Comparing with the declining of reading ebooks and printed books, listening to audiobooks becomes the new fashion of time pass. According to the survey, more and more people prefer listening to audiobooks for pleasure rather than reading eBooks. Audible.com, as one of the biggest audiobook producer and retailer, is loved by most audiobook listeners.
Just because Audible is the most popular dedicated audiobook provider doesn't mean they are the only option. It's hard to argue with their overall set of features and the convenience of Audible listening ecosystem, but there are alternatives to Audible that are great for listening audiobooks. We can always find the audiobooks with cheaper price or better service over there.
Here I have picked top 10 Audible alternatives for your choice.
Pro tip: Before switching to audible competitors, please backup your audible books at first.
Audible Audiobooks
Do you really want to give up Audible? I have to say that Audible is really the best. Let me show you the basic features of its service at first.
Title: There are over 200,000 audiobooks on Audible, many of which are classics or bestsellers.
Subscription Plans:
Audible Plus (Price $7.95 a month)--includes unlimited listening from the Audible Plus Catalog of select audiobooks and podcasts. There are about 11,000 audio files in the Plus catalog.
Audible Premium Plus (Price $14.95 a month)-- includes unlimited listening from the Audible Plus Catalog + premium selection credits.
Available on: Windows|Mac|iOS|Android
Free Audible Alternatives
Although you can find the free audible books in Audible.com, is there anyway I can get free audiobooks from other audiobook websites? If you are looking for some websites to listen to audiobooks for free. Here I want to introduce two free Audible alternatives that you can listen to audiobooks without paying a penny.
1. OverDrive
OverDrive enables you to borrow thousands of ebooks and audiobooks from your local library and listen for free at any device. There are over 30000 libraries support Overdrive, so all you need is your library card and a library in your community supports this service. It also provides two different apps to download and listen to audiobooks which is Overdrive and Libby. The Libby is modern-designed, pretty, user-friendly. If you want to listen to audiobook from OverDrive, I will recommend you use Libby. Libby will automatically download your rented audiobooks, remember where you left off, your books marks and even enables you to sync between your different devices. Although OverDrive libraries have over 2 million ebooks, audiobooks and videos, you can only see and rent audiobooks that available in your library.
Available on: iOS|Android|Windows 10(Libby)
Pros:
1. All audiobooks can be rented for free;
2. The Libby app is flexible and user-friendly;
3. Easy to access the latest release or even best sellers.
Cons:
Limited to the library that you own the library card.
If you are looking for ways to borrow free audiobooks from OverDrive, you can read the complete guide on How to Borrow and Listen to OverDrive Audiobooks.
2. Librivox
Librivox provides the free public domain audiobooks to listeners around the world. You can be a listener to listen free audiobooks on this website, and also can be a volunteer to record the public domain book. Although Librivox has a large collection of free audiobooks in different languages, the quality of them may be varied because they are recorded by volunteers around the world. However, all audiobooks from the Librivox are totally free. If you are looking for free audiobooks, Librivox is a good place to go.
Pros:
1. All books are totally free;
2. Be able to access the classic works;
3. Easy to find audiobooks in different languages.
Cons:
1. Audiobooks are very old;
2. The quality of the audiobooks are not as good as Audible.com.
Available on: No apps, listen and download audiobooks from website directly
The Cheapest Audible Alternative
Beyond the free audiobook service, there are some Audiobook services that are with very low subscription fee. That is Audiobooksnow.com.
3. audiobooksnow
Audiobooksnow can be assumed as the cheapest Audible alternative. Club pricing plan is the best deal on digital audiobooks you'll find. Compared with the Audible subscription service fee--$14.99 per month, the Club pricing plan is $4.99. What's more, Club Pricing Plan gives you 50% off your first audiobook each month and 35-40% off everything else. It offers like more than 80,000 titles, including classic and bestselling titles. Its app is available on both iOS and android device so that you can download the audiobook via their apps and listen to audiobooks offline. You can also stream your purchase to your computer through your web browser without installing any apps on your computer.
Pros:
1. The subscription plan is much cheaper than Audible's;
2. Some audiobooks are not protected by DRM.
Cons:
Some DRM-protected audiobooks are not downloadable.
Available on: iOS|Android|web browser
DRM-free Audible Alternative
It is universal known that all Audible books are protected with DRM and only can be played at Audible compatible devices and apps. Another Audible competitor -- Downpour, which offers the DRM-free audiobooks.
4. Downpour
The most important feature of Downpour is that audiobooks purchased from this website are DRM-free because Doupour thinks their listeners should enjoy the audiobooks whenever, wherever, or whatever they are doing. It allows you to listen to the audiobooks at any software or devices as there is no DRM protection. Its monthly fee is $12.99 which is cheaper than Audible Premium Plus. In this website, you can rent or purchase the audiobook according to your own requirement. As the competitor of Audible, Downpour has around 70,000 titles available for downloading. Although you can purchase the extra credits for exchanging the audiobooks, some audiobooks on this website may cost two credits which is higher than Audible.
Pros:
1. Subscription fee is cheaper than Audible's;
2. Audiobooks are available for renting;
3. Audiobooks are DRM-free.
Cons:
The Downpour app is very simple and can not let you browse for new titles.
Available on: iOS|Android|web browser
Unlimited listening Audible Alternative
Different from other Audible alternatives, the audiobook subscriptions listed in this part will enable you to enjoy the unlimited listening service. They are Scribd and Playster.
5. Playster
Playster is an all-in-one subscription with unlimited access to books, audiobooks, music, movies and games. It is the truly unlimited audiobooks service, with no credits requirement, not access limitations. All what you have to do is to purchase the audiobook subscription service which is start at $1.5 per month. What a surprise! By patterning with the world's biggest publishers, Playster owns more than 100,000 titles and offers the audiobook lovers unlimited access to the best selling titles. If you listen to more than 1 audiobook every month and do not want to keep the audiobook permanently, you should try Playster as its membership includes unlimited-streaming and audiobook downloads.
Pros:
1. Unlimited access to more than 100,000 audiobooks;
2. Subscription fee is very low.
3. Beyond the audiobooks, it contains the books, music, movies and games.
Cons:
1. You will not be able to access any audiobooks if you cancel the subscription.
Available on: iOS|Android|web browser
Updated 7/17/2019: The start subscription fee for Playster is up to $17.50 per month. We appreciate @Sarah who shares this news with us in the comments.
6. Scribd
Scribd’s unlimited service launched on February 6, 2018 and it focuses more on the ebook rather than audiobook. I tried to find out how many audiobook titles it contains, but there is no exact data. But the Scribd did mention that it has hundreds of thousands ebooks, audiobooks, and News & Magazines from over hundreds of publishers on its FAQ. If you have a premium membership($8.99/month), you are able to access to the premium collection without limitation. Please remember that not all titles are always available at any time. If you only see a preview of a specific title, you should also see a notification of when this title will become fully available to you.
Pros:
1. Unlimited access to both ebooks and audiobooks;
2. Subscription fee is lower than audible.
Cons:
1. Restrictions on some titles may apply.
Available on: iOS|Android|web browser
No subscription requirement Audible Alternatives
Talking about audiobooks, almost all websites have their membership plans, but here are two websites enable you to purchase audiobooks without subscription service requirement.
7. Google play Audiobooks
As the competitor of Amazon, Google Play also launched the audiobook service at the beginning of 2018. The biggest difference from the Audible audiobooks is the Google play does not have any subscription plan. That means you do not have to pay for a membership that gets you hooked with one audiobook per month, but you can choose to purchase the Google Play audiobooks any time you want with the Google special discount. For listening to Google Play audiobooks, Android, iOS, web, home speakers and devices that use google assistant are all supported. We do not have any official report from Google to show how many titles does Google audiobook have, but I can assume that its titles are fewer than Audible's as it is still a newbie in the audiobook industry. If you are not planning to listen to one audiobook every month, Google Play audiobook is a good choice. What's more, every book you purchased will be safe in your account for as long as want.
Pros:
1. No subscription requirement;
2. Audiobooks can be listened at multiple devices.
Cons:
1. The titles are much less than Audible.
Available on: iOS|Android|web browser
8. Nook Audiobooks
Different from the new entrant Google Play, it has been few years since Nook started to sell audiobooks. Nook doesn't have any audiobook membership plan, so you do not have to pay for the monthly fee. As the audible alternative, it has a collection of about 60,000 titles which is also much fewer than other Audible alternatives. Since it offers pay-as-you-go model, you will not be hooked by the subscription service. Nook Audiobook is really good choice if you listen to audiobooks infrequently.
Pros:
1. No subscription requirement.
Cons:
1. Nook audiobooks cannot be listened with Nook app for Android, iOS.
2. Nook audiobooks cannot be returned and are non-refundable once they have been downloaded to your device.
Available on: iOS|Android
9. Chirp
Chirp is dedicated to helping you discover new books and audiobooks at affordable prices. Different from other audiobooks service, it doesn't charge a monthly subscription fee. To access the Chirp audiobooks, you just simply buy your books and get access to them via the Chirp audiobooks app. If you have signed up for their email, you'll receive the daily emails which has pointed out the best deals for you.
Pros:
1. No membership fee;
2. It offers a lot of really Low prices on popular audiobooks, but the deals are changing constantly;
3. You are not able to view the audiobooks on the Chirp app before purchasing them which is a little bit inconvenience.
Cons:
1. The titles are much less than Audible.
2. It is only available in US and Canada only for now.
Available on: iOS|Android|Web browser
General Audible Alternatives
10. Kobo Audiobooks
Kobo can be assumed as the most Audible-like alternative. It added audiobooks to its offering from 2017 and already has a large collection of over 5 million of the world's best eBooks and audiobooks. Like Audible, it also has audiobook subscription service which costs $9.9 per month. You can get 1 credit which can be redeemed for one audiobook. A big drawback of Kobo audiobook is that the audiobooks only can be listened with Kobo app for Android and iOS which means you can not listen to audiobooks on your computer.
Pros:
1. Membership is cheaper than Audible's.
Cons:
1. Audiobook titles are fewer than Audible;
2. Kobo audiobooks can only be listened with Kobo app for Android, iOS;
3. Special discount for students.
Available on: iOS|Android
11. Audiobooks.com
Audiobooks.com is focusing only on audiobooks, and has over 100,000 audiobook titles available now. The price of Audiobook.com membership is the same as Audible's which is $14.95. But Audiobooks.com enables you to purchase additional credits at the this price for treating additional audiobooks. You can purchase as many credits as you like without any limitation. I know this price is extremely high when compared with Playster or other audible alternatives, but if you want to keep your audiobooks for ever and build your own library, Audiobooks.com is a good alternative to Audible.
Pros:
1. Gift plan enables you to surprise your loved one.
Cons:
1. Audiobook titles are fewer than Audible;
2. The price is extremely high due to the credit system.
Available on: iOS|Android
I have write down the most important features in the following sheet. You can browse the following table and select the one you like most.
| Price | Titles | Supported system | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audible | Audible Plus ($7.95/month) Audible Premium Plus ( $14.95 /month) |
Over 11000 ebooks, audiobooks and vidoes for unlimited listening( Audible Plus Over 200,000 audiobooks |
iOS, Android, Windows 10(Libby) |
| OverDrive | Free | Over 2 000,000 ebooks, audiobooks and vidoes | iOS, Android, Windows 10(Libby) |
| Librivox | Free | Over 15,000 | No apps, listen and download audiobooks from website directly |
| audiobooksnow | $4.99/Month+50% off for every purchase | Over 80,000 | iOS, Android, web browser |
| Downpour | $12.99/Month for 1credit+buy or rent audiobooks | Around 70,000 | Android, iOS, Web browser |
| Playster | starting at $1.50 per month for unlimited access to audiobooks | More than 100,000 | Android, iOS, Web browser |
| Scribd | $8.99/month for unlimited access to ebooks and audiobooks | Around 70,000 | Android, iOS, Web browser |
| Google play Audiobooks | No subscription required | no data from Google | Android, iOS, web, home speakers and devices that use google assistant |
| Nook Audiobooks | No subscription required | Not clear | Android, iOS |
| Chirp | No subscription required | 60,000 | Android, iOS, Web browser |
| Kobo Audiobooks | $9.99/Month for 1 credit+buy audiobooks with credits or money | over 5000,000 of audiobooks and ebooks | Android, iOS |
| Audiobooks.com | $14.95/month for 1 credit+purchase additional credits any time | over 1,000,000 | Android, iOS |
After checking so many Audible alternatives, which Audible competitor will catch your attention? If your choice is still Audible.com, but you may feel frustrated sometime because the Audible audiobooks are protected by Audible DRM and only can be played on limited MP3 players or devices. If you are also in this dilemma, it's time to introduce a very powerful tool to help you break through the DRM restriction and enjoy Audible on any device. Please meet Epubor Audible converter which can help you convert audible to DRM-free MP3 file with original quality. Splitting audible into chapter is also supported. Just download the free trial today to liberate your Audible books today!
Iris Yan has been a passionate member of Epubor since 2017. Her mission is to enhance your ebook reading experience by sharing insightful tips and tricks. Join her on a journey towards reading excellence today!
Audible service and staff attitude is a clear indication that Amazon is getting closer to the end of its life cycle!
They are so arrogant and you have to beg them to activate your membership while they promise somebody will contact you in 24 hours.
I can bet the Amazon will be phased out in 5 years or even less!
<a href="http://www.bape-clothing.us" >a bathing ape</a> [url=http://www.bape-clothing.us]a bathing ape[/url]
to audible keeps shrinking.
<a href="http://www.golden-goose.us" >golden goose</a> [url=http://www.golden-goose.us]golden goose[/url]
I appreciate all your research. Thank you.
But...I. Did not see Hoopla mentioned. Depending on your library a person can rent movies, ebooks, audio books from 4to 10 titles each month for 21 days at no cost.
It is odd though that Palm Harbor only allows 4 per month but Clearwater library about 3 miles south allows 10! So check to see how your local library is set up and apply for your card at the most generous library.
Regards
This info is priceless to me!
I do still use OverDrive and Librivox for some things and I occasionally look to see if another audio service has entered the racebut I aways go back to Audible.