Free tools / Filler word counter
Filler word counter
Most people have no idea how often they say “um”. Record a straight answer and this counts every vocal filler with a timestamp, then tells you the rate per minute.
Say this
“Explain what you are working on this week, as if to a colleague who has two minutes.”
Start recording
Up to 60 seconds. Audio is scored in memory and deleted right after — we never store recordings.
What counts as a filler
We count vocal fillers only: um, umm, uh, uhh, uhm, er, erm, ah, hmm, mm, mhm. Words like “like” and “you know” are left out, because they are often real words doing real work and counting them inflates the number.
The count comes from the transcript, with timestamps, so a filler at second 41 is counted in the right place and the rate is per minute of actual speech — not per minute of sitting in front of the microphone.
What a normal rate looks like
Below one filler a minute is rare outside scripted speech. One to four is ordinary in a meeting. Above about ten, most listeners notice, and it usually means you are thinking out loud rather than planning the sentence.
The fix is almost never “stop saying um”. It is replacing the filler with a half-second pause. Silence sounds composed; a filler sounds like a request for permission.
Questions
- Is the recording stored?
- No. Audio is transcribed and counted in memory, then discarded. Only you see the result.
- Does it work on an iPhone?
- Yes, in Safari over HTTPS. The browser asks for microphone permission the first time.
- Does it count “like” and “you know”?
- No, on purpose. Only vocal fillers. The full test counts hedging separately.
The full test scores all six components
One recording, a score out of 100, a marked transcript, one tip and one drill.
Take the free test