RSVP Speed Reader

When you read a page, your eyes do not glide smoothly. They jump from word to word in small leaps called saccades and pause briefly on each fixation; they also jump back to reread. Rapid serial visual presentation (RSVP) removes the leaps by showing words one after another in exactly the same place. With practice, many readers can take in text faster this way. This reader lets you try it with any text and tune the experience.

The focus letter

Each word is positioned so that its optimal recognition point — the letter about a third of the way in, slightly left of centre — sits exactly under the guide line, highlighted in red. Because every word lines up on that point, your gaze stays fixed. Short words use their first or second letter; long words a letter a little further in.

Speed

Choose any speed from 100 to 1,000 words per minute. Most adults read ordinary text silently at around 200 to 300 words per minute, so start there, at the default of 300, and raise the speed a little at a time with the ↑ key. The display shows how many words are left and the reading time remaining at the current speed.

Pauses and chunks

Real reading slows down at punctuation and long words, and RSVP works better when it does too. With pauses on, the reader lingers about twice as long at the end of a sentence, half as long again at commas and dashes, and a little longer on words of more than ten letters. You can also show two or three words at a time, which some readers find more natural at higher speeds; the focus-letter alignment applies to single words.

Controls

Space starts and pauses, ← and → jump back or forward ten words, ↑ and ↓ change the speed by 25 words per minute, and the buttons do the same with a mouse or on a phone. Full-screen mode removes all distractions. Your speed and settings are remembered in this browser.

What research says

RSVP is excellent at removing eye movements, but comprehension usually falls as speed rises well above normal reading rates, partly because you cannot glance back at a word you missed. Use it for light reading, previewing material, rereading familiar notes, or practising focus, and use ← generously when something is unclear. For complex texts you must learn, normal reading remains the safer choice.

A worked example

Paste the sample paragraph of about 65 words and press Read at 300 words per minute. Without pauses it would take about 13 seconds; with punctuation pauses it takes a little longer, and each sentence end gives a beat to absorb the idea. Raise the speed to 400 and the same paragraph takes about a quarter less time.

Private

Your text stays in your browser.

Building speed gradually

Practise in short sessions of a few minutes with easy texts, such as news articles. When you can follow comfortably, raise the speed by 25 words per minute and stay there for several sessions. Check yourself by summarising each text afterwards; if you cannot, slow down again.

Related tools

Listen to text instead with Text to Speech, check how long a text takes to read with the Word Counter, practise typing speed with the Typing Test, or estimate difficulty with the Readability Checker.