How long does it take to read an average novel?

A typical 80,000-word novel takes 5 hours and 36 minutes to read at the average adult silent reading speed of 238 WPM (Brysbaert 2019). A faster reader at 300 WPM finishes in about 4 hours and 27 minutes. A slower reader at 200 WPM takes 6 hours and 40 minutes. Most readers spread that across 3-7 sessions over a week or two.

How long is the average book in words?

A modern adult novel is 80,000-100,000 words. Novellas run 17,500-40,000. Young adult novels average 60,000-80,000. Epic fantasy often hits 120,000-200,000. Classic novels were typically longer, with War and Peace at 587,000 words and Les Miserables at 530,000. Children's chapter books are usually 20,000-50,000 words.

How long does it take to read 100 pages?

About 100 pages of a standard mass-market paperback contains roughly 25,000-30,000 words. At 238 WPM, that takes 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours 6 minutes. Trade paperbacks fit fewer words per page (around 250-300) so 100 pages would be 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours 10 minutes. Reading speed varies more than page-density, so calculate from word count when possible.

Do you read fiction faster than nonfiction?

Yes, by about 10-15%. Fiction averages 260 WPM versus 238 WPM for nonfiction in Brysbaert's meta-analysis. Familiar vocabulary, predictable syntax, and narrative momentum make fiction read faster. Dense literary fiction (Faulkner, Joyce) reads slower than nonfiction. Technical and academic books drop to 150-200 WPM because every paragraph requires processing.

How long does it take to read the Bible?

The King James Bible is about 783,000 words. At 238 WPM, reading it cover-to-cover takes roughly 55 hours. Most one-year Bible reading plans require 12-15 minutes per day, which works out to about 76 hours including reflection time. Bible Gateway's audio versions run 70-80 hours at narration speed (around 160 WPM).

Are audiobooks faster or slower than reading?

Audiobooks are slower at default speed. Professional narrators typically perform at 150-160 WPM, well below the 238 WPM adult silent reading average. An 80,000-word novel runs about 8.5 hours as an audiobook versus 5.5 hours read silently. Listeners often play at 1.25x to 1.5x speed (190-240 WPM) to match their reading pace. Comprehension stays high up to about 1.75x for most listeners.

Can I read a whole book in one day?

Yes, for novels under 100,000 words. A motivated reader can finish a 70,000-word novel in 5-6 hours of focused reading. Fatigue is the limiter, not capacity. Most readers can sustain 90-120 minutes before comprehension drops, then need a 15-30 minute break. Three 90-minute sessions in a day comfortably finish most novels. Doorstoppers above 150,000 words usually need two days minimum.

How Long Does It Take to Read a Book? (Word Count to Hours)

Quick Answer

An average 80,000-word novel takes 5 hours and 36 minutes at the adult average of 238 WPM. Slower readers (200 WPM) need 6 hours 40 minutes; faster readers (300 WPM) finish in 4.5 hours.

Reading time is just word count divided by reading speed. The hard part is knowing the actual word count of a book, since publishers list pages rather than words. This guide gives you the math, the typical word counts by genre, and reference tables you can use to plan any read.

Reading Time by Book Length

All times below assume the Brysbaert 2019 average of 238 words per minute for adult silent reading of standard fiction. Slow your estimate by 20-30% for dense literary fiction or academic nonfiction.

Book Length	At 200 WPM	At 238 WPM	At 300 WPM
Short story (7,500 words)	38 min	32 min	25 min
Novella (30,000)	2h 30m	2h 6m	1h 40m
Short novel (50,000)	4h 10m	3h 30m	2h 47m
Average novel (80,000)	6h 40m	5h 36m	4h 27m
Long novel (100,000)	8h 20m	7h 0m	5h 33m
Epic fantasy (150,000)	12h 30m	10h 30m	8h 20m
Doorstopper (200,000)	16h 40m	14h 0m	11h 7m
War and Peace (587,000)	49h	41h	33h

Word Counts of Famous Books

Page counts mislead because typesetting varies wildly. The same book can be 250 or 400 pages depending on font size, margins, and trim. Word count is the only stable number. The figures below come from the Litcharts and Reading Length databases.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald: 47,094 words (about 3.3 hours)
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee: 99,121 words (6.9 hours)
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger: 73,404 words (5.1 hours)
1984 by George Orwell: 88,942 words (6.2 hours)
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien: 481,103 words (33.7 hours)
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling: 76,944 words (5.4 hours)
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix: 257,045 words (18 hours)
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin: 298,000 words (20.9 hours)
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand: 561,996 words (39.3 hours)
The Bible (KJV): 783,137 words (54.8 hours)

Reading Time by Genre

Different genres pace differently because of vocabulary density, sentence complexity, and how much dialogue versus description appears on each page. Rough adjustments to apply to a 238 WPM baseline:

Thriller and mystery: +15% faster. Dialogue-heavy, short sentences, momentum-driven.
Romance: +10% faster. Familiar tropes, contemporary vocabulary.
Contemporary fiction: baseline. The Brysbaert average is tuned to this.
Literary fiction: -10 to -25% slower. Dense prose, longer sentences, allusion.
Fantasy: -5 to -15%. Invented vocabulary, complex world-building, longer descriptions.
Science fiction: -10%. Technical vocabulary and conceptual density.
Nonfiction (general): -10%. Brysbaert measured 175-200 WPM for nonfiction.
Academic / textbook: -40 to -60%. Often 100-150 WPM with note-taking.

Audiobook Equivalents

Audiobooks run at a fixed narration speed of about 150-160 WPM by default. That makes them slower than reading for most adults, but adjustable via playback speed in apps like Audible, Libby, and Spotify Audiobooks.

Book length	Audiobook (1.0x)	At 1.5x	At 2.0x
50,000 words	5h 12m	3h 28m	2h 36m
80,000 words	8h 20m	5h 33m	4h 10m
100,000 words	10h 25m	6h 57m	5h 12m
200,000 words	20h 50m	13h 53m	10h 25m

How to Estimate Time for a Specific Book

Look up the word count on Reading Length, Litcharts, or your e-reader's metadata. Kindles, Kobos, and the Apple Books app all show word counts under book info.
If you only have a page count, multiply by 250 (standard paperback) or 300 (hardcover) for a rough word estimate.
Divide the word count by your personal WPM. Most adults can use 238 as a starting point.
Add 5-10% for note-taking, re-reading, or dense passages.
Use the Reading Time Calculator if you want to skip the math.

Tips to Finish Books Faster

Read in 45-90 minute blocks. Comprehension drops sharply after 90 minutes without a break.
Match book to mood. Trying to read literary fiction when tired adds an hour to any session.
Bring the book everywhere. Twenty 15-minute sessions equal a 5-hour reading session.
Try DNF-ing. Finishing every book you start is a productivity trap. Drop bad books fast.
Skip the introduction. Most fiction introductions are spoiler-heavy and add nothing to first reads.

Sources

Brysbaert, M. (2019). How many words do we read per minute? A review and meta-analysis of reading rate. Journal of Memory and Language, 109, 104047.
Reading Length. Word count database for popular books.
Litcharts. Word counts for classic literature.
Audible. Standard narration speed averages 150-160 WPM. Audible Help Center.
Trauzettel-Klosinski, S., & Dietz, K. (2012). Standardized assessment of reading performance. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, 53(9), 5452-5461.