Speech & presentation timer

How to use the speech timer

Choose a slot from the presets — Table Topics, Evaluation, Ice Breaker and 5–7 minute speeches, with Tall Tales and longer speeches under More slots — or Custom to enter your own signal times in minutes and seconds. Press Start (or Space) the moment the speaker says their first word — Toastmasters timing starts with the first verbal or non-verbal communication, not with the walk to the lectern. The display stays neutral until the minimum time, turns green when the speaker has qualified, amber as the signal to begin concluding, and red at the maximum. More than thirty seconds after red it starts to flash, if you leave that option on. Started late? The −5s / +5s / −1m / +1m buttons correct the time without a reset.

The clock can count up (elapsed time) or down to the red signal; the line underneath always shows the other figure, so you can see both elapsed and remaining at a glance. The bar under the clock shows the green, amber and red zones with a needle moving through them. Tick Colours only (or press H) to hide the digits — many clubs prefer speakers to react to the light, not count seconds.

For a speaker at the front of the room, press Full screen and turn the laptop or tablet around; the whole screen becomes the signal. Keep Space, R (reset) and N (log and next) under your fingers. The screen is kept awake while the timer runs, and timing is calculated from the system clock, so it stays exact even if you switch to another tab to read the agenda. If the page is reloaded or the tab is closed by accident, reopening it restores the timer at the right time, still running.

Toastmasters timing: the standard slots

The presets follow the timings in the Toastmasters International rulebook and Pathways projects. Green shows the minimum has been reached, amber is the midpoint and red is the maximum:

In speech contests a speaker is disqualified for going more than 30 seconds under the minimum or over the maximum, so 7:30 on a 5–7 speech still qualifies and 7:31 does not. The display follows the same rule: it starts flashing “Over time” only from 7:31. When you press Log & next, each time is recorded with the signal reached and a verdict: within time, inside the 30-second grace, or outside it. Clubs vary on whether the grace applies to regular meetings, so treat the verdict as a guide unless you are running a contest.

Outside Toastmasters, the same three-light system works for conference talks, wedding speeches, pitch competitions and classroom presentations. Set green at your minimum, amber at a two-minute warning and red at the hard stop. Copy link produces a URL that opens the timer with those exact times — send it to the other timekeepers.

Pacing: how many words fit your time?

Most people speak to an audience at 120–160 words per minute; nerves push that up, and deliberate pauses bring it down. Enter the word count of your script (or paste the script into the box to count it) and the pacing panel shows the rate you would need to finish exactly at green, at amber and at red. Aim for the amber figure: it leaves room for applause, a laugh or a lost thread.

Enter your own pace to see when your script would finish and which light you'd be on. If it lands in the red, the panel tells you roughly how many words to cut to finish on amber; if it ends before green, how many to add. Measure your real pace by reading a 300-word passage aloud against the stopwatch — reading speed and speaking speed are not the same, and most people underestimate how much slower they speak to a room. You can count a draft precisely with the word counter.

• Under 110 wpm: measured, good for complex material or a second-language audience.
• 120–160 wpm: natural conversational speaking.
• Over 170 wpm: rushed for most audiences — a sign to cut material rather than talk faster.

While the timer runs, the panel also shows how many words in the speaker should be to finish on amber, which is useful when rehearsing with the script in front of you.

Tips for the timekeeper

Before the meeting, explain the signals and ask speakers whether they want the clock visible or colours only. Put the screen where the speaker can see it without turning away from the audience — at the back of the room is ideal. Start timing on the first word, pause only if the meeting is interrupted, and press Log & next as soon as the speaker finishes so the time isn't padded by applause. Type each speaker's name before they start; unnamed entries are numbered. Or open Agenda, list the speakers with their slots (“Priya, 5–7”, “Tom, Table Topics”) and press Load first speaker: after each Log & next the next name and slot are loaded for you.

For online meetings, Pop-out signal window opens a small window that shows only the colour and time — share that window in Zoom or Teams, or add it to OBS as a window capture. Zoom backgrounds downloads green, amber and red 1920×1080 images to set as your virtual background, the way many online clubs signal.

At the end, Copy report gives you a ready-to-read list for your timer's report, and CSV downloads the full log for the club's records. The log is kept in this browser, so it survives a reload mid-meeting. If you are also counting filler words, keep a tally counter open in another tab. Beeps are off in many meeting rooms by convention — leave Beep at each colour on when rehearsing alone, and turn it off for real speeches. Vibration works on Android phones only. Browsers slow down timers in background tabs — Chrome can hold them back by up to a minute — so while the tab is hidden the beeps are pre-scheduled on the sound card's own clock and play on time; the colour and time are always right the moment you look.

Frequently asked questions