Spotify audiobooks are here: dive into the Spotify apps and you’ll find a wealth of audiobooks to listen to, including some free options. Since music and podcasts are already well catered for, this means Spotify covers virtually every category of audio content.
As with podcasts – added in 2015 – Spotify has worked hard to integrate audiobooks into the app interfaces as seamlessly as possible. You can browse and search for audiobooks specifically and individually, and they’ll be kept in their own section of your Spotify library once you’ve purchased and downloaded them.
There are some familiar resources available when you start listening. You can listen offline, bookmark your spot and adjust the playback speed easily in the Spotify apps. Here’s everything you need to know about audiobooks on Spotify.
When did Spotify launch audiobooks?
Audiobooks were added to Spotify in September 2022 for US users. They were subsequently made available in the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand in November 2022, and in Canada in March 2023. At this time, Spotify audiobooks are not available on the streaming service in other regions.
According to to SpotifyUsers had been asking for audiobooks for years and at launch there were 300,000 titles available – within a year that number had grown to 350,000 titles, so new content is added regularly. Spotify has also promised that more features and functions will be coming in the future.
“We tested, researched and listened to find out how we can create the most seamless experience on Spotify,” said Nir Zicherman, Spotify’s Vice President and Global Head of Audiobooks and Gated Content, when Spotify audiobooks launched.
“Our hope is that users who find audiobooks in their apps starting today will feel like the user experience is clear: that audiobooks fit perfectly with how they already use Spotify.”
How much do audiobooks cost on Spotify?
On the Spotify platform, you’ll find audiobooks in a variety of price ranges, from free to all-in, so you can pick and choose depending on your budget. Please note that purchasing audiobooks works separately from a Spotify Premium subscription: audiobooks are one-time purchases that are handled separately, regardless of whether you also pay Spotify a monthly subscription fee.
Or rather, that is the current situation. According to a report from yesterday’s Wall Street Journal, Spotify plans to offer subscribers a free trial of its audiobook service “in the coming months.” We will watch that with interest.
Until that (possibly) happens, even Spotify Premium subscribers won’t get a monthly credit to spend on audiobooks, as you do with Amazon’s Audible (although with Audible you’ll lose access to your content once you stop your subscription). Purchases are also handled independently of a shared Family or Duo subscription: everyone’s audiobook purchases are kept separate and not shared between users.
In terms of US currency, paid audiobooks start at just a few dollars and can go up to $40 (that’s about £32 / AU$62). However, prices fluctuate, with special offers coming and going – so if you have a specific audiobook in mind, we recommend waiting a few weeks to see if you can get it cheaper.
How to buy audiobooks on Spotify?
Open the Spotify app on mobile, desktop or web and you should have a Audiobooks link in a prominent place (usually at the top) – it’s next to it Music And Podcasts and showsso you can quickly find the type of content you want.
You can also just use the search function to search for audiobooks: you can search for specific titles or genres, and as you type your search query you’ll see a Audiobooks a filter button will appear below it to help you refine your results.
The hundreds of thousands of audiobooks on Spotify cover a variety of categories and genres, so you should be able to find plenty of titles to suit your reading tastes. As you make purchases, Spotify will give you recommendations on what else to listen to.
Click or tap an audiobook to see more information about it: a description, user reviews, how much it costs, running time, and who is narrating it. Audiobooks can also be saved to your library even before you purchase them.
Select To get or To buy to download and – if necessary – purchase an audiobook. Purchases are always processed online, so if you’re in the desktop or mobile apps, you’ll be redirected to a web page where you can enter your payment information.
Once that’s done, the title will appear in your library and be ready to listen to. Any titles saved to your library that have not yet been purchased will have a padlock icon next to them, which will disappear when you actually purchase the audiobook on Spotify.
By default, when you purchase audiobooks, Spotify will use the payment methods you have previously used or that you use for your subscription, but you can change this if necessary. You will also receive a confirmation email for each audiobook purchase you make.
Does Spotify offer free audiobooks?
There’s a small selection of free audiobooks on Spotify, so you can start listening without spending any money. It’s also worth noting that each audiobook has a free sample you can listen to, available on the individual listing pages. You may see a free audiobooks section on the home screen of the Spotify app, but if not, you can also search for “free audiobooks.”
As far as we can tell, the selection of free audiobooks, based on the “best free Spotify audiobooks” lists that people have posted online, varies by country and also varies over time. It’s a good idea to keep checking the Spotify apps or even search for specific titles to see what’s on offer for free.
The process for adding a free audiobook to your library is the same as purchasing an audiobook on Spotify, except no payment information is required and no money changes hands. The new title will be available in the audiobooks section of your library.