How many pages is Great Expectations?

About 512 pages, though editions of a book this old vary a great deal — which is why its reading time comes from the complete text instead: 185,497 words, about 12½ hrs of reading at an average pace.

Is Great Expectations worth reading?

We score it 4.4 out of 10 for the time it takes — a hard sell for the time. Readers on Hardcover rate it 3.55 out of 5 from 911 ratings, which counts for 4.8; at about 12½ hrs at an average pace it gives back 0.4 for its length.

How long is the Great Expectations audiobook?

About 20½ hrs, estimated from the 185,000 words at a typical narration pace of 150 words a minute. Real editions vary by narrator, usually by well under an hour.

Find a copy Listen on Audible · ≈20½ hrs

Great Expectations

Name: Great Expectations
Author: Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens

12½ hrsto read

4.4worth it

At your speed≈ 12½ hrs

Pages512

Audiobook≈ 20½ hrs

Times shown for 250 words a minute (average)

The complete text runs to 185,497 words, counted word for word. At an average 250 words a minute that is 12½ hrs — a week or more of evenings.

Readers on Hardcover rate it 3.55 out of 5, from 911 ratings.

Worth-it score 4.4/10 — A hard sell for the time. Readers 4.8 (Hardcover's 3.55★ from 911 ratings) − length 0.4 = 4.4. How the score works →

How long does it take to read Great Expectations?

The complete text of Great Expectations runs to 185,497 words — about 512 pages in the edition we list. How long that takes depends on how fast you read:

Estimated reading time for Great Expectations at three reading speeds.
Your pace	Words per minute	Time to finish
Slow	175	17½ hrs
Average	250	12½ hrs
Fast	400	7½ hrs

Counted word for word from the complete public-domain text on Project Gutenberg, so these times don't depend on any one edition's page count. Most adults read between 200 and 300 words a minute — set your own pace and every time on the site adjusts. Prefer to listen? At a typical narration pace of 150 words a minute the audiobook runs about 20½ hrs — an estimate from the word count, since narrators vary.

Common questions

How long does it take to read Great Expectations?: About 12½ hrs at an average reading speed of 250 words per minute. The complete text of Great Expectations runs to 185,497 words — so at a slower 175 wpm it is nearer 17½ hrs, and at 400 wpm closer to 7½ hrs.
How many pages is Great Expectations?: About 512 pages, though editions of a book this old vary a great deal — which is why its reading time comes from the complete text instead: 185,497 words, about 12½ hrs of reading at an average pace.
Is Great Expectations worth reading?: We score it 4.4 out of 10 for the time it takes — a hard sell for the time. Readers on Hardcover rate it 3.55 out of 5 from 911 ratings, which counts for 4.8; at about 12½ hrs at an average pace it gives back 0.4 for its length.
How long is the Great Expectations audiobook?: About 20½ hrs, estimated from the 185,000 words at a typical narration pace of 150 words a minute. Real editions vary by narrator, usually by well under an hour.

From the publisher

In Great Expectations, Charles Dickens chronicles the life of Pip, an ordinary country boy led astray by the trappings of London society as well as his desire to improve himself and become a gentleman.…

Along the way, Pip meets the disappointed Miss Havisham and her beautiful but unattainable ward, Estella, with whom he falls deeply in love. Beloved by generations of readers, Great Expectations was originally published in serial form from December 1860 to August 1861.

AuthorsBenefactorsBildungsromansBoysChild and youth fictionClassic LiteratureComing of ageConduct of life