Two tools on one page
The timed test gives you 5 seconds. The timer starts on your first press of the spacebar, and the result is your presses per second with a rank, a bar for each second and a personal best.
The free counter has no time limit. It counts presses for as long as you like and shows the running time and average rate. Press “Stop the counter” when you are done. Use it to count to a target, to settle a bet, or to check a keyboard.
You do not need to click anything first. With the page open, just press the spacebar.
Holding the key down does not count
When you hold a key, the computer repeats it many times a second. This page ignores those repeats and counts only real presses, where the key goes down after having come up. That keeps the number honest and means a book resting on the spacebar scores exactly one.
Checking whether a spacebar works properly
Switch to the free counter and press the spacebar slowly and deliberately twenty times.
- The counter shows 20. Every press registered once. The key is fine.
- It shows fewer than 20. Some presses were missed. On a wide key that usually means a worn stabiliser or a switch that only registers when pressed in the centre. Try pressing at each end.
- It shows more than 20. One press is registering twice. This is called chatter and points to a failing switch.
To check the rest of the keyboard, use the keyboard test. The keyboard double typing test shows which key, if any, is chattering.
Pressing faster
- Use your thumbs, and alternate them. Two thumbs taking turns are much faster than one.
- Keep the presses shallow. The key only needs to travel far enough to register, not to the bottom.
- Rest the heels of your hands on the desk so the thumbs do the moving, not the wrists.
Each mark on the pad is one press. They fill the grid row by row, so the pad doubles as a tally you can count by eye. For mouse speed, use the CPS test.