Last updated: 26 July 2026

How Long Is Silksong? — Story & 100%

Silksong is a big game, and exactly how long it takes depends heavily on whether you stop at the default ending or chase the hidden true finale. This guide breaks down main-story, exploration, and completionist times, explains why Act 3 changes the answer so much, and compares it all to the original Hollow Knight.

01Main Story Length

If you head for the credits without chasing everything, Silksong is a focused but substantial adventure:

• Main story (Acts 1 and 2, Weaver Queen ending): roughly 20–25 hours.
• A typical playthrough with normal exploration: around 28 hours.
• This path takes you through Pharloom and the Citadel of Song to the Act 2 finale, Grand Mother Silk.
• It does not include the opt-in Act 3 — many players reach the credits here without realising there is more.

02Full Completion (100%)

Completionists have a lot more to do, mostly because of Act 3 and the collectible hunt:

• Base-game 100% completion: roughly 60 hours, including the opt-in Act 3, the true ending, and collectibles.
• Act 3 alone adds significant length — a corrupted, remixed version of Pharloom with its own hardest bosses.
• Collectibles like Spool Fragments, Memory Lockets, mask upgrades, and the hidden Mister Mushroom locations add hours of thorough exploration.
• There is an achievement for completing 100% in under 30 hours, which is a speed benchmark rather than a casual target.
• The Sea of Sorrow expansion (free DLC, coming 2026, not yet released) adds new areas and content that extends the total completionist time further beyond 60 hours.

03Why Act 3 Changes the Answer

The single biggest factor in 'how long is Silksong' is whether you unlock Act 3:

• Act 3 is opt-in and must be unlocked before the Act 2 finale — so a large share of players finish at 20–28 hours without ever seeing it.
• The true ending lives in Act 3, so chasing the full story roughly doubles your time investment.
• If you want the complete experience, plan for Act 3 from the start rather than discovering it after the default ending.
• See our endings guide for exactly how to unlock the true path.

04Scope: Areas, Bosses & Replay

For a sense of scale and what replay value looks like:

• 33 distinct areas in the base game across Pharloom, most of them mappable via the cartographer.
• 43 unique bosses (plus rematches) in the base game, with around 18 mandatory.
• Five endings, the meaningful ones tied to Act 3.
• No New Game Plus — the intended challenge replay is Steel Soul mode, a permadeath run unlocked after finishing the game.
• For comparison, the original Hollow Knight averages a little over 60 hours for 100%, so Silksong is broadly similar in base-game completionist scope.
• The Sea of Sorrow expansion (free DLC, coming 2026, not yet released) introduces new areas and bosses beyond these figures — see the official wiki for a complete post-expansion count.