How Long AA Meetings Last

Key takeaway

You need a time you can tell a sitter or a boss. A.A. does not set one national length for every meeting. Members decide when and how often they meet. Meeting Guide shows a start time, a place, and a name. People often talk afterward, and staying for that is up to you. You can leave when you need to.

Last updated: Tue Oct 06 2026 00:00:00 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

The sitter needs a clock time. Your boss asked when you will be back on the floor. You are holding the phone and you do not want to lie, and you do not want to vanish. So you went looking for the length of "an A.A. meeting," as if there were one number for every church, clubhouse, and phone line in the country.

There isn't a national length. Meeting information says members decide when, where, and how often groups meet. They also conduct the meeting and determine the format. When and how often is the schedule the group chose. It is not a promise that every gathering runs the same stretch of minutes.

You can still tell the sitter something true. You can name the start. You can say you will write when you are leaving. You can leave when the person at home needs you back.

What the listing actually shows

The free Meeting Guide app is on iPhone and Android. It is supported by Seventh Tradition contributions. It syncs with area, district, intergroup, and international general service sites, and the listings are refreshed twice a day. The list shows a time, a location, and a name. That time is a start time. The detail view can show the format and any notes the group provided.

Read the notes. If that group wrote how long they usually sit, you are reading their note, not a rule from New York that binds the next town over. If the notes are quiet about the clock, you still know when it begins. Local entities control their own listings and provide them on their own. If a time looks wrong, the app gives links so you can suggest a correction to that local entity.

aa.org itself does not contain a meeting finder. It points you toward local A.A. and toward online meetings. The meetings search on this site is another place to look tonight. Listings here are not verified by the site. Check the start time again before you walk out the door, because a listing can change.

Search in the app by location or by a word you know, such as the neighborhood or "online." Over 150,000 weekly meetings are listed, drawn from information provided by more than 500 A.A. service entities. That is a lot of start times. It is still not one shared length.

Why two meetings on the same block can differ

Formats vary, and they take on the feel of the local area. A speaker meeting is built around one or more people telling what they were like, what happened, and what they are like now. A discussion meeting is a chair, a topic, and members talking. Beginners meetings, step studies, and Big Book studies have their own shape. The format guide is there if you want to know what you are walking into. None of those descriptions come with a national stopwatch.

In-person rooms include office buildings, churches, treatment centers, community centers, and clubhouses. Some groups meet outdoors. Online meetings and telephone meetings are on the same idea: the group picked the time. Some video meetings show faces, some keep everyone's video off, and some are dial-in calls. You can hang up when you have to. Listening without speaking is allowed the whole time you are there. The newcomer page says you can sit and listen or share. The choice is yours, including the choice to go home.

The chair usually opens with the A.A. Preamble and a few remarks. Some groups use a moment of silence, the Serenity Prayer, or both. Many read a short passage. Many close with silence and a prayer, the Responsibility Statement, or another short text. You do not have to join the prayer. You also do not have to stay for every one of those pieces if someone is waiting on you. Membership does not depend on hearing the close. The only requirement is a desire to stop drinking.

The part that runs past the last share

This is the piece that wrecks a careful plan. After the meeting, people talk. There is a social feel. Someone may introduce themselves and offer help. That conversation can be the part a new person remembers. It can also be the part that makes you late for the sitter.

Staying is up to you. If you told your boss you would be back, leave. If the sitter's window ends, leave. You can say a short goodnight or you can walk to the car. You do not owe the parking lot a longer night than you have.

A text you can send before you go: the start time from the listing, and a line that you will message when you are heading back. That is a plan a sitter can use. It does not pretend you know a national ending.

If the clock is not the real emergency

Leave and call 911 if you are sick, shaking, confused, or you think you might seize. Call or text 988 if you are in a mental health crisis. Do not stay in a chair because you are afraid to mess up the time.

NIDA says mutual-help groups are peer-led, not led by healthcare professionals, and not a substitute for treatment. NIAAA says alcohol withdrawal can be life-threatening when a person who drinks heavily over time stops suddenly. A meeting cannot manage that. If that is the risk, the sitter needs to know you are getting medical care, not sitting in a room. FindTreatment.gov lists licensed programs.

Call or text (800) 653-9376 if you want help finding treatment. That number is a treatment referral line. It is not A.A., and it is not SMART Recovery. The call is free to you. Treatment providers pay for the referral service. The line is not an intergroup, and it cannot tell you when a local group will end.

Tonight, open the listing. Write down the start. Tell the person who is covering for you. Go, listen, and leave when your real life needs you back.

Additional Resources

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Common Questions

How long is an A.A. meeting?

There is no national length. Members decide when, where, and how often their group meets, and they decide the format. The Meeting Guide list shows a start time, a location, and a name. The detail view can show format and notes the group wrote. If those notes mention a length, that note belongs to that group. If they do not, you still have a start time and a choice about when you leave. Plan from the listing, not from a rumor.

What do I tell a sitter or my boss?

Give them the start time on the listing, and tell them you will send a message when you are on the way back. You can leave when you need to be home or back at work. People often talk after the meeting, and staying for that talk is optional. You do not have to guess an ending you cannot see. A text that names the start, and promises a text when you leave, is an honest plan for tonight.

Does the talking afterward count as the meeting?

The social time is real, and it is separate from your duty to stay. After the meeting, people talk. There is a social feel. Someone may introduce themselves and offer help. Staying is up to you. If a sitter's clock runs out, leave. Tradition Three says the only requirement for membership is a desire to stop drinking. It does not add a requirement that you linger in the parking lot.

Will an online meeting be easier to time?

Online and phone meetings are still scheduled by the group. You get a start time the same way, from the listing. Some online meetings use video, some keep everyone's video off, and some are dial-in calls. None of that publishes one length for every listing. You can listen and then hang up when you have to. Confirm the listing, because local entities control what the app shows and they refresh it.

What if I get sick during the meeting?

Leave and call 911 if you are sick, shaking, confused, or might seize. Call or text 988 if the night becomes a mental health crisis. A meeting is peer support. NIDA says mutual-help groups are not professionally led treatment. NIAAA says alcohol withdrawal can be life-threatening when heavy drinking over time stops suddenly. A meeting cannot manage that. For treatment, call or text (800) 653-9376.