Alternatives to Audible for Cheap or Free Audiobooks

I love sharing my money-saving tips, and these tricks are for all my fellow traveling bookworms. I’ve mastered maximizing several free and cheap alternatives to Audible. Finding the books I want to read on the different apps is like a fun little game.

I read a lot—like 70+ books a year. This hobby could add up if I allowed it, especially since I prefer audiobooks while traveling. In 2019, I spent about $360 on accommodations for three weeks in Latvia, Estonia, Finland, and England. That’s equal to about 14 audiobooks if they cost $25 each.

So, if you’re a voracious reader like me and want to save money to travel, start using these resources ASAP.

How I Use These Services

If you’re short on time, here’s a quick rundown of this post:

I use Libby and Hoopla as free alternatives to Audible. I usually find what I want to read between these two apps. Cloud Library is a third app that some libraries may use.

My next stop is my Spotify Premium and Amazon Prime accounts, which include some audiobooks. These are subscription-based alternatives that I already pay for, so I count them as sunk costs. I try to take advantage of them as much as possible to get my money’s worth.

If I can’t find what I’m looking for on those apps, my last-ditch effort is to use the Amazon Alexa app to turn an e-book into an audiobook. This will work with any e-book in your Kindle Library, including those borrowed from Libby (use the Read With Kindle option), Prime Reading, and Kindle Unlimited.

Audiobooks.com and Libro.fm are more ethical subscription-based audiobook service options for those who want to avoid Amazon products altogether.

Finally, there’s Chirp Books, a pay-per-book site with steeply discounted audiobooks.

	Cost	Bonuses
Libby	Free
Hoopla	Free
Spotify Premium	$11.99
Prime Reading	Included in Amazon Prime subscription
Kindle Unlimited	$11.99 in addition to Amazon Prime subscription
Alexa App	Free
Audiobooks.com	$14.95 + Pay-per-book	VIP rewards, exclusive Member Deals
Everand	$11.99 or $16.99
Libro.fm	$14.99 + Pay-per-book	30% off additional audiobooks
Book of the Month	$16.98
Chirp Books	Pay-per-book

Alternatives to Audible For Free Audiobooks

Let’s start with the free stuff, shall we?

Disclaimer: Your results may differ. I listen to audiobooks on my iPhone, MacBook, and sometimes on my TV using my Roku. The library tips are based on my experience as a Massachusetts resident.

Library Apps

These apps allow you to browse and check out audiobooks and e-books using your library card. I can usually find the audiobook I’m looking for on at least one of these three apps.

Libby | My Favorite Alternative to Audible!

Libby is a digital library app that works with local libraries across North America.

There are only two downsides to borrowing audiobooks from the library. The first is the long wait times for some of the books, like months long waits, but I have a trick that will help them move along faster below. The second is that you only have 7-21 days to finish listening before returning them. You can renew several times as long as their isn’t an active waitlist.

Here are some of my favorite features about listening to audiobooks on Libby.

1. Partner libraries

Partner libraries allow users to log in and borrow audiobooks using their home library card number. For example, one of my home library systems is called CLAMS, and I use that library card to access several other library systems across Massachusetts.

Partnering libraries have limitations, and not all libraries will partner with others. For instance, I don’t qualify for all seventeen Massachusetts library systems since some are universities that require you to be a student.

2. Multiple library cards

Libby allows you to have multiple library cards for the same library. I have two cards with Boston Public Library and I can switch between the two in the Libby app.

As a Massachusetts resident, I am entitled to a library card with them. Most libraries in state capitals allow any state resident to get a library card, so check with yours. BPL is also a partner library, so I have a second one using my home library card.

3. Multiple library holds on one book

Putting one book on hold at multiple libraries increases your chances of getting it faster. You move up in line as people finish the book or defer their holds, and some lines move faster than others.

There is one caveat to this trick, though. Libraries prioritize their own members, so your spot in line at partner libraries may jump back and forth as their patrons put books on hold. In your holds, you’ll see the number of “people waiting in two lanes.”

4. Hold Deferment

The feature I love most about this app is putting audiobooks on hold, passing your turn to the next person in line without losing your place. This is helpful if you’re not ready to read the book because you’re reading another or don’t have the time for it. You can defer your turn for 1-180 days.

Hoopla

Some libraries may use Hoopla instead of or in addition to Libby. One library card that I have a card for uses Hoopla, and is also part of the larger partner library system that I use on Libby.

Most e-books and audiobooks are available to borrow immediately. If a book I want to read has a long hold on Libby, I will check to see if it is available on Hoopla before any other of these options.

You can only use one library card at a time on the Hoopla app, and depending on your library, some books may not be available at all, which is always a bummer. Also, you are limited to ten borrows per month across all formats, including audiobooks, e-books, and movies.

Other Library Apps

There are a few other apps that your local public library may use instead of Libby or Hoopla. CloudLibrary and BorrowBox are the ones I know of, but there are probably others.

I have never used BorrowBox, but I used CloudLibrary with an Anaheim Public Library card that I applied for the electronic library card when they offered non-resident library cards for free to non-residents of California.

Amazon Alexa App + eBooks

Sometimes, I will use the Amazon Alexa app to turn e-books into audiobooks using Alexa’s text-to-speech feature.

Alexa can narrate most books in my Kindle library, including e-books borrowed from the library. When I borrow e-books in Libby, they are automatically delivered to my Kindle – a setting I selected in those platforms.

Now, Alexa’s narration is quite monotonous. It doesn’t have the same expressiveness as a human narrator, so I use this option as a last resort.

Netgalley

NetGalley is a platform where publishers provide digital copies of books to readers before they are published, sometimes called galleys or advanced reader copies (ARCs), in exchange for honest reviews. The platform mainly offers e-books, but sometimes audiobooks are also available.

This option suits book reviewers, librarians, educators, and media professionals who can access new titles for free and help generate buzz for upcoming books. Surprisingly, I was granted access to Netgalley in 2016 with a young blog and a small audience.

Confession: I have yet to write a review for a single galley I’ve received. Sorry, Netgalley – I’ll do better!

Subscription-Based Audible Alternatives

If you don’t have the patience or desire to use any of the free audiobook options above, try one of the following subscription or membership options.

Libro.fm

Libro.fm is a social purpose corporation that works exactly like Audible, but your monthly fee goes to an independent bookstore that you choose. Pick one in your hometown or across the country, it’s up to you! Choose one monthly credit for $14.99 or two credits for $23.99. Credits never expire, so don’t worry about losing them during a reading slump!

Enjoy a 30% discount on any additional audiobooks you wish to purchase, which works on top of any sale prices. Plus, you own all the audiobooks you purchase.

BONUS for new memberships: Get three audiobooks for the price of one! Try Libro.fm and stock up on reading materials today!

Audiobooks.com

Also works like Audible with a monthly credit to purchase one book, plus the option to choose from a curated selection of VIP audiobooks.

You own all audiobooks purchased with your monthly subscription credit, and can keep the VIP audiobooks for as long as your subscription is active.

Spotify

Premium subscriptions now include 15 hours of listening time that renews every month. The trick to this one is to only listen to books that don’t exceed the 15 hour limit. It’s not fun to run out of hours mid-book and have to wait for the time to renew!

Everand

Has ebooks, magazines, podcasts, and sheet music in addition to audiobooks. They have “unlocks” instead of credits, which allows you to unlock one or three audiobooks from their premium catalog depending on the monthly plan you choose.

You only have access to the audiobooks for as long as your subscription is active.

Anyplay

I only recently learned about this app and I am still testing it out. I’ll come back to update once I know how it works.

Book of the Month

I am trying this one out for the first time this month because I learned that you can now choose between a hardcover physical book or an audiobook every month. I’m not sure if I’ll select any of the audiobooks offered right now, so I will update with my experience later.

The monthly subscription costs $16.98 for one credit per month or $14.99 a month for two credits. They also offer an annual membership that works out to $13.99 per month.

However, I got my first month for only $5 and you can, too, when you use this link to sign up.

Pay-Per-Book Audiobook Deals

As mentioned above, you can purchase audiobooks on Libro.fm and Audiobooks.com, at a discount for subscribers.

Chirp Books

Chirp is an app for audiobooks purchased at a discount from Chirp Books. I signed up for their daily email, which included a curated list of audiobooks I might be interested in. Sometimes, they are discounted to less than $1.

These steep discounts are usually for a limited time – a few days or a week. However, even when they aren’t heavily discounted, regular prices at Chirp Books are still lower than the publisher’s price.

The advantage of buying audiobooks through Chirp Books is you own them forever, and you can take as long as you wish to finish reading them.

How to Save Money Using Audible

Before I wrap this up, I must mention that I’m not saying not to use Audible if you want to. It can still be a good deal. A monthly subscription to Audible that includes one audiobook costs $14.95. This is already cheaper than regularly priced audiobooks, but you can save more if you take advantage of their promotions.

I signed up during a promotion once and got a free three-month subscription plus three additional months at half-price ($7.47 per month). So, I got six audiobooks for about $22.50, or about $3.75 per audiobook.

This was back in 2016, and I signed up to stock up for all my future bus rides around New Zealand. At the time, this was the only way I knew of to get digital audiobooks. I didn’t listen to all 6 of those audiobooks while I was there, so present me appreciated past me’s planning!

The current promotion (I assume for previous subscribers) is $7.95 per month for four months. That’s a great deal that doesn’t include sifting through daily emails or being on a waiting list!

First-time users of Audible can get TWO free audiobooks when they sign up for a free trial. Try it out, get the two free audiobooks, and see if you like the service! If not, you now have three alternatives to work with.

Amazon Prime Reading

Prime Reading is included with an Amazon Prime subscription. So, Prime subscribers are already paying for it and might as well use it!

This feature gives you access to e-books, some of which have Audible narration included. The selection is limited, but you’ll see a pair of orange headphones next to the Prime logo (see image above) if a Prime Reading e-book is narrated.

There are no due dates when borrowing from Prime Reading, but you do have to return them eventually. You can borrow up to ten titles at a time.

If You Use the Free Amazon Kindle App

From your phone:

Click Explore > Prime Reading > scroll to the right, click Audiobooks. Then click the Read and Listen for Free button to add the e-book to your library. This adds the e-book to your Kindle library and the audiobook to your Audible library. Use the Audible app to download and listen.

If You Use the Amazon App

From your phone:

Click the hamburger menu (three stacked lines) along the bottom menu, which will bring you to Your Shortcuts. If Prime Reading is not in your shortcuts, scroll down to Shop by category and select Books & Reading > Prime Reading > scroll to the right, click Audiobooks.

Then click the Read and Listen for Free button to add the e-book to your to your Kindle library and the audiobook to your Audible library. Again, use the Audible app to download and listen.

Note: This app changes all the time, so these instructions are as up-to-date as possible.

Amazon Website

There are a couple of ways to navigate to Prime Reading on the website, who whichever works best for you:

1. From the main menu, select Kindle E-readers & Books > Prime Reading > Audiobooks.
2. From your Accounts & Lists menu, select Prime Membership > Read > Explore Prime Reading.

From there, the instructions are the same for adding to your library and listening.

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