How long does it take to read War and Peace?
Leo Tolstoy · Maude translation
At an average reading speed of 250 words a minute, War and Peace takes about 37 hours to read. As an audiobook, expect about 60 hours at 1x.
War and Peace has a reputation as the longest novel anyone actually reads, and it earns it. But its 360-odd chapters are short, often just a few pages, which makes a chapter-a-day plan workable. The second epilogue is an essay on history rather than story.
Average is about 250 WPM. Measure yours in two minutes and every time on this page recalculates.
How much to read a day
At 250 words a minute, to finish the book:
Have a deadline in mind? The pages-per-day calculator works it out for any date.
How we measured it
Method: counted text. We used the Project Gutenberg text of Louise and Aylmer Maude's translation (#2600), from the first line through the Second Epilogue. Other translations, such as Pevear and Volokhonsky's, differ in length.
Part of our study of the 100 most popular books, last checked October 2026. Reading times assume steady reading; editions, translations and your own pace all move them.
See how long it really takes you
Log it in Parch as you read. It tracks your pages, sessions and streak, so you'll know your real pace, and how long the next one will take.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to read War and Peace?
About 37 hours at an average reading speed of 250 words a minute: 47 hours at 200 and 31 hours at 300.
How many words are in War and Peace?
562,203 words.
How many pages a day to finish War and Peace in a month?
About 69 pages a day, or 1h 15m of reading a day at an average pace. That assumes about 2,044 pages at 275 words a page; real page counts vary by edition.
How long does it take to read War and Peace a chapter a day?
With just over 360 chapters, about a year. That's the pace of the popular year-long readalongs, at under ten minutes a day.
Do I have to read the epilogues?
The first epilogue finishes the characters' stories. The second is Tolstoy's essay on history and free will; many readers skim it.