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Richard Tasker
October 17, 2024
Whether you constantly confuse the hyphen and the underscore or peck out emails with two determined fingers, slow typing feels like watching paint dry. Jotting down meeting notes or replying to emails takes longer than it should, dragging down the rest of your workflow.
The good news? You don't have to be a coder, stenographer, or professional typist to crank out 90 words per minute. You can learn how to type faster with a few easy techniques and a little patience.
How to improve your typing skills: 12 tips to type faster
Like any other new skill, practice makes perfect. Here are 12 tips to improve your words per minute (WPM) quickly.
1. Take a typing test
Before you get started, measure your current WPM. There are plenty of free typing tests (like LiveChat’s typing speed test and TypingPal) to calculate your typing speed and accuracy.
Don’t worry about perfect accuracy or forgetting where to place your index finger — this is about finding your baseline. Knowing your WPM helps you set realistic goals and celebrate your improvement over time. Plus, when you start seeing that typing speed climb, you’ll feel motivated to continue to learn.
2. Practice consistently
Similar to learning a new language, the more you practice, the more fluent you get. Set aside 10 to 15 minutes to practice your typing skills each day. Consistency helps your fingers develop muscle memory, making typing feel more natural over time.
Although learning typing is different for everyone, the touch typing training program Searsol claims it takes students 10 hours of practice to hit 15 WPM, 30 hours to reach 25 WPM, and 70 hours to type 40 WPM.
3. Focus on accuracy instead of speed
Speed without accuracy won’t improve your workflow — quite the opposite. Frequent errors slow you down. The fewer mistakes you make, the easier it is to keep up your typing momentum.
A good online typing program should start with the basics to improve your accuracy, like how to hold your hand on the keyboard (right hand on ASDF, left hand on JKL, and thumbs on the space bar). Master each key row by row.
4. Learn touch typing
Touch typing is when you can type without looking at the keys, relying instead on muscle memory. Learning how to improve typing speed without staring at your keyboard has several benefits, like less strain on your neck, easier adaptation to keyboards on different devices, and improved productivity for people with learning differences or visual impairments.
Online typing programs like TypingClub use interactive exercises and typing lessons to help you through the fundamentals, helping you gradually build muscle memory key by key.
5. Maintain proper posture
Sit up straight with your feet flat on the floor and elbows at a 90-degree angle. Good posture reduces strain on your body and promotes better typing, especially if you spend lots of time at your computer. Likewise, your keyboard should be at a comfortable height, and your wrists should hover slightly above the keys to avoid strain.
For an extra ergonomic experience, the keyboard and laptop stand elevate the screen to eye level to keep your neck, shoulders, and wrists more relaxed.
6. Stretch and take breaks
Typing for long periods causes fatigue and strain, slowing your typing down. Incorporate short stretching sessions into your note-taking strategy to relax your wrists, fingers, and shoulders. Simple exercises like wrist rolls and finger stretches prevent discomfort and help you master the keyboard without creating unnecessary tension in your body.
7. Choose the right keyboard
Not all keyboards support your hands and wrists the same way. If typing is a big part of your workday, consider investing in an ergonomic or mechanical keyboard. Ergonomic keyboards promote a more natural hand position, reducing strain on wrists, forearms, and shoulders. When paired with good typing posture, ergonomic keyboards help mitigate tension in your neck and upper back.
Another option is mechanical keyboards with keys that have different levels of resistance, which can make typing more comfortable and responsive. Plus, that satisfying click sound motivates people who appreciate a sensory experience.
8. Set up a clean workspace
A cluttered desk can clutter the mind — and possibly slower typing speeds. A clean, organized workspace helps you focus, whether practicing typing lessons or putting your new note-taking skills to work.
Keep your keyboard and mouse within easy reach, and place your monitor at eye level to reduce neck strain. Good lighting helps, especially if you practice typing in the evening.
9. Get familiar with keyboard shortcuts
Mastering key shortcuts saves you time and effort. Fumbling through the menu or constantly googling “how to screenshot” interrupts your flow, which slows down typing momentum. Impress your workmates and speed up your workflow every time you open the search feature in one swift move (Hint: Ctrl + F).
10. Use speech-to-text tools
Even professional typists rely on shorthand and transcription tools to keep up with the conversation. Speech-to-text tools like Otter let you dictate your thoughts or keep pace with meetings without straining your fingers (or spending money on a professional typing tutor). These tools are particularly helpful for transcribing long or complicated meetings, letting you rest your fingers for more important work.
11. Set achievable goals
Improvement happens when you challenge yourself. That doesn’t mean you should set a goal of 100 WPM in a week. Set small, realistic goals, like increasing your WPM by a few points each month. You could also focus on specific areas for improvement, like mastering tricky letter combinations or hitting 99% accuracy.
12. Track your progress
Tracking improvement helps you stay motivated. Many typing software has progress tracking with visual graphs and milestones that show your WPM and accuracy over time. Likewise, you can take a free typing test every week or two and record your typing speed. Watching your WPM steadily climb — even by a couple of words each week — inspires you to continue to learn to type faster.
Type smarter, not harder with Otter
Put your typing skills to use where they matter most, like status reports and important emails. Save the transcription for Otter.
Otter’s AI-powered speech-to-text technology quickly captures meeting notes, transcribes conversations, and generates summaries, letting you stay productive without constant typing. It saves professionals and teams an average of 4 hours a week.
