How many floors did Genesis describe Noah's Ark as having?

The story behind the answer

Genesis described Noah's Ark as having three floors.

Genesis 6:16 instructs Noah to make the ark with lower, second, and third decks. This is the biblical basis for the answer of three floors. The same verse also mentions a window and a door, although translations vary in how they render some architectural details.

The three-deck arrangement fits the story's description of a vessel containing Noah's family, animals, food, and other provisions. Genesis does not provide an architectural blueprint showing how the occupants were distributed among the decks. Consequently, modern diagrams that assign particular animals or rooms to specific levels are reconstructions rather than details stated by the text.

The ark's dimensions—300 cubits long, 50 cubits wide, and 30 cubits high—are given separately in Genesis 6:15. Those measurements and the three levels are often combined in modern calculations of internal capacity, but the Bible does not state a total cargo volume or a complete inventory of animals.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Oct. 2026

Add question to a list

Choose a list to keep this question in: