Teleprompter scrolling too fast, too slow or jumpy
The right speed is the one you naturally speak at, and the scroll should never jerk on camera. Here's how to find your pace and keep the motion smooth.
Step by step: voice follow and the rehearsal report
- Tap the microphone. Allow the microphone once. The bar shows LISTENING, and you can try it free for two minutes a day.
- Read at your own pace. The line you’re saying stays on the reading line. Stop to breathe, ad-lib or laugh, and the script waits for you.
- Pause to see how it went. After half a minute or more, pausing shows a rehearsal report: your time and pace, filler words the speech service heard, and lines you may have skipped.
- Jump back and try again. Tap a skipped line to go straight to it, or Practice again to start from where you began. Nothing is recorded; the report uses only what voice follow already hears.
Find your speed in words per minute
Pixel-based speed settings change meaning every time you resize the text. Words per minute doesn't: 140 wpm stays 140 wpm whatever the font size. Many people speak to camera somewhere around 130 to 160 wpm, but your own pace is what counts.
- Rehearse once at the default speed, as video crews often do before a take (DVXuser).
- Nudge it up or down in steps of 10 wpm until you're never waiting for, or chasing, the text.
- If you need to hit a length, use Fit to in the script editor: type 2:30 and Reframely sets the speed. There's also a words-per-minute calculator.
Why scrolling jumps
- Abrupt starts and stops. Many apps go from zero to full speed instantly. Reframely eases in and out so changes look natural.
- Speed controls that misbehave. If speed changes on a long script have little effect or jump, restart the prompter app; in Reframely, speed is set in words per minute and stays the same whatever the text size.
- Power saving. Low-power or battery-saver modes can lower the screen's refresh rate. Plug in and turn it off while recording.
- Background apps. Close heavy apps on the device in the rig.
Let the script follow you instead
If a fixed speed never feels right, try voice follow: the script moves as you talk and waits when you pause.
Smoothness depends on the device, too
- Battery saver and low power modes can lower the screen's refresh rate and make scrolling look stepped. Turn them off while recording and plug the device in.
- Old devices scroll more smoothly with a simpler page: close other tabs and apps.
- High refresh-rate screens (90 or 120 Hz) look smoothest. Reframely moves the text every frame, so it takes advantage of them automatically.
Jumpy on the second screen or in OBS?
The output window follows the prompter word by word and keeps scrolling between updates, so a brief network hiccup doesn't show. If it still stutters in OBS, check the browser source's frame rate matches your canvas (often 30 or 60) and that hardware acceleration is on in OBS.
Questions
What is a good teleprompter speed?
Around 130 to 160 words per minute suits many people on camera. Rehearse once and adjust in steps of 10.
How do I make a script fit a set time?
Count the words and divide by the minutes you have. Reframely's Fit to box does this and sets the speed for you.
Sources
Last updated .