How Long Does It Take to Read the Entire Bible?
Matt · April 22, 2026
Reading the entire Bible takes most people between 70 and 90 hours. At a comfortable reading pace of about 200 words per minute, you can finish the whole thing — Old Testament and New Testament — in roughly 75 hours of actual reading time.
What That Looks Like in Practice
Seventy-five hours sounds like a lot, but spread across a year it becomes very manageable:
- 15 minutes a day → finish in about 12–13 months
- 20 minutes a day → finish in right around a year
- 30 minutes a day → finish in about 6–7 months
- 1 hour a day → finish in roughly 90 days
The New Testament alone is much shorter — around 18 hours of reading. You could finish it in a month at just 35 minutes a day, or in 90 days at 12 minutes a day.
The Old Testament accounts for the bulk of the reading time, roughly 55–60 hours. Books like Psalms and Proverbs tend to go quickly because the chapters are short. Books like Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Isaiah move a bit slower because the content is dense and the passages are long.
Why Most People Choose a 365-Day Plan
A one-year plan hits a sweet spot. It's ambitious enough to feel meaningful but forgiving enough that missing a day or two won't derail you. You're reading a little every day rather than marathon sessions on weekends.
The Bible has 1,189 chapters. Divide that over 365 days and you get about 3–4 chapters per day — which takes 15 to 20 minutes depending on where you are in the text. Some days (like a few chapters of Numbers) will feel long. Others (like the short letters in the New Testament) will fly by.
Apps like Bible In A Year are built around exactly this rhythm. Each day's reading is pre-scheduled so you don't have to figure out where you left off or do the math yourself. Progress tracking and daily reminders help you stay consistent on the days when motivation dips.
Factors That Affect Your Pace
A few things will change how long it actually takes you:
Translation choice. The NIV and NLT read faster because they use modern, accessible language. The KJV and NASB are more literal and can slow your pace slightly.
Reading vs. listening. If you listen to an audio Bible, the average narration speed is around 150 words per minute. That puts the full Bible at about 85–90 hours of audio.
Stopping to reflect. If you pause to journal, pray, or look up cross-references, budget extra time. That's not a bad thing — it just means your pace will be slower than raw reading time suggests.
Difficult sections. The genealogies and legal sections in Leviticus, Numbers, and parts of Chronicles tend to be places where readers stall. Knowing that going in helps.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many pages is the entire Bible?
Most printed Bibles run between 1,200 and 1,500 pages depending on font size, formatting, and whether it includes study notes. A standard text-only Bible is around 1,200 pages.
Is it realistic to read the Bible in a year?
Yes — for most people it's one of the more achievable year-long goals. The daily commitment (15–20 minutes) is modest. The challenge is consistency over 365 days, not the reading itself. A structured plan with daily reminders makes a real difference.
What is the longest book in the Bible?
Psalms has the most chapters (150) and is the longest book by word count, at roughly 43,000 words. Jeremiah runs a close second. The shortest book is 3 John at just 219 words.