The 48 Laws of Power
by Robert Greene
Top 10
A blunt catalog of historical stories and rules about how influence works, from courts to boardrooms. Provocative, quotable, and best read as a study of human behavior rather than a manual. Read the full description
Best for: Readers curious about office and social dynamics
The 48 Laws of Power is #7 on BookWard's Top 100 books for September 2026, with a BookWard Score of 81 out of 100.
The 48 Laws of Power: reading interest over the past 12 months
Sources: Open Library’s public reading-log and ratings data (dump of 2026-08-31), Wikipedia page views and Wikidata. Monthly counts are exact; they show relative interest among readers of these public sources, not total readership.
Ranked against the other books on this list, The 48 Laws of Power’s reading interest has run from #8 to #12 over these 12 months. Interest rank blends shelf adds, Wikipedia page views and rating activity, each compared with the other 99 books that month.
Shelf adds by month
The 48 Laws of Power was added to Open Library readers’ shelves 6,186 times in the past 12 months, peaking in September 2025 with 1,067 (107% above its monthly average of 516). Over the latest three months (Jun 2026 to Aug 2026) shelf adds were down 15% on the three months before. 88% of the adds were “want to read”, 9% “currently reading” and 3% “already read”.
Want to read Currently reading Already read
Wikipedia page views
Its Wikipedia article was viewed 443,641 times in the past 12 months, peaking in October 2025 with 48,408 views. The latest three months were down 11% on the three before.
Source: Wikimedia monthly page views for the article The 48 Laws of Power.
What the data says about The 48 Laws of Power
- Moderate swings. Monthly shelf adds averaged 516 with some ups and downs.
- Busiest and quietest months. September 2025 was its busiest month (1,067 adds), about 4.3 times its quietest, June 2026 (249).
- Attention and shelf adds move together. Months with more Wikipedia views for The 48 Laws of Power were also months with more shelf adds (correlation 0.85), which suggests the same events, such as new editions, adaptations or social media, drive both.
- Against its genre. It had 158% more shelf adds than the average Self-help book on this list.
- Share of the list. It accounts for 5.9% of all shelf adds recorded for the Top 100 over these 12 months, #2 of 100.
- Its age. First published in 1998 (28 years ago), it is older than 59% of the books on the list.
Each finding is computed from the public data above and shown only when the numbers support it.
The 48 Laws of Power on the Top 100: rank history
First charted in September 2026. The chart gains a point with every monthly update, so its peak, climbs and falls will show here as they happen.
| Month | Rank | Score |
|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | #7 | 81 |
Is The 48 Laws of Power rising or falling?
Holding steady Its weekly, monthly and yearly ranks are close together, so interest is steady rather than spiking.
On Open Library, The 48 Laws of Power ranks #3 this week, #2 this month, and #2 over the past year. A longer bar means a higher position. Comparing the three windows shows whether readers are arriving faster than the book's long-term pace. Readings as of 2026-09-30.
Why The 48 Laws of Power made the Top 100
The 48 Laws of Power made the list mainly on momentum (+33.8 points) and being read right now (+23.9 points). Its smallest contribution is rising (+0). The BookWard Score blends five public signals, each scored from 0 to 100 and weighted as shown.
The reading-now, rating and rank signals come from Open Library’s public data, not from BookWard’s own readers. The score measures reading interest, not quality or sales. How the score works.
Open Library reader stats for The 48 Laws of Power
Source: Open Library public reading logs, as of 2026-09-30. BookWard’s own monthly snapshots are added to the picture, and anonymous BookWard reader data will be layered in as the community grows.
More readers have The 48 Laws of Power open right now than 99% of the other books on this list. These counts come from one public source, so they show relative interest rather than total readership.
Where it sits among Self-help books
It is #2 of the 12 Self-help books on this month’s list.
About The 48 Laws of Power
A blunt catalog of historical stories and rules about how influence works, from courts to boardrooms. Provocative, quotable, and best read as a study of human behavior rather than a manual.
Why it’s here: It stays near the top because it is endlessly debated, and debate keeps readers coming back.
Best for: Readers curious about office and social dynamics
At a glance
- First published
- 2000-09-01
- Genre
- Self-help
- Also described as
- non-fiction
- Length
- about 452 pages (the median across its editions)
- Original language
- English
- Languages
- editions in 8 languages listed on Open Library
- Editions
- 51 on Open Library
From Open Library and Wikidata public records. Missing rows mean the records do not list that fact.
Themes
- Power and strategy
- Reputation and image
- Human psychology in competitive settings
What reading it is like
Short numbered chapters, each a law illustrated with historical anecdotes. Cynical in tone and meant to be dipped into.
At about 452 pages it is a longer read: roughly 9 hours at an average reading pace (about 250 words a minute, 300 words a page). Audiobook and edition lengths vary.
Good to know
It describes how power is pursued rather than how it should be used, and leaves the ethics to the reader.
The premise
Robert Greene distills stories from history into 48 rules about gaining and keeping influence. Each law includes examples, reversals, and cautions.
What you’ll get
- A collection of vivid historical stories
- A cynical but thought-provoking view of power
- Easy to dip into chapter by chapter
You might skip it if you dislike manipulative or cynical advice.
More by Robert Greene on the Top 100: The Laws of Human Nature
Pairs well with: The Laws of Human Nature · The Art of War
Keep exploring the chart
Also on the chart at #6 and #8
More Self-help on the Top 100
Questions about The 48 Laws of Power
What rank is The 48 Laws of Power on the Top 100 books?
The 48 Laws of Power is #7 on BookWard's Top 100 books for September 2026, with a BookWard Score of 81 out of 100.
Is The 48 Laws of Power rising or falling?
Holding steady. Its weekly, monthly and yearly ranks are close together, so interest is steady rather than spiking. On Open Library, The 48 Laws of Power ranks #3 this week, #2 this month, and #2 over the past year.
Why is The 48 Laws of Power on the Top 100?
The 48 Laws of Power made the list mainly on momentum (+33.8 points) and being read right now (+23.9 points). Its smallest contribution is rising (+0).
How many people are reading The 48 Laws of Power right now?
Open Library's reading logs show 3,928 readers currently reading The 48 Laws of Power, 46,488 who want to read it and 1,170 who have logged it as read (as of 2026-09-30). These are counts from one public source, not all readers.
How much interest has The 48 Laws of Power had over the past year?
6,186 Open Library shelf adds in the past 12 months (peak September 2025, 1,067); latest three months down 15% on the prior three; 443,641 Wikipedia views in the past 12 months (down 11% over the latest three months). Figures come from Open Library and Wikipedia public data.
Who is The 48 Laws of Power best for?
Readers curious about office and social dynamics.
Ask a question about The 48 Laws of Power
Ask about this book's chart history, reading interest, or who it is for. Answers come from this page's data and can be wrong.
Answers are AI-written from BookWard’s own help content and can be wrong. Please do not share personal information: questions and answers may be saved and, if they are useful, shown on this site without your name.
How we know
This page is built from public data: Open Library’s dated reading-log and ratings dumps, Wikipedia page views, Wikidata, and BookWard’s own monthly Top 100 snapshots. The interest rank blends shelf adds (45%), Wikipedia page views (30%), rating activity (10%) and, for months where a snapshot exists, BookWard’s own score (15%), each as a percentile among the Top 100 books. Every month shown is real data; nothing is estimated. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Last updated September 2026. Read the full methodology.
Track The 48 Laws of Power and find your next favorite
Add it to your shelf, rate what you have read, and BookWard will recommend what fits you.
Free while in beta. No credit card needed.