How to Memorise a Page of Quran in 15 Minutes (Or Less)

I once spent over 3 hours trying to memorise a single page of the Quran.

I can still picture myself as a child, rocking back and forth on the grey carpet of our sunroom floor with the Quran open before me. No matter how many times I repeated the verses, I just couldn’t commit that page to memory.

I kept telling myself it was “a hard page to memorise,” but in reality, the struggle came from my lack of preparation.

My routine was always the same: after breakfast I’d flip to a the next new page of the Surah I was memorising, and dive straight in. I’d read an ayah five times, move on to the next, then try to combine them. Half of it would slip away, and I’d be forced to start over.

The minutes turned into hours. Some pages took entire afternoons. By the end, I’d feel exhausted and frustrated.

What I thought was efficiency - jumping straight into memorisation - was actually making the process harder.

If I could go back, I’d give myself a method that would cut the time down to 15 minutes. 

A routine that’s simple, structured, and clear. Like following instructions instead of fumbling through a piece of flat-pack furniture.

Here’s the exact routine:

Step 1: Passive listening during the day

My father used to remind me often: “Listen to the Quran first. Hearing the recitation makes memorising easier later.”

At the time, I brushed his advice aside, thinking it would take more effort than just sitting down to memorise. But the opposite was true.

Start by choosing a reciter you enjoy - my father always recommended Shaykh Al-Minshawi - and play the page you want to memorise on repeat throughout your day.

While you're cooking or driving.
While chasing toddlers or feeding your baby.
While you're folding laundry or responding to emails.

You're not actively trying to memorise yet. You're just listening.

Why this works: Your subconscious mind is absorbing the rhythm, the pronunciation and the flow of the verses. You're building familiarity before you sit down to memorise.

Think of it like hearing a nasheed multiple times before you intentionally try to learn the lyrics. By the time you actually focus on it, half the work is already done.

Step 2: Recitation aloud with full focus

Straight after Ishaa prayer, open up to the page you've been listening to all day.

Read it aloud slowly, following the verses physically with your finger. If you’re not praying, use a glove or a tissue as a barrier between you and the mus’haf.

Do this with each verse at least five times.

No distractions around you: no phones, no talking to anyone, and background noise.

Just you and the page.

Why this works: This repetitive reading familiarises you with the verses in a different way than listening. Here, you’re engaging your senses: your eyes as you read, your ears as you listen to your voice, and your touch as you follow the verses.

Once again, you’re not trying to memorise yet - you're simply making the verses feel natural so that tomorrow, when you sit down to actively memorise, they flow easily instead of feeling stiff and unfamiliar.

Then go straight to sleep. Let your brain process overnight.

Side note: this routine works best when you can already read the Quran fluently. If you still feel shaky with your recitation, that’s where my Tajweed Made Easy course comes in. It gives you the foundation to read smoothly, so memorisation feels natural and comes easily, instead of forced.

Step 3: Active memorisation

After Fajr prayer, sit down with that same page.

This is when you actively memorise.

But here's the key: don't try to memorise the whole page at once.

Take one ayah. Memorise it completely. Then take the next ayah. Memorise it completely. Then combine both. Repeat them together.

Move to the third ayah. Memorise it. Now combine all three.

Continue this pattern until you’ve memorised half a page. Stop here and recite from memory. Then begin the next half with the same process, and then combine the two halves together.

Why this works: Because you've already listened all day yesterday and read at least five times before bed, you'll find the verses are already half-memorised. So you're not starting from scratch, you're just solidifying what your brain has been quietly absorbing.

By the end, you’ll have the entire page memorised smoothly and securely in 15 minutes or less.

Step 4: Repeat the next day

The next day, start the cycle again with a new page.

Listen during the day. Read after Ishaa. Memorise after Fajr.

Some days will feel easier than others, and some pages will stick faster. That's normal.

What matters is showing up consistently, not perfectly.

Why I would recommend this routine

When I think back to those sunroom sessions, squinting at the page, repeating lines endlessly and feeling like I wasn’t progressing, I realise I was working hard but not smart.

I thought preparation was a waste of time. I was hasty and wanted to jump straight into memorisation.

But memorisation without preparation is like trying to run before you can walk.

With this method, you’re using the time you already have more strategically. You’re listening during activities you'd do anyway and memorising when your brain is naturally sharpest (after Fajr).

The honest truth

If you're struggling to memorise, or if it feels slow and exhausting, it’s not your memory and it’s not because “it’s a hard page” like I once believed.

It’s your method.

This routine works with your memory instead of against it. It layers listening, reading, memorising that makes a single page take minutes, not hours.

Try it for yourself: start tomorrow.

Pick one page.

Find a recitation you love (I still suggest Shaykh Al-Minshawi, like my father recommended).

Play it tomorrow while you go about your day.

Then follow the routine:

After Ishaa → read five times.
After Fajr → memorise.

Do this for one week. Seven pages.

You’ll see what I wish I had known all along: a page of Quran doesn’t need to take 3 hours. With the right method, it can take 15 minutes or less.

Give this method a go. When you do, reply to this email, and tell me how you went. I’d love to hear.

And if you’re wondering how revision fits into all of this, stay tuned insha’Allah; I’ll be sharing that in another letter.

May Allah ﷻ make His words easy for us to memorise and even easier to live by.

في أمان الله
I leave you in the protection of Allah,

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