Since users know how long it will take, a Display estimated reading time encourages them to read the entire post. As a result, you will be able to keep readers on your website longer and boost engagement.
For those who don’t know, it’s a blogging platform where you can read stories, share ideas, and write about anything you want. You can also syndicate your posts and get traffic to your site without worrying about duplicate content. keep continuing reading if you want to know How to Display Estimated Reading Time.
Do You Need Time to Read Feature on Your Website?
Consider the following:
- Checking how long it will take to contact the support staff of any product or service
- Finding out how long it will take you to reach your destination using GPS
- Analyzing the total length of a video or movie
All of the overheads have one thing in common – TIME.
Isn’t it true that no one likes to wait for anything?
When we read articles, the same applies. We want to find a solution to our problems as soon as feasible.
This is where the reading time feature comes in handy, helping you to:
- Engage your visitors on your website
- Bounce rate reduction
After all, you can always test what works for you. Try it out on your site and see if it helps.
Table of Contents
How to Display Estimated Reading Time
Assume that an average adult reads 250 words per minute. An article with 1500 words will take 6 minutes to read if the number of words is divided by 250.
You don’t have to calculate the read time of all your articles manually. The web has many WordPress plugins that can do this job efficiently.
It’s a simple plugin that does its job well. Your posts and pages can display the read time automatically or manually (using shortcodes).
The plugin needs to be installed.
Log in to your WordPress dashboard and click Plugins -> Add New.
Now search for Reading Time WP in the search box at the top right corner. Install and activate it once you find it:
The plugin will automatically add the read time feature to your posts once you activate it. On the other hand, you can certainly turn it on/off from the settings page. You can also make other changes as you wish.
You can edit the text that appears before and after the time here. The average reading speed, set to 300 by default, can also be changed.
Your content and excerpt can also include the reading time. You can check or uncheck the options you like by clicking the Update Options button.
Style the text
Whether you add the read time automatically or with shortcodes, this plugin adds it in plain text.
How can you style it so that it stands out from the rest of the content?
CSS can help you do that.
Don’t forget to backup your files before making any changes.
Go to Appearance -> Customize and then click on Additional CSS. Add the following code in the text area and click on Publish:
Users with advanced skills
To display the time-to-read feature along with the author name, category, and date, edit your theme files and place the following code:
Alternative plugins: Bar Swift
You can use many alternative plugins to achieve the same result. Therefore, here is the top alternative plugins. Using clean coding, Swift Bar adds a sticky bar to the bottom of your posts. There is also a progress bar and social sharing buttons.
Swift bar features include:
- The current post’s category
- The title of the recent post
- Name of the author
- It’s time to read
- Social Share buttons and counters
- Links to previous and next posts
Read it if you can
The Worth The Read plugin adds a progress bar that shows how far the user has progressed. It can also be displayed on your posts, pages, or homepage. From the settings page, you can control the placement of the progress bar.
You can also add read time to your pages with this plugin. This feature can be enabled and placed anywhere on the page.
Time to Read on WordPress
MyThemeShop Team developed WP Time to Read, a premium plugin. You may use this plugin if you have an extended membership of MyThemeShop or if you plan to purchase one.
WP Time to Read is similar to the Worth The Read plugin. Your posts can display the time and progress bar. The settings page also allows you to change the color of the progress bar.
Note at end
I hope you enjoyed this article and found it helpful!
How would you feel about displaying estimated reading time in your articles? Is it likely to reduce bounce rates and increase engagement among users? Let me know what you think in the comments.
