How to speed read the Bible without losing the meaning
You can read through the Bible faster, but the gains come from a steady pace and fewer distractions, not from skimming at 1,000 words a minute. Here's how long it takes at different speeds, what the research says, and how to find a pace you can keep.
Updated
How long does it take to read the Bible?
The King James Version has about 790,000 words in 31,102 verses: about 609,000 in the Old Testament and 180,000 in the New. Across 190 studies, adults read non-fiction silently at an average of 238 words per minute and read aloud at about 183. At the average silent pace, the whole Bible takes about 55 hr 18 min, or roughly 9 minutes a day to finish in a year.
| Reading speed | Whole Bible | New Testament | Per day for a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 150 wpm · slow and careful | 87 hr 44 min | 20 hr 3 min | 14 min |
| 183 wpm · average reading aloud | 71 hr 55 min | 16 hr 26 min | 12 min |
| 200 wpm | 65 hr 48 min | 15 hr 2 min | 11 min |
| 238 wpm · average silent reading | 55 hr 18 min | 12 hr 38 min | 9 min |
| 300 wpm · fast | 43 hr 52 min | 10 hr 1 min | 7 min |
| 400 wpm · very fast | 32 hr 54 min | 7 hr 31 min | 5 min |
Word counts are from the public-domain 1769 King James text. Other translations differ by a few percent.
Reading-time calculator
Set your speed and pick the whole Bible, one Testament, or a single book.
Not sure of your speed? Time yourself reading Mark 1, which is 930 words in the KJV. Divide 930 by the minutes it took, and that's your words per minute.
What speed reading can and can't do
Most speed-reading courses promise to double or triple your speed. A 2016 review of the research by Keith Rayner and colleagues found a trade-off: the faster people go, the less they understand. The limit is how quickly your mind processes language, not how quickly your eyes move. Skimming is useful for finding a passage, not for reading one.
What does make reading faster is ordinary: reading more, knowing the language of the text, fewer interruptions, and less rereading of things you've already understood.
How word-by-word reading helps
Showing one word at a time in the same spot is called rapid serial visual presentation, or RSVP. Your eyes stay still, the pace is set for you, and there's no page to wander off. It's a good match for readers who lose their place or drift halfway down a page.
Bible Captions is built on this idea. The Bible plays like captions, one word at a time, at the speed you choose, with a slightly longer pause at commas and periods so the sentences keep their shape.
There's one catch, and the research is clear about it: when words appear one at a time, you can't glance back at one you missed, so understanding drops as the speed climbs. Set a pace a little below your natural speed, and pause whenever a verse needs more thought.
How to read the Bible faster, step by step
- Pick a translation you read easily. Familiar language is the biggest speed boost there is.
- Find your baseline. Time one chapter, then use the calculator to see what that means for a book or the whole Bible.
- Read in short daily sessions. At an average pace, 10 minutes a day finishes the Bible in about a year.
- Remove distractions. Silence notifications and keep one thing on screen.
- Change pace with the book. Move quickly through narrative like Genesis, Mark or Acts. Slow down for Psalms, the prophets and Paul's letters.
- Stop when something matters. Speed is for momentum. Reread the verses that stand out.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to read the whole Bible?
About 55 hr 18 min at the average silent reading speed of 238 words per minute, and about 43 hr 52 min at 300. Reading aloud, it takes about 71 hr 55 min.
Can you speed read the Bible?
You can read it faster, within limits. Steady pacing, fewer distractions and a familiar translation will speed you up. Pushing far past your natural speed mostly costs you understanding.
What is a good reading speed for the Bible?
One where you could sum up what you just read. For most adults that's somewhere between 200 and 300 words per minute, and slower for poetry and prophecy.
How many words are in the Bible?
About 790,000 in the King James Version by our count of the 1769 text (789,629 words). The New Testament is about 180,000 of them.
Should you read the Bible fast?
Reading quickly helps you see the big story; reading slowly helps you take a passage in. Many readers do both: a steady pace through a book, then a slower second look at the verses that stood out.
Read at your own pace
Bible Captions plays the entire Bible one word at a time, like captions, at the speed you set. Free to download on iPhone.
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.
- Rayner, K., Schotter, E. R., Masson, M. E. J., Potter, M. C., & Treiman, R. (2016). So much to read, so little time: How do we read, and can speed reading help? Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 17(1), 4–34.
- Scripture: King James Version (1769 text), public domain in the United States. Text from CrossWire Bible Society, checked against a second public-domain edition.