If you're like most working adults, your daily commute is probably a blur of half-scrolling TikTok on the subway, gritting your teeth through stop-and-go traffic, or zoning out to a true crime podcast while you wait for your bus. The average U.S. commuter spends 27 minutes getting to work each way---even if your commute is half that, that's 45 minutes of dead time every single day, 3.75 hours a week, or roughly 195 hours a year. That's enough time to read 20 to 30 full-length books, no extra hours carved out of your post-work Netflix time or weekend lie-ins required. The biggest myth about building a consistent reading habit? That you need a quiet, cozy nook, a cup of tea, and 45 minutes of uninterrupted silence to actually "count" as reading. Spoiler: commute reading isn't a consolation prize for people who can't find time to read at home. It's a low-effort, high-reward way to turn wasted time into story time, and actually make your reading habit stick way more reliably than waiting for the "perfect" reading window that never comes. Below are tailored, no-stress strategies to turn your commute into a power-reading session, no matter how you get to work.
First: Match your reading format to your commute, no guilt allowed
No one expects you to hold a 400-page paperback on a packed rush-hour subway, or flip pages while you're merging onto the highway. Pick the format that fits your commute to eliminate friction before you even start:
- For public transit, carpool, or standing commutes: E-readers (or even your phone's built-in reading app) are your best friend. They're lightweight, easy to hold one-handed, have backlights for dark subway cars or early morning bus rides, and you can adjust the font size so you don't have to squint while the train rattles. Pro tip: download a few chapters of your current read before you leave the house, so you don't have to rely on spotty subway Wi-Fi to keep going.
- For driving commutes: Audiobooks are non-negotiable here, and don't write them off as "not real reading." If you're listening to the exact same book you're reading physically at home, you're reinforcing the story, remembering plot points, and staying engaged with the characters---all of which make you way more excited to pick up the physical copy when you get home. If you hate audiobooks, try short-form reading: save poetry, essay collections, or digital graphic novels for your drive, so you can flip through them quickly at red lights if you're stopped.
- For walking or biking commutes: Audiobooks work great here too, but if you prefer reading text, try a compact paperback or a small e-reader that fits in your jacket pocket. Just make sure you're paying attention to your surroundings---save the page-turners for crosswalks, not the middle of a busy intersection.
Build a "commute-only" TBR to eliminate decision fatigue
You know that feeling when you sit down to read, scroll through your 20 unread books on your Kindle, and end up closing the app to watch a YouTube video instead? That's decision fatigue, and it's even worse when you're already stressed about getting to work on time or dealing with a crowded train. Fix this by curating a tiny, 3 to 5 book to-be-read list exclusively for your commute. These should be books you're already excited about, but that are low-stakes enough that you don't feel pressured to "analyze" them. Think page-turners, light memoirs, rom-coms, or even re-reads of your favorite childhood books---anything that's easy to pick up and put down without losing the plot. Keep this list saved in your reading app, or even as a note on your phone, so when you sit down on the train, you don't have to think: you just open the next book on the list and go. Pro tip for audiobook lovers: Save your most engaging, plot-heavy books for your commute, and save the denser non-fiction or literary fiction for when you're at home with a notebook to take notes. That way, your commute reading feels like a reward, not a task.
Pair your commute reading with a micro-ritual to make it stick
The key to building any habit is to tie it to a cue you already do every day. For commute reading, that cue is, well, your commute. Add a tiny, 30-second ritual to the start of your commute to signal to your brain that it's reading time, not scrolling time:
- If you take public transit, buy a $2 iced coffee or a snack you only allow yourself to have while you're reading on your commute. No eating that snack while you're scrolling TikTok on the way to work---only while you're reading. Your brain will start to associate that snack (and the commute) with reading, so you'll actually look forward to opening your book instead of dreading it.
- If you drive, create a 10-song "commute reading" playlist that you only listen to while you're listening to your audiobook. No listening to that playlist while you're running errands or working---only during your work commute. After a week or two, putting that playlist on will automatically put you in the zone to listen to your book, no willpower required.
Troubleshooting: Common commute reading headaches (solved)
Two issues stop most people from trying commute reading before they even start: motion sickness, and missing your stop. Both have easy fixes:
- Motion sickness: If text makes you nauseous on moving transit, switch to audiobooks for your commute, and save physical/e-reader reading for when you're at home. If you want to stick with text, sit in the front car of the train or bus (it's usually far less bumpy) and face the direction of travel, which reduces motion sickness for 80% of people, per the American Migraine Foundation. Larger font sizes on your e-reader also reduce the amount of eye movement you have to do, which cuts down on nausea.
- Missing your stop: Set a recurring 5-minute reminder alarm on your phone for 5 minutes before your usual stop, or use a reading app with a built-in "stop alert" that goes off when you're near your destination. If you're listening to an audiobook, most audiobook apps let you set a sleep timer that will pause the book after a set amount of time, so you don't zone out and miss your stop entirely.
The payoff is way bigger than just "reading more books"
Commute reading doesn't just help you check titles off your TBR pile. When you spend your commute escaping into a story instead of scrolling through work emails or stressful news cycles, you show up to work less frazzled, and you end your day with something fun to decompress with instead of more screen time. If you're reading the same book at home and on your commute, you'll finish it twice as fast, which means less guilt about that stack of unread paperbacks on your nightstand, and more money to spend on the next book you're actually excited to read. You don't have to read for your entire commute to see results. Even 10 minutes on the way to work, and 10 minutes on the way home, adds up to an hour and 40 minutes of reading a week---enough to finish a 300-page novel in a month, no extra effort required. There's no "right" way to do this: if you scroll some days, that's fine. If you only read on your way home when you're too tired to do anything else, that's fine too. The goal isn't to hit some arbitrary reading goal to impress people on Goodreads. It's to turn the time you're already spending commuting into something you actually enjoy, and build a reading habit that fits your life, not the other way around.