Alphanumeric data entry test
Data entry jobs rarely stop at numbers. Copy each record into the form — last name first, street, state, ZIP, amount — exactly as shown.
RECORD 1 — copy each field exactly, capitals and punctuation included
Tab or Enter moves to the next field; Enter on the last field submits the record. The clock starts on your first key.
How this one is scored
Each field is checked character by character, and the Tab or Enter that ends it counts as a keystroke, the same way the 10-key test treats Enter. Net WPM is correct characters ÷ 5 ÷ minutes.
The federal Office of Personnel Management says: Words per minute are based on a 5 minute sample with three or fewer errors.
So we only compare with its levels after a full 5-minute run, and we count each field that isn't exactly right as one error.
OPM typing levels
| Federal job | WPM |
|---|---|
| Data Transcriber GS-2 | 20 |
| Data Transcriber GS-3/4 | 25 |
| Clerk-Typist GS-2/4 | 40 |
Source and exact wording: who requires what. All names and addresses in this test are made up.
“Alphanumeric” in a federal job requirement
Among the sources this site quotes, the only one that uses the word is OPM's standard for clerical and administrative support jobs. It says: “Data Transcriber, GS-2/4; and (Data Transcription) (any grade): skill in operating an alphanumeric data transcribing machine, or 20 words per minute typing speed1 for GS-2 transcription duties or 25 words per minute typing speed1 for GS-3 and GS-4 transcription duties” (The 1 is a footnote mark in OPM's text, not part of the speed.) In that line, alphanumeric describes a machine skill, and a typing speed is the alternative to it.
OPM adds that the level depends on the duties: “A position classified as Payroll Clerk (Data Transcription), GS-544-4, may require either 20 or 25 words per minute typing speed depending upon the level of difficulty of the transcribing duties.” So 20 and 25 WPM are typing speeds for data transcription work, as the table above shows. They are not a pass mark for a test of mixed letters and numbers, and the page doesn't describe such a test.
We haven't found a pass mark for an “alphanumeric data entry test” on any page we could save. If you have one, the about page says how to reach us.