You’ve decided to read the Bible in a year…now what is your plan? There are many methods to accomplish this goal.
Whether this is a New Year’s resolution or has been a longtime goal, this guide to reading the Bible in one year can help you find the best printable read the Bible in a year plan, shop for a printed Bible, or even find alternatives to reading the Bible in one year.
Reading the Bible in one year can be a life changing experience, as you devote some time each day to reading parts of the Bible you may have never read before.
It can take you to unfamiliar Bible verses and help you to form a more complete theology as you take a closer look at more complicated Scriptures.
These plans can be helpful for churches or small groups who want to read the Bible in a year.
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure to learn more.
Free Printable Read the Bible in a Year Plan
Reading the Bible in one year is a worthy goal, if the Lord has put it on your heart. It gives a wonderful overview of history in the Bible. It’s also a lot of time spent with God through Scripture.
If this is your goal, here are some free printable Bible reading plans to try. Later, we’ll link to some helpful books and apps that can help you read the Bible in a year.
The One Year Bible Online’s Printable Reading Plan
“The One-Year Bible” reading plan may be considered the “official” way to read the Bible in one year, as the One Year Bible line of printed Bibles has been published since the late 1980s.
But it isn’t necessary to have their printed Bible to be able to read the Bible in one year; you can follow along with a printed list and use your own Bible.
Each reading will contain a reading from the Old Testament, New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs.
You can print several variations, including:
- The One Year Bible reading plan compacted into 3 pages, or in larger print over several more pages;
- One Year Chronological Bible Reading Plan, which helps you read through the Bible in the chronological order they occurred;
- Custom Yearly Reading Plans, starting on whatever date you want.
This is a popular plan for many reasons, but the main one is that each day’s Bible reading typically takes 15 minutes for the average reader. If you need the accountability of a dated reading, this might be a great option for you.
The Navigators Bible Reading Plan
The Navigators Bible Reading Plan, once called the Discipleship Journal Bible Reading Plan, is a great reading plan for those who need structure with a little bit of flexibility.
It features 25 readings a month instead of accounting for every day of the month. This can help you not miss readings on Sundays, Bible study days, or other commitments that you have.
The format is also nice, as it is only 2 pages, which you could print double sided on a single sheet of paper to keep in your Bible.
Five-Day Bible Reading Plan
The Five-Day Bible Reading Plan is another free printable plan that doesn’t require a Bible reading each day. A 5-day/week reading plan can give structure with some flexibility.
They also sell a Reader’s Companion .pdf on the website that they say “provides just the right amount of practical, key information to help your daily Bible reading become Bible study.”
Blue Letter Bible Historical Reading Plan
Blue Letter Bible, which many people use for Bible study and sermon preparation, offers a historical Bible reading plan printable.
It’s made up of 365 readings in what they believe to be the order of the books as they were written. It could help you understand what it might have been like to read the Bible in Israel at points in history.
The Bible Project Undated One Year Reading Plan
This printable Bible reading plan covers the whole Bible in 358 readings. This format has you reading a selection from the Old Testament or New Testament, plus a passage from the book of Psalms.
Kids’ Corner The Bible in One Year Plan
Kids’ Corner suggests a weekly Bible passage for kids to read with their families in their “The Bible in One Year” plan.
This isn’t strictly covering the whole Bible, but its lack of completeness is made up for in its goal to help kids and their families cover many of the stories in the Bible over the course of the year.
Other Options for Reading the Bible in One Year
A printable read the Bible in a year plan may be the right choice for some people. But the best Bible reading plan is one that works with how your brain works in processing information and making habits.
Look at these other options to see if one of these choices might be right for you.
Use a Bible Reading App or Website
There are many apps that can help you read through the Bible in One Year. These include:
- The YouVersion Bible App. Search the plans for a one-year plan that you like. Ideal for someone on the go, who reads mostly off of screens, this can be a great choice.
- The YouVersion website. This links to The One Year Bible plan, and should be available to read in a computer browser without an app.
- The One Year Bible Online. While I’ve linked to the printable plans earlier, this site also will give you the daily reading for a One Year Bible Plan.
Listen to the Bible Every Day
Not all of these audio options have a “read the entire Bible in a year” plan, but some do. It can help form a habit of listening to the Bible every day. This can be helpful if you find it difficult to form a reading habit.
- The Daily Audio Bible. They have a podcast and also a website. You can also find a podcast called the 1 Year Daily Audio Bible for Kids that goes through the New Testament in one year.
- Pray Every Day. Check out the website for links to the podcast, app, Alexa skill, and Patreon. This may not go through the whole Bible in a year, but it is a manageable podcast of about 5 minutes of Bible reading.
- Dwell. Dwell is a subscription Bible reading app with topical plans, one year Bible reading plans, and more. It may be a little pricey, but there are occasional sales that help lower the cost.
Buy a Printed Bible with Daily Readings
If you’d rather not juggle the printable list and would rather have a dedicated Bible for reading God’s Word in one year, then check out these choices.
- The One Year Bible in the English Standard Version translation is a great choice for someone who wants to buy a printed Bible divided into 365 readings.
- The Macarthur Study Bible, Kindle Version. Some, not all, read the Bible in a year Bibles come in Kindle version. If that would make it easier for you to keep up, go with that!
- One Year Bibles that aren’t the whole Bible include The One Year Book of Psalms, solely from the book of Psalms; and the NLT One Year Bible, New Testament, featuring New Testament readings.
Read it in 90 days
Would you like to have a concentrated time of reading the whole Word of God? These reading plans take you through the Bible in 90 days.
- The 90 Day Bible Reading Challenge was written by Mary DeMuth, the podcaster from Pray Every Day. It appears to have a reading plan with encouragement and knowledge along the way. This is a book I hope to pick up soon.
- Bible Study Tools lists out a 90 day Bible reading plan.
- Bible Gateway has an online 90 day reading plan here.
Don’t read it in a year
If you have concluded that something other than reading the Bible in a year is for you, please read “How to Find a Bible Reading Plan for Beginners and Busy People.” (link coming soon) Reading all 66 books of the Bible in a year isn’t the right choice for everyone.
God wants you to read His Word; He does not require you to do it in 365 days. Trying to keep up with your plan can be admirable, but there is plenty of God’s grace for not completing the entire Bible in one year.
For some, reading the Bible in One Year is amazing, but for others, it is stressful. Some phases of life don’t always have the flexibility to be able to read the Bible that long each day, and not finishing the reading for the day feels like another way you’ve let down God.
There are a few different ways to adapt this. One is to read the One Year Bible, but ignore the date. Maybe reading the Bible will take you a year and a half, two years, or more. But being able to read the Bible through can be a real blessing in your life as you get to see the patterns.
Another way is to use an undated tracker with no daily Bible reading plan, and go at your own pace. Here are a few trackers you can use during your daily Scripture reading at your own pace:
- Blessed Be Boutique’s is a cute tracker, where you color in the books when completed.
- A Virtuous Woman offers printable Bible reading trackers for free, if you are a subscriber of her newsletter by providing your email address.
- Paper Haven Ink has a printable Bible reading tracker on her free downloads page.
- I have a few different designs of undated Bible reading trackers in my Etsy shop.
After all of this, it’s important that you know that there is no one “best way” or “best Bible reading plans” to read the Bible during your quiet time or devotional time. The most important thing is to be in the Bible on a daily basis.
In Isaiah 55:11 NASB, we read, “So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”
If we want God’s Word to accomplish what He desires to be done in our lives, we need to be in His Word!
Whichever method you use for organizing your Bible reading, use it to get deeper into His Word this coming year. He will bless you with better understanding through the reading of His Word!
If you liked reading about how to choose a printable Read the Bible in a year plan, you may also like Bible Verses to Pray for the Church and Advent Readings for Church.