Haven’t you ever got into a situation where you thought to start reading that great book and realized it is already time to move because your eyes have spent too long staring at screens? Maybe you have a long car trip before you, and you wish you could be somewhere else without having to flip through the pages.
Do not worry there is an audiobook service that’s there to help you. In case you don’t know anything about Audiobooks, it is an audio version of the book that combines storytelling and convenience without you holding the book for hours and going through each word to word. But let’s be honest reading a physical book has its pleasure. Coming back to the topic in this article we will be talking about the 10 best audiobook services that you can switch and enjoy the pleasure of your favourite book reading by listening to it. In this list verse, we also make sure that these audiobook services should cover a wide catalogue such as Mystery thrillers, non-fiction, true stories and much more.
1. Amazon Audible
Availability: Worldwide
Amazon Audible is a fantastic service and the biggest platform that lets you listen to a huge collection of audiobooks right from your phone or tablet. It is popular for a wide variety of collections ranging from region one to international.
An Interesting fact about Audible is they offer free trials mostly of 30 days across the globe. In the meantime, you can find your favourite books, plus you get to keep the book even if you cancel your subscription which is so cool! Isn’t it?
2. Everand (Scribed new Platform that handles Audiobooks)
Availability: Worldwide
Everand is one of the services provided by Scribd that offers you an opportunity to dive into a world of knowledge and stories. Yes, you heard that right Everand handles all the audiobooks and stories of Scribed now. All the audiobooks, ebooks, and articles are located in one place and come in various genres and topics; hence, you will easily find something to listen to or read on your phone or tablet while fitting learning and entertainment into your busy lifestyle.
It also offers 30 day trial for new users so, go and check out Everand.
3. Google Play Books
Availability: Worldwide
Google Play Books is another fine app that provides instant access to millions of ebooks and audiobooks. You can find Google Play Books as a section in the Google Play App as well. You make it easier for you to access. It is quite simple and convenient to enjoy both reading and listening to your favourite audiobooks. The wide variety of books also makes it a good option to go for.
Although Google Play Books doesn’t offer a free trial, it offers several discounts, promotions and various free titles for you to check and experience.
4. Apple Books
Availability: Worldwide
Apple Books is a very user-friendly app where you can discover and enjoy, thousands of audiobooks and millions of ebooks, directly on your iPhone or iPad, and on your Mac. You might have guessed now, that the only downside to Apple Books is it’s exclusive to Apple products. So if don’t own an Apple product, you can’t use it.
Apple Books works on pay per Title model, so you can buy each tile to use it and does not offer any subscription model. Occasionally can see various promotions and free titles to enjoy.
5. Libro. fm
Availability: USA, Canada
Libro.fm is a unique audiobook service, that lets you listen to your favourite books while supporting local bookstores. With thousands of titles available on any phone or tablet which makes it even easier to go through and navigate across the platform.
A unique thing about Libro.fm is that every time you buy an audiobook, a portion of the sale goes to a bookstore of your choice and makes them thrive in your community. It is available in the USA and Canada only.
There is no free trial with Libra.fm but they offer you free credit each month that you can use to purchase.
6. Rakuten Kobo
Availability: Worldwide
Kobo owned by Rakuten is another popular app that offers audiobook services across the globe. It has a wide range of audiobooks that meet the tastes of most audiences. Plus it offers personalized recommendations based on your listening habits. Plus, if you own a Kobo e-reader, you can seamlessly switch between reading and listening to your books.
It offers 30 day free trial and comes with various plans that you can choose based on your needs.
7. AudioBooks.com
Availability: USA, Canada, UK
AudioBooks.com is another great service when it comes to audiobooks. Comes with wide thrilling genres that you can go through and listen to. Currently, it’s only available in the USA, Canada, UK. So if you belong to these countries you can sign up on AudioBooks.com and enjoy the stream.
AudioBooks.com offers 30 day free trial along with 3 audiobooks free. So don’t waste your time and sign up on AudioBooks.com now.
8. Blinkist
Availability: Worldwide
Blinkist is a unique audiobook service that lets you navigate through several books in a short time. How? It has a unique feature called “Blinks” that gives you a summary of book titles which is very helpful if you are navigating through books that you are not aware of.
Blinkist offers a 7-day trial plan so that you can navigate through the platform and explore its content. Its a great way to learn faster and smarter.
9. Downpour
Availability: USA, Canada
Downpour is an audiobook service that’s available in the USA and Canada. Just like Libro.fm, it also offers free credit each month on a subscription and has no free trial. It’s a direct competitor of Libro.fm. Using Downpour helps you to be a part of promoting local authors with their books in store.
For more information check Downpour from below.
10. Hoopla
Availability: USA, Canada
Another player that’s exclusive to the USA and Canada is Hoopla. You access audiobooks, books, and music from public libraries completely free. However, for the exclusive content, you need to buy a membership which comes with borrowing limits.
So it’s a great way to start with audiobooks if you want to go with something different yet exclusive to your region.
Platforms Worth Mentioning
1. Storytel
Availability: Worldwide
Storytel is another popular platform for audiobooks that offers free trials of 14 days. Which means it allows you to explore the content and check if you liked it or not. Since its available across the globe, you can access it from any part of the world. Storytel is a great competitor to Audible, Everand and Google Play Books, popular across Europe.
2. Pocket FM
Availability: India, USA, UK mainly
Pocket FM is another player in the service of audiobooks. Although its primary market is India, as per the company website it currently serves its content in 20+ countries including USA and UK. You can find a wide variety of content on Pocket FM based on your location and region.
You can access Pocket FM on your Android and iOS devices. Currently, they don’t offer any trial period but they have several free titles that you can check around.
3. OverDrive
Availability: North America, Europe, Australia
OverDrive is a popular and best audiobook service that serves its service in North America, Australia and Europe. It has come up with a new library named Libby which handles, books, and audiobooks of Overdrive. In terms of its popularity, it is mostly popular in Europe and can be accessible through Android, iOS and Amazon app stores.
Checkout Overdrive now by clicking down.
Hope this article helped you to choose the best Audiobook services on your region.
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