5 Drills to Break the 100 WPM Barrier

Have you hit a wall with your typing speed? You practice regularly, you know the keyboard layout, but your Words Per Minute (WPM) just won’t budge past that 70, 80, or 90 WPM mark. This is known as a typing plateau, and it’s incredibly common.

Breaking the elusive 100 WPM barrier isn't just about typing more; it's about typing smarter. Reaching this elite level requires targeted practice that builds accuracy, rhythm, and muscle memory. Here are five specific typing drills designed to shatter your plateau and help you type faster than ever before.

1. The Accuracy Focus (Slow Down to Speed Up)

It sounds backward, but the number one killer of speed is inaccuracy. Every time you hit the backspace key, you’re losing precious time and breaking your rhythm. For this drill, your goal is 100% accuracy, not speed.

• How to do it: Deliberately slow down your typing to a pace where you make zero mistakes. Focus on each individual keystroke. Feel the key, press it, and move on.
• Why it works: This drill forces you to build correct muscle memory. By eliminating errors, you train your fingers to hit the right keys instinctively, which becomes the foundation for sustainable speed.

2. The Rhythm Drill (Typing to a Metronome)

Fast typing isn't about frantic bursts of speed; it’s about a steady, consistent rhythm. Great typists have an even cadence, like a musician.

• How to do it: Use an online metronome set to a slow pace (e.g., 150-200 beats per minute, which equals 30-40 WPM). Type one character for every beat. As you get comfortable, gradually increase the speed of the metronome.
• Why it works: This exercise eliminates the habit of speeding up on easy words and fumbling on difficult ones. It builds a smooth, consistent typing flow that significantly boosts your overall WPM.

3. The Common Word Sprint

A large portion of English text is made up of a small number of very common words (like "the," "and," "you," "that"). Mastering these allows your fingers to fly on autopilot.

• How to do it: Practice typing lists of the 100 most common English words. Type each word over and over. Then, type them in random sequences.
• Why it works: You're training your fingers to handle the most frequent patterns they will encounter, making a huge portion of your daily typing effortless and fast.

4. The Weak Finger Workout

We all have fingers and key combinations that trip us up. This drill targets those specific weaknesses.

• How to do it: Pay attention to the words you consistently misspell. Do you struggle with words containing 'z' and 'x'? Do your ring and pinky fingers lag behind? Create custom drills focusing on these letters and difficult combinations (e.g., "gaze," "jump," "minimum," "acquire").
• Why it works: By strengthening your weakest links, you raise the performance of your entire typing system.

5. The Endurance Run

It’s one thing to type fast for 30 seconds, but it's another to maintain that speed and focus for several minutes. This drill builds your typing stamina.

• How to do it: Take a 5-minute or 10-minute typing test. Your goal is not to achieve your peak speed, but to maintain a consistent, high speed throughout the entire duration without getting fatigued.
• Why it works: This simulates real-world typing tasks, like writing an email or a report. It trains your mental focus and physical endurance, making your speed more reliable over longer periods.

Ready to Put It Into Practice?

The key to breaking the 100 WPM barrier is consistent, focused practice. Don't just mindlessly type—be deliberate. Focus on one of these drills each day and track your progress.

Ready to see where you stand? Put these drills to the test and measure your improvement with our free Typing Test.