How to use this teleprompter online
- Paste your script into the box, or press Try a sample script to see how it works.
- Set the speed in words per minute. The line under the box shows the reading time.
- Adjust the text. Open Settings for the font size, side margins and the reading line.
- Press Play. The prompter goes full screen, counts down from 3 and starts the auto scroll.
- Steer while you read. Space pauses, the arrow keys change the speed, and Page Down jumps ahead. A presenter clicker works too.
- Press Esc to go back to the editor. Your place is saved, so Resume picks up where you stopped.
Your scripts save themselves in this browser as you type, up to 20 of them. Use Script → Save .txt to keep a copy, or Open .txt to load a script from a file. Nothing is uploaded, and there’s no account or watermark.
Keyboard shortcuts in the prompter
| Key | What it does |
|---|---|
| Space or K | Pause and play |
| ↑ / ↓ | 5 wpm faster / slower |
| Page Down / Page Up | Jump a third of the screen ahead / back |
| + / − | Bigger / smaller text |
| Home / End | Back to the start / skip to the end |
| M / V | Mirror / flip the text |
| Esc | Back to the editor |
Move the mouse or tap the text to show the on-screen controls. They also show the time elapsed, the time left and the current speed. Changes you make while prompting, like speed or text size, are kept for next time.
Setting the right speed
Words per minute (wpm) is how many words of your script pass the reading line each minute. The speed stays the same whatever font size you choose, because the page measures your text and works out the scroll rate from it.
Start at 140 wpm and read a paragraph aloud. If the words reach the arrows before you do, press the down arrow to slow down by 5 wpm. If you’re waiting for them, press the up arrow.
A few tries is usually enough. For comparison, college lecturers average about 150 wpm, according to a Rochester Institute of Technology report.
Add cues in square brackets, like [pause] or [smile]. They show in a lighter color and don’t count toward the reading time, so the timing stays honest.
Speed changes ease in over a third of a second, so the text never lurches mid-sentence. Check the time left in the on-screen controls to see whether your talk fits its slot before you record.
Teleprompter on a phone, tablet or laptop
The closer the words are to the camera lens, the more natural your eye line looks. On a laptop, move the reading line to 10 to 20% from the top, so you read just under the webcam. Narrow side margins keep the lines short, so your eyes barely move.
On a phone or tablet, turn the device sideways and place it just under the camera. It can also sit next to a separate camera as the prompter. Tap the text to pause and swipe up or down to jump.
Keep the device plugged in for long takes; the page also asks your screen to stay awake. If it locks anyway, turn off auto-lock in your device settings while you read.
Before you record, check your framing and lighting with our webcam test.
Mirror mode for glass teleprompters
A glass teleprompter, or beam splitter, reflects a screen lying below it. The reflection reverses the text, so turn on Mirror and the words read correctly in the glass. Flip turns the text upside down, for screens mounted the other way up. Both settings change only the text: the controls stay readable on the screen itself.
Use the white on black preset: black doesn’t show up in the glass, so only the words appear in front of the lens. The glass also sits farther from your eyes than a laptop screen, so try a font size of 80 px or more.
Using a teleprompter with Zoom, Teams or Google Meet
Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet don’t include a teleprompter, but you can run this one next to them. In Chrome, Edge or Firefox on a computer, press Pop-out in the prompter controls. A small window opens that stays on top of other apps, so you can drag it right under your webcam.
In other browsers, make the browser window narrow and short, and put it at the top of the screen, close to the camera. A second device, like a tablet behind your laptop, also works well. Keep the prompter to about three lines of text, so it doesn’t cover the faces on your call.
Other people on the call see only your camera, never the prompter. If you share your screen, share a single app window rather than the whole screen.
How to read a script while recording
Rehearse the script twice before you record. The first read finds awkward phrases; the second finds your speed. Start slower than you think you need, since speakers tend to rush on camera.
Look at the lens between lines, not only at the words. Keep paragraphs short and add a [pause] cue where you want to breathe. Rewrite any line you stumble on in words you’d naturally say.
Record with your usual camera app, screen recorder or video-call software. This page only scrolls your text: it doesn’t record video, and it never uses your microphone. That’s also why there’s no voice-following scroll, which would need the microphone.
Presenter clicker control
Most presenter clickers act like a keyboard, so they work here with no setup:
| Clicker button | Key it sends | What it does here |
|---|---|---|
| Next | Page Down | Jumps a third of the screen ahead |
| Previous | Page Up | Jumps back a third of the screen |
| Blank screen | . (period) or B | Pauses and plays |
| Start slideshow | F5 | Starts playing (the page won’t reload) |
On many clickers, the slideshow button sends F5 and then Esc on the next press. Esc takes you back to the editor, so pause with the blank-screen button instead. Laser-pointer and volume buttons send nothing the prompter uses, so they’re safe to press.
To see exactly which keys your clicker sends, press its buttons in our keyboard tester.