Persuasive Speech Topics

More than a hundred persuasive speech topics grouped by theme and difficulty, a four-step structure for arguing them, and a timed practice session for each one.

Practise a persuasive speech

A persuasive speech asks the audience to believe something or do something. The hard part is not the delivery but the choice of topic: it has to be arguable, relevant to the people in the room, and something you can support with evidence and a real example.

Below are over a hundred persuasive speech topics grouped by theme and difficulty, followed by a short structure that works at any length. Every topic opens a timed practice session in Speakeroo, so you can argue it out loud and get feedback on how convincing it sounded.

Easy persuasive speech topics

Low-stakes topics where the evidence is everyday experience. Good for a first persuasive speech or a language class.

  1. Everyone should learn to cook three meals.
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  2. Schools should start an hour later.
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  3. Reading before bed beats scrolling.
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  4. Walking is the best form of exercise.
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  5. Every student should learn to type properly.
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  6. Public transport should be free for students.
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  7. Homework should be limited to one hour a night.
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  8. Breakfast should be served at every school.
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  9. Everyone should keep a plant.
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  10. Board games are better than video games for families.
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  11. Cities need more public drinking fountains.
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  12. Learning an instrument should be part of every school day.
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  13. Tap water is better than bottled water.
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  14. Everyone should take a first-aid course.
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  15. Weekends should be three days long.
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Persuasive speech topics for students

School and college topics with clear sides and easy-to-find evidence.

  1. Exams should be replaced by coursework.
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  2. Students should be allowed to grade their teachers.
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  3. Phones should be banned in classrooms.
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  4. School uniforms should be optional.
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  5. Physical education should be graded pass or fail.
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  6. Every student should do a year of community service.
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  7. College should be free.
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  8. Class sizes should be capped at twenty.
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  9. Financial literacy should be a required subject.
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  10. Students should be able to choose their own reading list.
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  11. Schools should teach coding from primary level.
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  12. Standardised tests do more harm than good.
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  13. Group projects should be graded individually.
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  14. Every school should have a mental health counsellor.
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  15. Recess should be extended, not cut.
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Interesting persuasive speech topics

Topics with a surprising angle. Expect the audience to lean in.

  1. Boredom is good for you.
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  2. We should all sleep in two shifts, like our ancestors.
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  3. Failure should be celebrated at work.
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  4. Cities should turn off street lights after midnight.
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  5. Everyone should spend a week without a phone every year.
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  6. Handwriting still matters.
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  7. You should quit something every year.
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  8. Silence should be built into every meeting.
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  9. Adults should have recess too.
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  10. We should teach children to argue.
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  11. Museums should be open at night.
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  12. Everyone should learn to say no.
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  13. Long commutes are secretly valuable.
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  14. The best vacation is a staycation.
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  15. Nobody should check email before ten.
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Persuasive speech topics on society and politics

Bigger questions that need evidence and a fair treatment of the other side. Aim for three minutes.

  1. Voting should be compulsory.
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  2. The voting age should be lowered to sixteen.
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  3. Cities should ban cars from their centres.
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  4. Universal basic income should be tested nationally.
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  5. Plastic packaging should be taxed.
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  6. Housing should be treated as a right, not an investment.
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  7. Public officials should have term limits.
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  8. Fast fashion should carry a warning label.
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  9. Advertising to children should be banned.
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  10. Every city needs a four-day work week pilot.
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  11. Junk food should be taxed like tobacco.
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  12. Public parks should get more funding than car parks.
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  13. Remote work should be a legal right where possible.
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  14. The minimum wage should rise with rent.
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  15. Countries should invest more in trains than in roads.
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Persuasive speech topics on technology

Topics your audience lives with every day. Bring your own examples.

  1. Social media should have an age limit of sixteen.
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  2. AI-generated content should be labelled.
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  3. Every school should teach media literacy.
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  4. Your phone should not be the first thing you see in the morning.
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  5. Companies should be fined for dark patterns.
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  6. Self-driving cars should be allowed on all roads.
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  7. Screen time limits should apply to adults too.
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  8. Online privacy is worth paying for.
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  9. Video calls should be shorter than meetings in person.
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  10. Everyone should learn how the internet works.
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  11. Streaming services should bring back weekly episodes.
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  12. Smartwatches make us less healthy, not more.
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  13. Passwords should be replaced by passkeys.
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  14. Kids should learn to repair devices, not just use them.
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  15. Software should be built to last ten years.
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Persuasive speech topics on health and lifestyle

Habits and health, where the evidence is strong and the resistance is personal.

  1. Everyone should walk ten thousand steps a day.
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  2. Sugar should be listed in teaspoons on labels.
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  3. Sleep is more important than exercise.
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  4. Cooking at home should be taught as a life skill.
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  5. Sitting is the new smoking.
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  6. Every office should have a nap room.
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  7. Gyms should be free for people over sixty.
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  8. Cold showers are worth the shock.
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  9. Meditation should be taught in schools.
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  10. Everyone should learn to swim.
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  11. A daily walk beats a weekly workout.
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  12. Meat-free Mondays should be standard in canteens.
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  13. Work email should shut off at seven.
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  14. Standing desks should be the default.
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  15. Everyone should know their blood pressure.
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Funny persuasive speech topics

Silly claims argued seriously. Great for warming up a room or a class.

  1. Pineapple belongs on pizza.
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  2. Socks with sandals should be fashionable.
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  3. Mondays should be cancelled.
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  4. Cereal is a soup.
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  5. Cats should be allowed to vote.
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  6. Everyone should own a cape.
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  7. Naps should be mandatory after lunch.
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  8. The best superpower is invisibility.
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  9. Dogs should be allowed in every office.
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  10. Pyjamas are acceptable work clothes.
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  11. Every town needs a giant slide.
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  12. Dessert should come first.
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  13. Nobody should have to fold fitted sheets.
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  14. Escalators should play music.
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  15. Coffee is a food group.
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How to write and deliver a persuasive speech

  1. 1

    Hook, then claim

    Start with a fact, a question, or a short story that makes the problem real. Then state your position in a single sentence so the audience knows what you want.

  2. 2

    Three reasons, each with proof

    Choose the two or three reasons you can back up. For each, give one piece of evidence and one example a listener can picture.

  3. 3

    Handle the objection

    Name the best argument against you and answer it. Audiences trust speakers who show they have heard the other side.

  4. 4

    Ask for one action

    End with a concrete action: sign, vote, try it for a week, change one habit. Vague endings waste a persuasive speech.

Questions

What makes a good persuasive speech topic?

A good persuasive speech topic has two sides, matters to the audience, and can be argued with evidence you actually have. "Schools should start later" works because listeners have an opinion and you can cite sleep research and your own experience. "Kindness is good" fails because nobody disagrees.

How do I structure a persuasive speech?

Open with a hook that shows the problem, state your position in one sentence, give two or three reasons with evidence, deal with the strongest objection honestly, and close with a specific action. That order works for a two-minute class speech and a twenty-minute keynote.

How do I choose between two topics?

Pick the topic you have a real story about. Persuasion comes from specifics, and specifics come from experience. If you have never had a part-time job, do not argue about part-time jobs.

How can I practise a persuasive speech out loud?

Each topic on this page opens a timed practice session. Speak your argument, then review the feedback on structure, pacing, filler words, and clarity. Repeat the same topic once with one change, and compare the two takes.

Keep going

Public speaking practice
Informative speech topics
Impromptu speech topics
Presentation topics

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Practise a persuasive speech