With the best audiobooks apps on your iPhone or Android, you’ll never be at a loss for a good book. These apps let you listen to everything from best-sellers to old classics no matter where you are – all that’s needed is a mobile device and some headphones.
Audiobook apps come in as many forms as books themselves. Our list of the best audiobooks apps includes slick, full-featured players that also integrate online marketplaces to more humble affairs that still bring you classics of world literature in audiobook form.
Audible
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Audible is the best audiobooks app with over 470,000 titles in its library. Audible has been especially helpful recently since Amazon owns it. The player offers a solid playback feature such as chapter navigation, bookmarks, and variable playback speed for multitasking support when downloading or listening to an audiobook in background mode.
Audible integrates with Amazon and offers listeners several benefits. If you sign up at Audible.com, Prime members get two free credits when starting an Audible Premium Plus trial. The Amazon Whispersync feature allows users to switch between audiobook and text near-seamlessly. And if you have a voice assistant like Alexa, she can pull up your audiobooks from Audible for playback through an Echo or other device.
Audiobooks.com
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The cloud-based Audiobooks.com platform is also a solid option among the best audiobooks apps for Android and iOS listeners. It allows subscribers to choose from a library of more than 200,000 audiobooks from every genre they can stream or download offline listening.
The AudioBooks app includes variable playback speed, automatic bookmarking, and a sleep timer. The app also syncs across devices, so you can transition from one device to the other without losing your place in an audiobook or podcast.
Realm
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Realm, formerly known as Serial Box, has a new name but the same appeal for anyone who likes to listen to good stories. Its shorter episodes make it easy for listeners to enjoy listening on their commute or break time. It is one of the best audiobooks app out there.
There is a range of genres on Realm, such as drama and fantasy. Free membership allows you to listen to shows while paying for an Unlimited Member removes advertisements from the app and unlocks exclusive deals. You can enjoy all Realm offers for $2.49 per month over 12 months (or just $1 a month), you can enjoy all Realm offers.
They have a robust library of offerings such as “The Witch Who Came In From The Cold,” “Bookburners,” and “Tremontaine,” with a highly configurable reader and audiobook player mode. This is interesting for readers, especially considering the Android version of the app just came out.
Google Play Books
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Purchasing an audiobook on Google Play Books offers features like the ability to jump from one device to another and pick up where you left off. With Audiobook controls, you can skip ahead or scroll along the timeline, jump chapters, and configure playback speed and a snooze timer.
Unlike some of the other best audiobooks apps on our list, Google Play Books doesn’t operate on a monthly subscription; instead, it lets users preview audiobooks and then buys what they want over the Google Play Books marketplace.
Kobo Books
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Kobo, which may not be as well-known in the US market for ebooks and audiobooks compared to Amazon, has a rich library of titles. Its apps include all the basics: a scrubber bar with time skip buttons that allow you to jump back or forward in your reading timeline by minutes. You can also configure playback speed and snooze timer options on their audiobook player.
The Kobo app has cross-platform syncing options, a customizable ebook reader, and an audiobook player. New users can sign up for a $5 discount on their first purchase of an eBook.
Bookmobile
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Bookmobile is a well-regarded iOS Audiobook player for those looking to play DRM-free audiobooks. Bookmobile supports DRM-locked content from iTunes and Audible and DRM-free content, ripped from CDs or downloaded, including M4B and MP3 audiobooks. The app features intelligent controls designed to keep you from quickly losing your place with its drive mode, sleep mode, and support for background playback capabilities.
The trial lasts for 60 days and allows you to import three audiobooks. After that, it only costs $.399 to unlock the whole library of features. Extra features include custom bookmarking that automatically remembers where you last stopped, playback speed controls, and AirPlay support.
Smart AudioBook Player
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For Android, Smart AudioBook Player is a popular choice for audiobooks without DRM. It comes with variable playback speed, bookmarks, and an audio equalizer. You can also create playlists. The app includes a 30-day free trial before asking users for a $1.99 fee.
Listen Audiobook Player
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One of the best free audiobook apps for Android is Listen Audiobook Player, formerly known as Akimbo. Out of all other things in life, it doesn’t have ads or IAPs- at least not anymore. It’s a highly customizable player with variable playback speed, embedded chapter support, and bookmarks that also have lock screen controls and widgets.
With user syncing, you can synchronize your current position and bookmarks across multiple devices. You can also configure skip times, colors on the UI, and button shortcuts for headsets.
Voice Audiobook Player
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You can always go for free and open-source options for apps like audiobook players. Voice Audiobook Player has a clean Material design-based interface that delivers useful playback features without charging you anything.
The library management is like a folder-based affair, and playback options include variable playback speed and sleep timer. While it’s not as complex or advanced as other audiobook apps on the list of best audio players, you can’t argue its price point.
Nook Audiobooks
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Barnes & Noble offers the Nook Audiobooks app with more than 50,000 titles across various genres. Rather than using a subscription model like Audible or Audiobooks.com, Nook features an online store where you can buy individual books and then download and listen to them through the app.
Conclusion
The National Endowment for the Arts survey found that audiobook listening increases general literacy. Public libraries are an essential source of audiobooks, serving about 40% of all consumption in this format.
Libraries offer downloadable audiobooks as well as CDs. It’s worth mentioning that around 5,000 public libraries nationwide provide free downloads to their patrons. Also, reading at risk has shown a rise in sales, with more than 1 million copies sold since 2004.
