Originally available on cassette, then CD and now streaming, the audiobook has kept pace with the times. They are perfect for long trips, for falling asleep or as an alternative to music. The Amazon service Audible is the market leader when it comes to audio books, but there are alternatives.
Tip: If you want to learn more about the audiobook provider Audible, read our post on the subject.
Audiobooks.com
Audiobooks.com is our first recommendation as it works very similarly to Audible. Audiobooks.com also charges you around € 10 per month, but does not use credits like Audible. You also have the choice of subscribing or buying the audiobooks at a fixed price without a subscription. The selection of audiobooks is large, but not quite as extensive as Audible's. However, if you are looking for a bestseller or a new release, you will definitely find it here..
LibriVox
LibriVox is a smartphone app that provides access to free audiobooks. You will most likely not find any bestsellers or new releases here, but LibriVox still has up to 24,000 titles in the library. Since this audiobook provider is run by a team of volunteers who record and format the audiobooks themselves, you can expect amateur quality. But the service is completely free and if you search deep enough, you are sure to find one or the other gold piece among the audio books.
Bookbeat
Bookbeat is another alternative, but unlike Audible, it is quite expensive. Because the standard subscription costs € 9.99 per month. This means that you can only listen to your audiobooks for 25 hours a month. In order to experience unlimited listening pleasure, you have to put money on it again and then pay around € 20 per month. Bookbeat's library has over 10,000 books, so you're sure to find a book that suits you. If you are not sure, you can test the service for 2 weeks first..
Scribd
Scribd not only offers audiobooks, but also magazines, digital books and documents. For around € 9 a month you can get a free audio book and three free books. However, you cannot download purchased audiobooks and the terms and conditions explain that you do not own the purchased books and can only use them to a limited extent.
