Macbeth: 2,385 Lines, 41 Characters, Act-by-Act Breakdown

Macbeth (c. 1606) is a tragedy with 2,385 lines of dialogue distributed across 5 acts and 28 scenes. 41 named characters speak at least once; the top five voices account for 63% of the play. Dialogue splits 80% male and 20% female.

The play opens (Act 1, Scene 1) with First Witch: “When shall we three meet again”

The play closes (Act 5, Scene 8) with Malcolm: “Whom we invite to see us crown'd at Scone.”

Full cast of Macbeth by line count

#	Character	Lines	Share	Acts
1	Macbeth ♂	718	30.1%	5
2	Lady Macbeth ♀	265	11.1%	4
3	Malcolm ♂	212	8.9%	4
4	Macduff ♂	180	7.5%	3
5	Ross ♂	135	5.7%	5
6	Banquo ♂	113	4.7%	3
7	Lennox ♂	74	3.1%	5
8	Duncan ♂	70	2.9%	1
9	First Witch ♀	62	2.6%	3
10	Porter ♂	46	1.9%	1
11	Doctor ♂	45	1.9%	2
12	Lady Macduff ♀	41	1.7%	1
13	Hecate ♀	39	1.6%	2
14	Sergeant ♂	35	1.5%	1
15	First Murderer ♂	30	1.3%	2
16	Siward ♂	30	1.3%	1
17	Second Witch ♀	27	1.1%	2
18	Third Witch ♀	27	1.1%	2
19	All ♂	24	1.0%	4
20	Messenger ♂	23	1.0%	3
21	Gentlewoman ♀	23	1.0%	1
22	Angus ♂	21	0.9%	2
23	Lord ♂	21	0.9%	1
24	Son ♂	20	0.8%	1
25	Second Murderer ♂	15	0.6%	1
…16 additional speaking roles with fewer than 15 lines

Line counts act by act

Act	Scenes	Lines	Speakers
Act 1	7	534	14
Act 2	4	396	12
Act 3	6	509	15
Act 4	3	548	18
Act 5	8	398	18

Longest scenes in Macbeth

Scene	Lines	Speakers
Act 4, Scene 3	281	4
Act 2, Scene 3	182	9
Act 4, Scene 1	173	10
Act 1, Scene 3	169	8
Act 3, Scene 4	168	6

Common questions

How long is Macbeth?

Macbeth contains 2,385 lines of dialogue across 5 acts and 28 scenes — roughly 85 lines per scene on average.

Who speaks the most in Macbeth?

Macbeth leads the cast with 718 lines — about 30% of the play.

Which act of Macbeth is longest?

Act 4 runs 548 lines across 3 scenes.

Macbeth