The 7 Best Audiobook Stores
Where is the Best Place to Find Audiobooks?
Within the last few years, the audiobook industry has exploded. With the increased use of tablets, smartphones, and iPods, the practice of listening to books rather than reading them has almost become the standard. The convenience of listening to a book in the car, while exercising, or even while cleaning the kitchen means listeners are able to digest the knowledge of so many more books than they would have time to otherwise.
Not only are audiobooks convenient, but they open listeners up to an endless amount of book titles. Seeking out books in a store or at the library limits you to the selection they have in stock and takes time to browse through the inventory. With online audiobook stores, you can search for books by title, genre, ratings, and more. Books you wouldn't have found on a shelf are now at your fingertips in the form of an audiobook.
Wednesday, October 4th
2023 Audiobook Store Reviews
Audible
Audible has a collection of over 100,000 audiobook titles searchable by new releases, genre, author, customer reviews, and running time. Their platform is extremely easy to use, professional, and fairly priced. We feel that Audible has everything you would want in an audiobook platform and has received our highest recommendation.
Book Lender
Book Lender is set up for customers to rent their paperback books or audiobooks rather than purchase them. From classics to new releases, Book Lender has over 40,000 audiobook titles to choose from. Rentals allow customers to experience as many or few books each month as they would like, making this service a solid option for customers who don't want to pay to keep their audiobooks in their virtual library forever.
Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble may be one of the first places you think of when it comes to bookstores. They are well-known and widely respected because of their classy retail stores and vast amount of content. Their online audiobook selection is no different. However, all audiobooks are sold at full price here, which may not be ideal for some customers.
Simply Audiobooks
For the avid audiobook listener, renting from Simply Audiobooks is a great option. Although you have to choose a plan that how many books you can have at a time, if you're a fast listener, you can plow through lots of audiobooks since you receive an unlimited amount each month. Just be aware that this service only provides audiobooks on CD, with no option to download or stream directly to your phone or other device.
Audiobooks
Audiobooks is a membership-based online store for e-books. They have over 150,000 titles to choose from as well as a free podcast feature through their app with over 700,000 podcasts to listen to. The reason this user-friendly site did not earn our highest rating is because many customers have complained that the cancellation process through Audiobooks is difficult and that customers are charged even after they have cancelled their membership.
Audiobooks Now
Audiobooks Now gives customers the opportunity to purchase titles from their collection of over 60,000 audiobooks. While they have a professional and straightforward platform that offers all the makings of a good online audiobook store, their pricing structure may be confusing, and even end up being costly for some customers.
Scribd
Scribd advertises themselves as a platform for unlimited audiobook listening for only $8.99/month. We wanted to give them a high rating due to their unbeatable pricing structure, but they have a plethora of negative customer comments, which makes us think that their services are just too good to be true. Many people report being charged continually for their services even after having cancelled their free trial.
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Services that provide audiobooks used to be expensive and much more limited than they are now. Some services come in the form of monthly subscriptions, while others let you purchase audiobooks individually. Other online book stores allow you to rent audiobooks and return or exchange them rather than having to purchase each one individually. However, the online service works, you'll find that the audiobooks are quite affordable and there are more title options than you'd ever be able to get through in a lifetime.
When searching for the best audiobook options, consider the following things to ensure you get the most bang for your buck:
- Cost. Are you paying for each audiobook individually? Or do you get multiple books for one set price each month? If you're renting, make sure it is significantly cheaper than purchasing the book outright.
- Selection. Listening to audiobooks allows for multitasking, so you can potentially get through more content this way than taking time to sit and read a physical book. You'll want to have a vast selection of listening material from whatever online store you choose so that you don't run out of audiobooks you enjoy.
- Available formats. Is the book downloadable on your phone? Tablet? Laptop? Some audiobooks even come in the form of a CD, though most services have instant downloads and streaming services. You'll want to ensure that whatever formats are offered, they will make book listening convenient for you.
TopConsumerReviews.com has reviewed and ranked the best audiobook stores available today. We hope these reviews help you find the audiobook service that provides you with a great experience!
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