The instinct is to type as fast as you can and fix the mess afterwards. On a typing test and in a real job, that is slower, because every mistake costs far more time than typing the character correctly would have.
Do the sum. A mistake costs you the wrong keystroke, plus noticing it, plus the backspace, plus the correct key. That is roughly four times the cost of getting it right first time. Typing at 40 words a minute with lots of errors leaves you slower in real terms than typing at 30 clean.
How typing tests actually score you. Most report gross speed, then a net figure with errors deducted, or a speed plus an accuracy percentage. The number an employer writes down is usually the net one, so accuracy is not a separate virtue. It is part of the speed.
Where accuracy matters most is not words. A misspelled word in an email is a small thing. A wrong digit in an ID number, an account number, an invoice or a phone number is a different order of problem, and it is exactly the work an entry level data capture job consists of. Slow down deliberately for numbers, always, even when you are fast.
Practise at the speed where you make almost no mistakes. Then let the speed rise on its own, because it will. Chasing speed directly trains you to make errors quickly.
You are typing a list of customer ID numbers against the clock.
What happens: Finding one wrong digit in a finished list is far slower than typing carefully, and the digit you miss goes into the system. In this kind of work a single wrong number can send a payment or a delivery to the wrong person.
What happens: Correct, and it is what experienced data capturers actually do. Speed on the parts where a mistake is visible, care on the parts where it is not.
Should I fix mistakes as I go, or at the end?
As you go, while your eyes are still on that word. Going back later means finding it first, which is the slow part. On a timed test, correcting immediately is almost always worth it, because most tests count uncorrected errors against you.
My accuracy is fine but my speed will not rise
That usually means you are still looking down, or your hands are not returning to home. Both put a ceiling on speed no matter how accurate you are. Ten minutes a day with your eyes up is worth more than an hour of careful typing while looking at the keys.
What is a realistic accuracy target?
Above 95% is a reasonable working goal, and many employers look for it. Do not chase 100% at low speed forever, though. Perfect and very slow is its own kind of failure in a job where volume matters.
Before you move on
- Practise at the speed where you rarely make mistakes
- Slow down deliberately for numbers
- Fix errors as you notice them, not at the end
Check what you know
4 questions. Have a look at what this lesson asks.
Sign in to take this quiz
Reading is free and always will be. Answering counts towards your progress and your certificate, so we need to know who you are.
Sign in or create a free accountIt takes a minute and costs nothing.