The Quran is made up of 114 surahs (chapters), themselves divided into verses (ayat). Their total verse count is 6,236. But these 114 surahs are far from comparable in length: the longest, Al-Baqara ("The Cow", surah 2), has 286 verses, while three surahs — Al-Asr (103), Al-Kawthar (108) and An-Nasr (110) — have only 3 each.
How are the surahs organised?
Contrary to a common assumption, the order of the surahs in the Quran follows neither the chronological order of revelation, nor a thematic classification. It follows an arrangement fixed during the Prophet Muhammad's ﷺ lifetime and later consolidated during the compilation of the text under Caliph Uthman, broadly — but not strictly — following decreasing length after the opening surah. The first surah, Al-Fatiha ("The Opening"), is an exception: though short (7 verses), it opens the Quran because of its central role, recited in every unit of prayer (rak'ah).
Meccan and Medinan surahs
Surahs are traditionally classified into two broad categories according to when they were revealed: Meccan surahs (revealed before the Hijra, the Prophet's ﷺ migration from Mecca to Medina in 622) and Medinan surahs (revealed after). The former are generally shorter and focused on the foundations of faith; the latter, longer, deal more with community organisation and law. This classification is the subject of precise scholarly work established by specialists in Quranic sciences ('ulum al-Qur'an), rather than an arbitrary split.
The full list of 114 surahs
Here are the 114 surahs with their order number and verse count, as they appear in the Quran.
| Surah | Name | Verses |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Prologue | 7 |
| 2 | La vache | 286 |
| 3 | La famille d'Imran | 200 |
| 4 | Les femmes | 176 |
| 5 | La table servie | 120 |
| 6 | Les bestiaux | 165 |
| 7 | Al-Araf | 206 |
| 8 | Le butin | 75 |
| 9 | Le repentir | 129 |
| 10 | Jonas | 109 |
| 11 | Hud | 123 |
| 12 | Joseph | 111 |
| 13 | Le tonnerre | 43 |
| 14 | Abraham | 52 |
| 15 | Al-Hijr | 99 |
| 16 | Les abeilles | 128 |
| 17 | Le voyage nocturne | 111 |
| 18 | La caverne | 110 |
| 19 | Marie | 98 |
| 20 | Ta-Ha. | 135 |
| 21 | Les prophètes | 112 |
| 22 | Le pèlerinage | 78 |
| 23 | Les croyants | 118 |
| 24 | La lumière | 64 |
| 25 | Le discernement | 77 |
| 26 | Les poètes | 227 |
| 27 | Les fourmis | 93 |
| 28 | Le rècit | 88 |
| 29 | L'araignèe | 69 |
| 30 | Les romains | 60 |
| 31 | Luqman | 34 |
| 32 | Le prosternation | 30 |
| 33 | Les coalisés | 73 |
| 34 | Saba | 54 |
| 35 | Le Créateur | 45 |
| 36 | Ya-Sin | 83 |
| 37 | Les rangés | 182 |
| 38 | Sad | 88 |
| 39 | Les groupes | 75 |
| 40 | Le pardonneur | 85 |
| 41 | Les versets détaillés | 54 |
| 42 | La consultation | 53 |
| 43 | L'ornement | 89 |
| 44 | La fumée | 59 |
| 45 | L'agenouillée | 37 |
| 46 | Al-Ahqaf | 35 |
| 47 | Muhammad | 38 |
| 48 | La victoire éclatante | 29 |
| 49 | Les appartements | 18 |
| 50 | Qaf | 45 |
| 51 | Qui éparpillent | 60 |
| 52 | At-Tur | 49 |
| 53 | L'étoile | 62 |
| 54 | La lune | 55 |
| 55 | Le Tout Miséricordieux | 78 |
| 56 | L'evénement | 96 |
| 57 | Le fer | 29 |
| 58 | La discussion | 22 |
| 59 | L'exode | 24 |
| 60 | L'éprouvée | 13 |
| 61 | Le rang | 14 |
| 62 | Le vendredi | 11 |
| 63 | Les hypocrites | 11 |
| 64 | La grande perte | 18 |
| 65 | Le divorce | 12 |
| 66 | L'interdiction | 12 |
| 67 | La royauté | 30 |
| 68 | La plume | 52 |
| 69 | Celle qui montre la vérité | 52 |
| 70 | Les voies d'ascension | 44 |
| 71 | Noé | 28 |
| 72 | Les djinns | 28 |
| 73 | L'enveloppé | 20 |
| 74 | Le revêtu d'un manteau | 56 |
| 75 | La résurrection | 40 |
| 76 | L'homme | 31 |
| 77 | Les envoyés | 50 |
| 78 | La nouvelle | 40 |
| 79 | Les anges qui arrachent les âmes | 46 |
| 80 | Il s'est renfrogné | 42 |
| 81 | L'obscurcissement | 29 |
| 82 | La rupture | 19 |
| 83 | Les fraudeurs | 36 |
| 84 | La déchirure | 25 |
| 85 | Les constellations | 22 |
| 86 | L'astre nocturne | 17 |
| 87 | Le Très-Haut | 19 |
| 88 | L'enveloppante | 26 |
| 89 | L'aube | 30 |
| 90 | La cité | 20 |
| 91 | Le soleil | 15 |
| 92 | La nuit | 21 |
| 93 | Le jour montant | 11 |
| 94 | L'ouverture | 8 |
| 95 | Le figuier | 8 |
| 96 | L'adhérence | 19 |
| 97 | La Destinée | 5 |
| 98 | La preuve | 8 |
| 99 | La secousse | 8 |
| 100 | Les coursiers | 11 |
| 101 | Le fracas | 11 |
| 102 | La course aux richesses | 8 |
| 103 | Le temps | 3 |
| 104 | Les calomniateurs | 9 |
| 105 | L'éléphant | 5 |
| 106 | Qoraïsh | 4 |
| 107 | L'ustensile | 7 |
| 108 | L'abondance | 3 |
| 109 | Les infidèles | 6 |
| 110 | Les secours | 3 |
| 111 | Les fibres | 5 |
| 112 | Le monothéisme pur | 4 |
| 113 | L'aube naissante | 5 |
| 114 | Les hommes | 6 |
Frequently asked questions
How many verses does the Quran have in total?
6,236 verses, spread across 114 surahs.
What is the longest surah in the Quran?
Al-Baqara ('The Cow', surah 2), with 286 verses.
What is the shortest surah in the Quran?
Three surahs are tied at 3 verses each: Al-Asr (103), Al-Kawthar (108) and An-Nasr (110).
Can the Quran be read in a different order than the book's?
Yes, there's no requirement to read it linearly from start to finish. Many choose to read by juz' (the Quran's 30 equal parts, convenient for spreading a reading across a month) or by topic.
