Reading time indicators for display within a content authoring application are provided herein. Estimates of reading times for the content item as a whole, and of sections thereof, are created as the author manipulates content within a document. These estimates are displayed as indicators within the content authoring application and the document, to inform the author of how long a reader is expected to take when consuming the document. The functionality of the computing device running the content authoring application is thus improved by providing content limit indicators related to consumption time.