Router bit speed calculator
The fastest a router should spin a bit of a given diameter, from the speed charts four bit makers and publishers print. The speed marked on your bit always wins when it is lower, and the answer says when it does.
The largest cutting diameter, not the shank. Fractions like 1 1/2 are fine.
Run at or below
17,000 RPM
Median of 4 sources
Most cautious chart: Fine Woodworking, 15,000 RPM.
Rim speed 8,901 ft/min (2,713 m/min).
Why: A 2 in bit: the median of 4 makers’ maximums is 17,000 RPM (they span 15,000–22,000). Never exceed the speed marked on your bit.
Why these numbers?
The situation
A 2 in bit, no marked speed entered.
From your input: bit diameter
What that means
Amana Tool 22,000, Yonico 18,000, Wood Tech Tooling 16,000, Fine Woodworking 15,000 RPM: median 17,000.
So
At 17,000 RPM the edge of a 2 in bit travels π × 2 × 17,000 ÷ 12 = 8,901 ft/min.
Arithmetic: exact by definition
Sources
- Amana Tool, Max RPM Guide for Amana Tool router bits (symmetrical bits; the laser etching on the shank has the latest rating), read 2026-11-07
- Yonico, Router bit speed table, max and min RPM by bit diameter 1 to 3.5 in (on Yonico bit pages at Precision Bits), read 2026-11-07
- Wood Tech Tooling, "Router Bits 101": suggested router speeds by cutting diameter (reprinted by WOODWEB), read 2026-11-07
- Fine Woodworking, "Safe Speeds for Big Router Bits" (May 2006; table excerpted from Furniture You Can Build, p. 140), read 2026-11-07
Router bit speed chart
Each maker's maximum for that cutting diameter, as its own table prints it, and the median the calculator uses. A dash means that maker's table doesn't cover the size. Where only two cover it, the lower is used.
| Bit Ø | Amana Tool | Yonico | Wood Tech Tooling | Fine Woodworking | Max RPM | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1/4 in | 28,000 | – | 24,000 | – | 24,000 | Only two sources publish this: Amana Tool and Wood Tech Tooling |
| 1/2 in | 28,000 | – | 24,000 | – | 24,000 | Only two sources publish this: Amana Tool and Wood Tech Tooling |
| 3/4 in | 28,000 | – | 24,000 | – | 24,000 | Only two sources publish this: Amana Tool and Wood Tech Tooling |
| 1 in | 28,000 | 24,000 | 18,000 | – | 24,000 | Median of 3 sources |
| 1 1/4 in | 28,000 | 24,000 | 16,000 | 18,000 | 21,000 | Median of 4 sources |
| 1 1/2 in | 28,000 | 24,000 | 16,000 | 18,000 | 21,000 | Median of 4 sources |
| 1 3/4 in | 28,000 | 20,000 | 16,000 | 15,000 | 18,000 | Median of 4 sources |
| 2 in | 22,000 | 18,000 | 16,000 | 15,000 | 17,000 | Median of 4 sources |
| 2 1/4 in | 22,000 | 15,600 | 12,000 | 15,000 | 15,300 | Median of 4 sources |
| 2 1/2 in | 19,000 | 14,400 | 12,000 | 15,000 | 14,700 | Median of 4 sources |
| 2 3/4 in | 16,000 | 12,800 | 12,000 | 10,000 | 12,400 | Median of 4 sources |
| 3 in | 16,000 | 12,000 | 12,000 | 10,000 | 12,000 | Median of 4 sources |
| 3 1/4 in | 15,000 | 10,900 | 12,000 | 10,000 | 11,450 | Median of 4 sources |
| 3 1/2 in | 15,000 | 10,200 | 12,000 | 10,000 | 11,100 | Median of 4 sources |
The charts disagree: Amana allows 28,000 RPM for anything under 2 in, while Fine Woodworking's table drops to 10,000 RPM past 2 1/2 in. That is why the calculator takes the median of all four and shows the span, and why the bit's own marking comes first. Above 3 1/2 in only Amana publishes a figure, so there is no chart answer there.
The speed rules makers agree on
Never run a bit faster than the maximum speed marked on it or its package; a bit run over its rated speed can break and fly apart.
Bigger bits need lower speed: every chart here steps the maximum down as the diameter grows, because the edge of a bigger bit travels faster at the same RPM.
DeWALT: do not use bits larger than 2-1/2 in in diameter in the DW616 or DW618, and follow the bit maker’s speed.
One source: DeWALT, the maker of that router , sources [6]
Sources
- Amana Tool, Max RPM Guide for Amana Tool router bits (symmetrical bits; the laser etching on the shank has the latest rating), read 2026-11-07
- Freud / Diablo, Get the most out of your Freud bits by routing at ideal feed rates and speeds (CNC feed and speed guide, 2017), read 2026-11-07
- Wood Tech Tooling, "Router Bits 101": suggested router speeds by cutting diameter (reprinted by WOODWEB), read 2026-11-07
- Yonico, Router bit speed table, max and min RPM by bit diameter 1 to 3.5 in (on Yonico bit pages at Precision Bits), read 2026-11-07
- Fine Woodworking, "Safe Speeds for Big Router Bits" (May 2006; table excerpted from Furniture You Can Build, p. 140), read 2026-11-07
- DeWALT, DW616/DW618 router instruction manual (bit size limit; follow the bit maker’s speed), read 2026-11-07
Bit types, profiles, bearings and shanks are in the router bit guide.