The Very Hungry Caterpillar by the numbers
Eric Carle · first published 1969 · dataset 2026-10-24
Who it is not for: readers past 1st grade: no school list in our data assigns it later.
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Length and reading time
| Pages (dataset edition) | 26 |
|---|---|
| Estimated words | 7,000 |
| Reading time, 300 wpm (fast) | 24 min |
| Reading time, 250 wpm (average adult) | 29 min |
| Reading time, 200 wpm (careful / younger reader) | 36 min |
| Days at 20 minutes a day | 2 |
| Lexile measure | 460L |
At 26 pages, The Very Hungry Caterpillar is longer than 1.7% of the 2,330 books on the reading lists we track whose page count we know (2,809 books are tracked in all). It is shorter than the median book listed for grades K-2 (40 pages).
The Very Hungry Caterpillar is 26 pages; the median book listed for grades K-2 is 40 pages and the median of all 2,330 listed books with a page count is 187.
Source: Page counts of 2,330 books on U.S. school reading lists, bookstatistics.com · Dataset snapshot 2026-10-24
Show the numbers
| Book | Pages |
|---|---|
| The Very Hungry Caterpillar | 26 pages |
| Median book listed for grades K-2 | 40 pages |
| Median of all listed books | 187 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 The Very Hungry Caterpillar is on school reading lists
2 appearances (0.0% of all 20,804 listings in the dataset), drawn from 2 published lists, in grades Kindergarten–1st. 2 of the 2 carry a link to the published source document.
| Grade | Listings |
|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 1 |
| 1st | 1 |
Sources
- CES Academy — Grade-by-Grade Summer Reading List · checked 2026-06-05
- The First Academy — Kindergarten Read-Aloud & Early Readers Suggested Summer Reading · checked 2026-06-05
Questions
How many pages is The Very Hungry Caterpillar?
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle is 26 pages in the edition recorded in our dataset. Page counts vary by edition and format; at about 275 words per page that is roughly 7,000 words.
How long does it take to read The Very Hungry Caterpillar?
About 29 min at an average adult pace of 250 words per minute (24 min at 300 wpm, 36 min at 200 wpm). At 20 minutes a day that is about 2 days.
Is The Very Hungry Caterpillar on school reading lists?
Yes. It appears 2 times on the U.S. school reading lists, award lists and curricula in our dataset, in one national curriculum (no single state), most often in grades K-2. That ranks it #2,772 of 2,809 listed books.
Related
- The Very Hungry Caterpillar: reading level, grades and similar booksOn ReadingList, our sister site for school reading lists.
- Books of about the same lengthThe Bees of Notre-Dame (22 pp.) · A Bad Case of Stripes (32 pp.) · If You Give a Mouse a Cookie (32 pp.) · The Stranger (32 pp.)
- The most assigned books, rankedAll 2,809 listed books start here.
- Book length statisticsHow long assigned books are, by grade.
Cite this page
<a href="https://bookstatistics.com/books/the-very-hungry-caterpillar/">The Very Hungry Caterpillar statistics</a>. Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site. [The Very Hungry Caterpillar statistics](https://bookstatistics.com/books/the-very-hungry-caterpillar/). Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site. [url=https://bookstatistics.com/books/the-very-hungry-caterpillar/]The Very Hungry Caterpillar statistics[/url]. Book Statistics, a Figures Bureau site.