Heart of Darkness by the numbers
Joseph Conrad · first published 1899 · dataset 2026-07-21
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Length and reading time
| Pages (dataset edition) | 96 |
|---|---|
| Estimated words | 26,000 |
| Reading time, 300 wpm (fast) | 1 h 28 min |
| Reading time, 250 wpm (average adult) | 1 h 46 min |
| Reading time, 200 wpm (careful / younger reader) | 2 h 12 min |
| Days at 20 minutes a day | 6 |
| Lexile measure | 1070L |
At 96 pages, Heart of Darkness is longer than 23.4% of the 1,664 books on the reading lists we track. It is shorter than the median book listed for grades 9-12 (274 pages).
Word counts and reading times are estimates: pages × 275 words, divided by the reading speed. Your edition's page count and your own pace will differ.
Where Heart of Darkness is on school reading lists
2 appearances (0.0% of all 13,258 listings in the dataset), drawn from 1 published list, in grades 11th–12th. 2 of the 2 carry a link to the published source document.
| Grade | Listings |
|---|---|
| 11th | 1 |
| 12th | 1 |
Sources
- AP Lit representative text · checked 2026-06-16
Questions
How many pages is Heart of Darkness?
Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad is 96 pages in the edition recorded in our dataset. Page counts vary by edition and format; at about 275 words per page that is roughly 26,000 words.
How long does it take to read Heart of Darkness?
About 1 h 46 min at an average adult pace of 250 words per minute (1 h 28 min at 300 wpm, 2 h 12 min at 200 wpm). At 20 minutes a day that is about 6 days.
Is Heart of Darkness on school reading lists?
Yes. It appears 2 times on the U.S. school reading lists, award lists and curricula in our dataset, in no single state (national curricula only) plus 2 national-curriculum listings, most often in grades 9-12. That ranks it #1,615 of 1,664 listed books.
Related
- Heart of Darkness: reading level, grades and similar booksOn ReadingList, our sister site for school reading lists.
- Books of about the same lengthThe Whipping Boy (96 pp.) · The Pearl (96 pp.) · Love That Dog (92 pp.) · Fourth Grade Rats (90 pp.)
- The most assigned books, rankedAll 1,664 listed books start here.
- Book length statisticsHow long assigned books are, by grade.
Cite this page
<a href="https://bookstatistics.com/books/heart-of-darkness/">Heart of Darkness statistics</a>. Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site. [Heart of Darkness statistics](https://bookstatistics.com/books/heart-of-darkness/). Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site. [url=https://bookstatistics.com/books/heart-of-darkness/]Heart of Darkness statistics[/url]. Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site.