,000 keystrokes an hour, or 15,000 in the ministries and departments the exam notice lists.
Typing speed for data entry
Data-entry tests often count keystrokes per hour (KPH) instead of words, so every key press counts, numbers included. SSC's figures count 5 keystrokes for each word: 35 WPM is about 10,500 keystrokes an hour, and 8,000 an hour is about 27 WPM. If the job is mostly numbers, practice on the number pad with the 10-key typing test, which gives keystrokes per hour, and convert between WPM and KPH with the WPM calculator.
How a typing test for a job counts your speed
- A longer run. These tests last 5 to 15 minutes, not one. Practice at the length of the test you will take: the typing test here has 5- and 10-minute settings.
- Errors. OPM's 40 WPM allows three errors or fewer in 5 minutes, and SSC judges speed on correct entries. The typing test here counts only the characters you type correctly, and shows your accuracy beside the speed.
- A proctored test. California accepts only proctored tests, so a score from an online practice test, ours included, is practice, not a certificate.
Private employers
Companies set their own requirement, and many name none. When a job advert names a speed, that is the number to train for, over the length of their test. If it names none, the government figures above are a reasonable target to practice toward.
Getting ready for a typing test
- Take a 5-minute test to see where you are, and note your accuracy as well as your speed.
- If you are short of the target, work on accuracy first: errors cost more than a slower pace. Touch typing and the typing lessons help you stop looking at the keys.
- For data entry, add number-pad practice on the 10-key typing test.
- Test yourself again every week or two at the same length. For more ways to speed up, see how to type faster.
Sources: US Office of Personnel Management, General Schedule Qualification Standards (Clerical and Administrative Support Positions); California Department of Human Resources, Typing Certification Requirements; Staff Selection Commission, Combined Higher Secondary Level Examination 2026 notice (paragraphs 13.9.13.6 and 13.9.13.7). Checked 15 October 2026.