Online Teleprompter

Click the prompter, or select it and press Space, to start and pause. ↑ and ↓ change the speed, Home goes back to the top, F toggles full screen and Esc leaves it.

How to Use the Online Teleprompter

1. 1. Paste your script. The word count and the estimated speaking time appear underneath straight away.
2. 2. Set your pace and text size. Enter the words per minute you speak at and drag the text size until it is comfortable from where you'll stand or sit.
3. 3. Start. Click Start or the prompter itself. After the countdown the text scrolls past the coloured reading line; read the line that sits on it.
4. 4. Adjust on the fly. Faster and Slower (or the ↑ and ↓ keys) change the pace by 10 words per minute without stopping. Click the prompter or press Space to pause, and use Full screen when you record.

How the Scrolling Speed Is Set

A speed setting such as "5 out of 10" means nothing until you try it, so this prompter scrolls at a speaking pace instead. Reading a script aloud takes words ÷ words per minute minutes, so the prompter moves the text at whatever speed carries the whole script past the reading line in exactly that time:

speaking time = words ÷ words per minute

scroll speed = height of the script ÷ speaking time

Because the speed is worked out from the pace, changing the text size changes the speed in pixels but not in words: bigger text simply scrolls faster so you still finish on time. The speed is recalculated on every frame, so pace changes take effect immediately, and if you scroll the text by hand the prompter carries on from wherever you leave it.

Finding your pace

Many speakers present at somewhere around 120 to 150 words per minute, and nerves tend to push people faster. The surest figure is your own: read a paragraph of the script aloud at a natural pace, time it, and divide the words by the minutes. The Reading Time Calculator gives a quick estimate of speaking time for any text.

Mirror Mode and Recording Tips

A hardware teleprompter places a screen under a sheet of angled glass in front of the camera lens. You read the reflection, and a reflection reverses text left to right — so mirror mode flips it first, and the glass flips it back. For a webcam or phone recording you don't need mirroring at all.

• Keep the text near the lens. Make the browser window narrow and put it just under the webcam, so your eyes stay close to the camera while you read.
• Write for the ear. Short sentences and a line break wherever you want to pause make a script much easier to read aloud.
• Rehearse once before recording. A run-through shows whether your pace setting is right and where the script trips you up.
• Use the countdown. Three seconds is enough to get your hands off the keyboard and look up.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I use a teleprompter for a video call or recording?

Paste your script, narrow the browser window, and place it directly below your webcam. Set your speaking pace, choose a countdown, and press Start just before you begin. Reading from text close to the lens keeps your eyes near the camera, which looks much more natural than reading from the middle of the screen.

What does mirror mode do?

It flips the text horizontally. That is what you need with a beam-splitter teleprompter, where you read the screen's reflection in angled glass: the reflection reverses the text, and mirroring it first makes it read normally. Leave it off when you read the screen directly.

What words-per-minute setting should I use?

Start with your own speaking pace: time yourself reading a paragraph aloud and divide the words by the minutes. Many people present at about 120 to 150 words per minute. If the text gets ahead of you, press ↓ or Slower; if you keep catching up with the reading line, press ↑ or Faster.

Can I control it with the keyboard?

Yes, once the prompter is selected (click it or tab to it). Space starts and pauses, ↑ and ↓ change the pace by 10 words per minute, Home jumps back to the top, F toggles full screen and Esc leaves it.

Does it work on a phone or tablet?

Yes. Tap the prompter to start and pause, and use the Faster and Slower buttons. On iPhone, where browsers only let videos go full screen, the full-screen button makes the prompter fill the browser window instead.

Is my script uploaded or saved?

Neither. The script stays in this page while it is open and is never sent anywhere, so it is also gone when you close the page. Keep the master copy in your own document.