Somewhere around 2021, a Bible reading podcast became the most downloaded podcast in the country, ahead of true crime, ahead of comedy, ahead of everything. That was Fr. Mike Schmitz's Bible in a Year, and it changed what people expect from an audio Bible plan. Commentary, prayer, real production value, not just a recording of someone reading chapters aloud.
If you're looking into a Bible in a year podcast, here's what's actually out there, what makes the big one different, and what to consider if you want something else.
✝ Try FaithSpark Free
All 365 days of the Bible in a year, narrated in King James and modern English, with a short explanation and prayer after each reading. Free at mindgardenpress.com.
The Bible in a Year Podcast (Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Produced by Ascension Press, this is the podcast most people mean when they search for a Bible in a year podcast. Fr. Mike Schmitz reads through the entire Bible in 365 daily episodes, following a chronological order built on the Great Adventure Bible Timeline, an approach to salvation history developed by Catholic Bible scholar Jeff Cavins, who joins for periodic episodes explaining the historical context of each new era.
Each episode pairs the day's reading with reflection and closing prayer, all through a Catholic lens. It's genuinely well produced, which is a big part of why it broke through the way it did, and if you're Catholic or open to Catholic teaching, it's an excellent way to spend fifteen to twenty minutes a day.
Other Bible in a Year Podcasts and Audio Options
If the Fr. Mike Schmitz podcast isn't the right fit, either because you're looking for a different tradition or you just want a different format, there are other paths through.
The One Year Bible Podcast offers short daily readings from Old Testament, New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs, without added denominational commentary.
Listener's Bible, narrated by Max McLean, is well known for narration quality and includes a Bible in a Year track as straight, dramatized reading.
FaithSpark's Bible in a year takes a similar structural approach to a podcast, daily reading plus explanation plus prayer, but without denominational framing, and gives you a translation choice most podcasts don't: King James or the World English Bible, a more modern translation, switchable per day depending on what you feel like listening to.
What to Consider When Choosing
Denominational framing. This is the biggest differentiator on this list. Fr. Mike Schmitz's podcast is explicitly Catholic in its commentary and prayers. If you want that, it's the best version of it available. If you'd rather have the reading and reflection without denominational specifics, look at the other options.
Translation. Podcast episodes are usually built around one fixed translation. If you've never liked the translation a particular podcast uses, that alone can be enough to make you quit by week three, no matter how good the commentary is.
Reading order. Chronological plans, which read events roughly in the order they happened, are increasingly popular because they give the Old Testament more narrative sense. Both the Fr. Mike Schmitz podcast and FaithSpark's Bible in a year use a chronological structure for this reason.
Daily length. Most run 15 to 25 minutes including commentary and prayer. If that's more time than you reliably have, look for an option that separates the straight reading from the added reflection so you can skip the extras on busy days.
Try FaithSpark's Bible in a Year Audio
Every one of the 365 days is fully narrated, reading, explanation, and prayer, in both King James and modern English, so you're not locked into a single translation or a single tradition's commentary for a full year. It's free, no subscription and no account required to start, at faithspark's Bible in a year. If you'd rather read some days and listen on others, the FaithSpark app has both in the same place.
