The AA Promises
The full text of the AA Promises from the Big Book, the traditional twelve numbered, and what they mean for someone new to recovery.
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What Are the Promises of AA?
The Promises are a short passage from the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous, read aloud at the close of countless meetings, that describes what recovery gives back. They appear right after the book’s discussion of Step 9, making amends, so they’re often called the Ninth Step Promises.
In a few plain sentences they name the freedom, peace, and usefulness that grow in place of the fear and wreckage of active drinking.
What matters most is the fine print at the end. The Promises aren’t a guarantee of an easy life, they’re a description of what reliably happens to people who do the work. They come “sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly,” and, in the Big Book’s own words, “they will always materialize if we work for them.”
Hoping life can feel different? The Promises describe what recovery gives back, and you can start today.
- If you’re having thoughts of suicide or self-harm, call or text 988 now, free and immediate.
- The freedom these lines describe is real and earned, not a fantasy, and the first step toward it is reaching out.
- If stopping alcohol could be dangerous (daily heavy drinking), a medically supervised detox is the safe, easier start, medication makes withdrawal far gentler than going it alone. Call SAMHSA at 1-800-662-HELP (4357), free and confidential, any time.
- The Promises are a passage from the Big Book (pages 83–84), often called the Ninth Step Promises because they follow the Step 9 work of making amends.
- They’re read at the close of many AA meetings as a statement of hope.
- They describe what recovery gives back: freedom, serenity, and usefulness in place of fear and self-pity.
- “They will always materialize if we work for them.”
The Promises in Full
Here is the passage in full, in the Big Book’s own words[1]:
If we are painstaking about this phase of our development, we will be amazed before we are half way through. We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness. We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it. We will comprehend the word serenity and we will know peace. No matter how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others. That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear. We will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in our fellows. Self-seeking will slip away. Our whole attitude and outlook upon life will change. Fear of people and of economic insecurity will leave us. We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us. We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves.
Are these extravagant promises? We think not. They are being fulfilled among us, sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly. They will always materialize if we work for them.
The Twelve Promises, One by One
Members traditionally number the passage as twelve promises[1]:
- We are going to know a new freedom and a new happiness.
- We will not regret the past nor wish to shut the door on it.
- We will comprehend the word serenity.
- We will know peace.
- No matter how far down the scale we have gone, we will see how our experience can benefit others.
- That feeling of uselessness and self-pity will disappear.
- We will lose interest in selfish things and gain interest in our fellows.
- Self-seeking will slip away.
- Our whole attitude and outlook upon life will change.
- Fear of people and of economic insecurity will leave us.
- We will intuitively know how to handle situations which used to baffle us.
- We will suddenly realize that God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves.
What the Promises Really Mean
Read closely, the Promises chart a single shift: from a life turned inward by fear toward one turned outward in freedom.
The early lines speak to the past, no longer regretting it, and instead seeing how even the worst of it can help someone else. The middle lines describe the inner change, self-pity and self-seeking falling away, serenity and a new outlook taking their place. The last lines reach into daily life, the easing of the fear of other people and of money, a steadier instinct for situations that once felt impossible.
The Spiritual Line, and How to Read It
That last promise, “God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves,” is the spiritual heart of the passage. For many members it means God; for others it’s a higher power they understand in their own way, the group, the program, something simply larger than their own willpower.
You don’t have to settle that question to receive what the Promises describe, and the change shows up regardless of how a person names it[2]. If the spiritual language is a sticking point, the guide to AA for non-religious people → walks through it.
The Promises aren’t a list in the Big Book, they’re a paragraph. The famous “Twelve Promises” sit in the middle of a passage about working Step 9, and members later organized them into a numbered list for reading at meetings. The hope they describe isn’t wishful thinking either: people who resolve a drinking problem really do go on to rebuild work, health, and family life[3], which is why these lines still land for newcomers decades later.
Why the Promises Still Matter
For someone walking in frightened and ashamed, the Promises do something rare, they describe a future in concrete, believable terms. And they hold up.
The fellowship that reads them is, by modern gold-standard evidence, as effective as or more effective than therapies like CBT for staying abstinent[4], and recovery genuinely rebuilds the life that drinking took apart[3]. The Promises simply put words to what the research shows: do the work, with help, and life changes.
Two next steps walk the rest of the way:
- Read the 12 Steps that lead to the Promises →
- See how it all fits together in the full guide to Alcoholics Anonymous →
The next step doesn’t have to be a big one. Our treatment centers directory can point you to the right level of care. Reaching out today is a real step forward — and one you can make right now.
Frequently asked questions
What are the Promises of AA?
The Promises are a short passage from the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous describing what recovery gives back, a new freedom and happiness, serenity, the disappearance of self-pity, and the easing of fear[1]. They’re read at the close of many meetings as a statement of hope, and they end with the reminder that they come true “if we work for them.”
Where are the Promises in the Big Book?
They appear on pages 83 and 84, in the chapter “Into Action,” right after the discussion of Step 9 (making amends). That placement is why they’re often called the Ninth Step Promises, the freedoms they describe are presented as the fruit of cleaning up the past and working the steps, not as a reward that arrives on its own.
Are there really 12 Promises?
Traditionally, yes. In the Big Book the Promises are written as one flowing paragraph, not a numbered list[1]. Members later organized them into twelve numbered lines for reading at meetings, which is why you’ll see “the Twelve Promises.” The wording is exact; the numbering simply splits the passage, including separating “serenity” and “peace” into two.
What are the Ninth Step Promises?
It’s another name for the same passage. They’re called the Ninth Step Promises because they appear immediately after the Big Book’s discussion of Step 9, where a person makes direct amends to people they’ve harmed. The placement carries the message that this freedom and peace grow out of facing and repairing the past, not around it.
Do the AA Promises actually come true?
The Big Book is careful here: they materialize “sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly,” and “always if we work for them”[1]. They’re earned, not automatic. And the hope is grounded, people who resolve a drinking problem really do rebuild work, health, and family life[3], so the Promises put words to a change the evidence confirms.
What if I'm not religious, the Promises mention God?
The line “God is doing for us what we could not do for ourselves” is the spiritual heart of the passage, but AA asks only for a higher power as you understand it, which many members take to mean the group, the program, or simply something larger than their own willpower. The change the Promises describe shows up regardless of how you name it[2].
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