Genesis says that eight people survived the Flood inside the Ark. The group consisted of Noah, his wife, their three sons, and the three wives of those sons.
Genesis 7:13 lists the family entering the Ark: Noah, Shem, Ham, Japheth, Noah’s wife, and the wives of his sons. First Peter 3:20 also refers to “eight souls” being saved through water, reinforcing the traditional Christian reading of the number.
The figure is a count of people, not a count of animals or the total number of living creatures preserved. The account separately discusses animals entering the Ark, so those animals are not included in the number eight. The text does not name Noah’s wife or the wives of Shem, Ham, and Japheth. It also does not say that additional human passengers survived inside the vessel, making eight the specific biblical total.