Audible review: the audiobook service is still worth it — get three months FREE this Prime Day

The Sun

6 hours ago

LET me get this out of the way: I've never liked audiobooks.
I know it's not a modern mindset, but they feel too much like cheating to me; books should be books, not podcasts.
However, since moving last year, my method of transport to work has switched from a train to a bus, and I've quickly discovered that reading a paperback on the 141 to London Bridge is no easy feat.
So can Audible, the Amazon -owned audiobook service, change my mind on the idea of listening to books, and restore order to my morning commute?
With a Prime Day deal that snags Prime members their first three months completely free, it's certainly a convenient solution.
I've done an Audible review to find out.
Pros:
Cons:
No biggies from me — it'd be nice to have a more widely available TV app, and some customers have complained about the customer service
Rating: 9.5/10
How I tested Audible
I'm a keen reader — I have been since I was a child, before doing an English Literature degree at uni. As an adult, I'm a card-carrying book-clubber and read every day.
For this review, I downed my usual paperback and tried Audible for a couple of weeks to see if it offers a good, reasonably priced and easy-to-use service for book lovers.
Audible review: Quickfire Q&A
How does Audible work? You can use it without a membership, but the best way to use Audible is to pay for a Premium Plus Subscription, which awards you a credit every month to purchase an audiobook of your choice.
How much is Audible? The Premium Plus subscription is £8.99 per month. You can get your first three months completely free if you're a Prime member, as part of a Prime Day deal.
Who's it best for? People who love reading but don't have the time to sit down and read an actual book. If your life involves many long, solo car journeys, this is a no-brainer.
What we loved: The number of titles available — over 800,000, apparently. The in-app experience is also extremely easy, and Amazon has worked hard to compile a bank of exclusive content for Audible members.
What we didn't: I haven't had any negative issues so far. Some online reviewers have complained about the company's customer service, with several saying that it's almost impossible to speak to an actual human.
How to cancel an Audible membership: You can cancel anytime by going to your account settings on the desktop site (as far as I can tell, it's not possible to cancel on the app). If you have unused credits, you'll lose these if you cancel, so it might be wiser to pause your membership.
Audible review: The Nitty Gritty
First impressions
CLAIM HERE
Getting set up with an Audible account is incredibly easy, especially if you've already got an Amazon account.
Simply log in with your Amazon credentials, then activate your subscription.
Audible generally runs attractive deals for new subscribers — at the moment, Prime members can get their first three months for free for Prime Day.
You don't have to go down the subscription route — you can just purchase individual audiobooks — but the subscription bags you a free audiobook every month, while purchasing an individual audiobook can run you up to £20 or even more.
So if you're going to be listening to a book every month or two, it's certainly the cheaper method.
The subscription also grants you access to the Premium Plus catalogue, a library of thousands of audiobooks and podcasts, many of which are exclusive to Audible.
Does it deliver?
Prime Members get 3 months of Audible FREE for Prime Day
In short, yes.
Audible celebrates its 30th birthday this year, and it shows: there's a dizzying amount of content to be discovered.
The official number is that there are over 800,000 titles, but in short, you'll find any book you might fancy.
There's a regularly-updated list of bestsellers, which tends to comprise a mixture of self-improvement books, celebrity authors (Richard Osmen, Bob Mortimer and David Mitchell are stalwarts) and, somehow, still, the Harry Potter series. (I'm no hater, but The Philosopher's Stone came out nearly 30 years ago).
Of course, there's also centuries' worth of classics to be discovered, with the 21st century-spin of being narrated by A-List actors: The Great Gatsby by Jake Gyllenhaal; Alice in Wonderland by Scarlett Johansson; The Wizard of Oz by Anne Hathaway.
However, where Audible really comes into its own is its extensive library of exclusive content, which you won't find at any other provider.
One of my first downloads, for instance, was an Audible-exclusive rendition of George Orwell's 1984 (one of my literary blind spots), narrated by a frankly astounding cast of actors: Andrew Garfield, Cynthia Erivo, Andrew Scott and Tom Hardy are the first four names on the list. There are six Oscar nominations between those four names!
There's also a version of Pride and Prejudice coming out with a cast led by Harris Dickinson, Glenn Close and Bill Nighy, while bookworms will love Audible's exclusive version of the Sherlock Holmes collection narrated by Steven Fry.
And there's a seemingly endless selection of exclusive thrillers that would be perfect for a low-effort holiday read.
There's also a range of exclusive podcasts, including Alan Partridge's From The Oasthouse and French and Saunders Titting About.
And it goes without saying that, after three decades and with a parent company as big as Amazon, Audible has got the app down — it's unfussy and simple, and I don't see even the least tech-savvy people having too many issues getting to grips with it.
People who love listening to an audiobook on the road will also love the driving mode, which further simplifies the display and makes the buttons bigger to make it easier and safer to pause and play while on the go.
My only small complaint is that there's no Audible TV app unless you have an Amazon TV or Fire Stick, which would have been handy for when I'm cooking or tidying the living room.
How much is Audible?
As I mentioned earlier, there are a few routes you can go down with Audible.
Unless you're only planning on getting through a book or two a year, the best course of action is the Premium Plus Subscription, which costs £8.99 per month.
Each month, you get a credit to use to buy an audiobook of your choice, meaning that, if you're getting through roughly a book per month, the £8.99 monthly cost is all you'll need to spend. That's more or less the same as buying a paperback every month — if not cheaper.
If you're a real bookworm, then you can pay a smidgen extra — £14.99 — to get two credits per month, or you can make use of Audible's Premium Plus library, which contains loads of books that you can listen to completely free of charge.
Audible alternatives
Audible has been in the game so long that it has something of a monopoly over the audiobook industry.
There are a couple, though, including Libro, Xigxag and audiobooks.co.uk, although I haven't tried these services.
Presumably, in an attempt to get a leg up on Audible, a couple of them run more attractive sign-up offers.
If you have a subscription to Spotify or Apple Music, you can get some audiobooks through those, which can be helpful if you don't want to double up on subscriptions.