Audible made me fall in love with reading all over again.
I’ve always been a voracious reader. I have 3-4 physical books on the go at any one time. Reading is the first thing I do in the morning and how I relax after work. I also have a Kindle crammed with hundreds of books and thousands of free samples. And listening to audiobooks through Audible is a real magical addition to my reading triad.
I love being told a story. I love listening to a great book narrated beautifully while cooking with a glass of a wine. If I’m commuting anywhere – by foot, train, or plane – I need to have my Audible library stocked up. I’ll often take hikes or hit the gym just to have an excuse to listen to my audiobooks.
In this Audible review, I’m going to tell you all the reasons why you should absolutely sign up for a free trial today (which you can do through this link and immediately get 2 free audiobooks and 2 Audible Originals.
We’ll answer the question: is Audible worth it?
We’ll look at all the features of Audible (including what are Audible Originals and Audible Channels), the things I love about Audible, the things that could be improved, all about the best books on Audible, pricing plans, the Audible app, and how Audible works.
Ultimate Audible Review 2020
First things first, let’s look at how the Audible membership works and what happens when you sign up for an Audible free trial.
How Audible works
When you sign up here for an Audible free trial, you get 30 days of Audible membership for free before being billed at $14.95 per month (at time of writing).
You can cancel you Audible subscription at any time. You can cancel your membership before your Audible free trial expires and you’ll still get to keep your free audiobooks.
When you get the free trial, you immediately can choose two audiobooks from the entire Audible catalogue (which has basically everything and anything you could want) and two Audible Originals.
How to use Audible Credits
You’ll get an Audible credit that can be used to download your audiobooks.
One credit = one audiobook on Audible.
I recommend you make your Audible credit count.
Go for longer audiobooks or audiobooks that are typically expensive as this is more economic.
I’d much prefer getting Stephen Fry reading the entire Sherlock Holmes stories (71 hours, normally priced at $102) for my Audible credit than an hour-long ebook that’s always on sale.
In addition to your Audible credit, as an Audible member you get other Audible audiobooks at heavily discounted prices. And you can always buy more credits.
What are Audible Originals?
This is basically Amazon jumping on the “original” bandwagon.
You know, like Netflix Originals.
It’s a cool idea and these are basically audiobooks that are completely exclusive to Audible.
There are 6 new Audible Originals each month.
As part of your Audible membership, you can download 2 Audible Originals every month in addition to your other free audiobook.
The Audible Originals can be pretty hit or miss.
Some months, you’ll love every single one.
Some months, none of the Originals will do much for you.
And other months, you’ll find that two is the perfect number for you.
For this month, I chose a new dramatisation of Treasure Island and a collection of horror short stories in radio show format inspired by M.R. James as my Audible Originals.
Both productions are superb and have some great actors lending their voices to the characters.
Check out the current Audible Originals line up here.
Once you’ve signed up for the Audible free trial, browse the Audible catalogue looking for your first audiobook.
Your first audiobook will be your gateway drug.
I’ve noticed that people either love or hate audiobooks.
You’ll know fairly quickly which camp you fall into.
Maybe you’re a business owner who needs to make use of their morning drive to work to listen to a self-development book.
Maybe you cook family dinner and would like a good story to accompany you through the process (I noticed I made food more lovingly when I listened to an audiobook).
Or maybe you just like to do nothing but sit back and relax with a glass of wine as the story unfolds.
I love the process of choosing an audiobook from Audible.
I really take my time with it.
You have to!
The Audible catalogue is huge.
And I always want to make sure I get the most out of my Audible credit.
So I browse, I listen to free samples to get a feel of the production style and narration quality, I look at reviews, and I have a great geeky time.
The Audible app review.
Download the Audible app.
It’s all about the Audible app (iPhone and Android both covered)!
You subscribe and make your selections on the Audible website, but the best way to listen to your audiobooks is through the Audible app.
It’s super easy to set up.
You just download the app and sign-in with your Amazon or Audible email and password and you’re in!
From then on, whenever you download an audiobook, it’s delivered immediately to your app like magic.
You can’t buy or download audiobooks straight from the app.
You can listen to samples and read reviews and browse the catalogue, but you need to be logged into the website to download an audiobook.
I haven’t decided whether this is a good thing or bad thing yet.
But I’m leaning towards thinking it’s a good thing.
For me, it would be super dangerous because I get so excited by audiobooks and I’m very impulsive so this adds a protective barrier that stops me from going crazy or wasting a credit (unlike Kindle where you can buy straight from your device).
Although it’s not the end of the world if you do buy an audiobook that you don’t like.
Audible and Amazon have a fantastic return policy.
You can’t abuse it, but if you genuinely didn’t like the audiobook you can return it with no questions asked and get your credit back to download another one.
When it comes to browsing the Audible website, everything is beautifully laid out with fresh and intuitive design.
The Audible Selection
You can browse audiobooks by category – everything’s here and there are a ton of categories to choose from. Everything from romance, thrillers, and sci-fi to self-development, biographies, and classics.
You can also browse audiobooks by bestsellers, new releases, coming soon, authors, best of the year, and so much more.
You can browse The Great Courses on Audible.
I’ve already written a review on the Great Courses here, but I love that it’s such a solid feature of Audible.
You do not need a university education if you listen to the Great Courses.
Honestly, a truck driver who is on the road six days out of the week can be as educated as any Oxford University graduate just by having a listening syllabus comprised on the Great Courses – so have a browse and check out some of the things you can learn.
Another great part of the Audible catalogue is the curation by the editors.
If you didn’t already feel like a nerdy child in a playground, a huge audio Alexandria, you will after you check out the every-changing selections and recommendations from the Audible team.
You can also browse the Narrator Hall of Fame.
I love this section of the Audible catalogue.
For me, choosing an audiobook is only 50% based on story.
There has to be a winning narrator and great production value. I want voice and sound to sweep me up in the story so I can fully immerse and lose myself.
And that’s not all!
You also have Audible Theatre. Theatrical storytelling ranging from plays to live productions. I’ve got my eye on Carey Mulligan’s one-woman show and a script reading with Billy Crystal and Annette Benning at the moment.
You also have Audible’s podcast range (all free to download) and Audible in Spanish, which is super useful for those learning the language.
Another feature I really like is the Audible Escape plan. But that’s a whole different review. In short, it’s a membership where you have access to an all-you-can-eat buffet of romance audiobooks.
Another feature of the Audible platform I love making use of is the Wish List.
I basically use this as my audiobook TBR (to-be-read, or to-be-listened-to) list. What’s great here is Audible will notify you when there’s deals on the books in your wish list.
I also like it because it gives me time to mull over whether I want to use my credit or not. It also helps me keep track of what books I’m interested in because there’s so many and I would likely forget the majority of them if I didn’t use this feature.
What I love about the Audible app.
The Audible app is sleek, beautiful, elegant, powerful.
It’s super easy and intuitive to use.
You don’t have problems with the app crashing or anything like that. It just does exactly what you want it to – and more – and it does it very well.
Here are some of the features I adore about the Audible app.
Tailor-made audiobook recommendations
The homepage of the audible app includes a bunch of recommendations based on your listening habits.
So whenever I log in, I can always be thinking about and seeking out my next listen.
The more audiobooks you listen to, the smart the algorithm becomes and you’ll get some superb recommendations this way.
Audible badges
A lot of people don’t know about this feature, but it’s so exciting when you discover it.
Basically depending on how you listen and interact with your audiobooks, you can earn colourful little badges.
It’s like being back in Scouts, but with audiobooks!
I love geeky stuff like this and going on intellectual quests, so this thrills me to more core.
If you’re looking for a way to read more and up your audiobook game, trying to achieve and unlock all of the badges will certainly help you do that.
Easy to share what you’re reading
I have a running tab of friends and family who I send specific book recommendations to.
If I’m reading a physical book and I’m struck by how much a certain person would love it, I typically take a pap of the book and send them the cover photo or a photo of a certain passage.
Well, you can do the same with the audiobooks on Audible – one click and you can share what you’re listening to via WhatsApp, email, messenger, text, and so on. And Audible says that every recipient’s first book is on them – that’s right! You can gift the book you’re listening to for free to a friend!
Clips and bookmarks
This is hands-down one of the most exciting features of the Audible app for me.
I’m a huge note-taker.
It doesn’t matter what I’m reading, I have to take notes.
The thing that put me off audiobooks for so long was the thought that I’d have to sacrifice what was such a large joy in the reading process for me.
But Audible have come up with the sleekest most elegant solution.
Hit a super thought-provoking part of your audiobook and need to bookmark it and jot down some notes?
One tap and you can do just that.
You can add as many bookmarks as you like. You can also write notes on what you’ve just listened to and have your own little private notebook dedicated to that book right there in the Audible library basically built into the book you’re reading.
You have no idea how much this turns on my geeky side.
You can then sort through your notes whenever you like, immediately play back and listen to the clips you bookmarked, and even send your notes to other people and share them!
You can change the narration speed.
You can make it slower or much faster and there’s a ton of variability.
For me, I’ll play non-fiction stuff on 1.25x or 1.5x.
I won’t speed up the reading speed for fiction, however, because I find the pace is all part of the story. But it’s a wonderful option to have.
One excuse people give for not listening to audiobooks is because they can read the paper version quicker. Well, now you can match the narrator’s reading speed to your own speed.
Sleep timer function.
I love falling asleep listening to audiobooks. The only problem I have is that huge chunks of the audiobook will keep playing while I’m sleeping and it’s a nightmare trying to go back and find the place I drifted off.
But the sleep timer can shut off in 8 minutes, or 15 minutes, or 30 minutes, of 45 minutes, or 60 minutes, or at the end of a chapter.
If you know roughly how long it takes you to doze off, this is wonderful. If you doze off too early, at least you know around where you need to cycle back to. Or even if you don’t drift off, you can at least set a time to listen that will be adequate enough to get you feeling relaxed.
Dark theme.
Another small feature that just goes to show how much Audible has paid attention to detail.
I find the dark theme way more relaxing and easier on the eyes when I’m in bed listening to my audiobook.
It also ends that problem of having the light too bright when you have someone else sleeping next to you.
You can listen offline.
Got a long trip coming up?
Wanna hit the gym and there’s no wifi?
Not a problem. You can store all your audiobooks right on your device.
Again, a small thing but incredibly important. This is just one of many features that Audible do extremely well.
Audible looks beautiful.
Can I just say the obvious here and point out how aesthetically pleasing Audible is?
Audiobooks are a huge joy in my life and I also love being surrounded by and looking at beautiful things.
So you can tell that Audible is a company comprised of book lovers and that love is mirrored in just how gorgeous the app is.
This makes me want to use the app all the more, which means more listening!
Easy to access ratings and reviews.
Is it just me or do you love checking out the ratings and reviews for everything you do?
Whenever I’m listening to a sample of an audiobook, I have to get the scoop and I love reading what everyone else thought of the book.
Ratings and reviews are baked right into the app and you can access them with a tap so you can make your audiobook choosing decision that much easier.
Whispersync
This is Audible’s technology that lets you switch effortlessly between the Kindle and audiobook version of your book.
There are many reasons to have both the ebook and the audiobook (one of them being price deals where both will end up cheaper).
But the main reason, thanks to whispersync, is that you can listen to the story when you can’t look at the page (like when you’re commuting) and then when it comes to reading the ebook another time you are automatically wherever you left of. It’s magical.
Downsides of Audible
I’m 100% an Audible fan.
It’s not hard for me to sing Audible’s praises.
But that doesn’t mean Audible is perfect.
There are a few downsides to Audible that you should take into consideration.
Audible is not Netflix
A lot of people make this mistake when signing up to Audible.
They think they’ll be able to listen to the entire Audible catalogue when they become a member.
That’s not true.
As an Audible member, you get credits and discounts.
One credit = one audiobook.
So each month, you can listen to one audiobook (plus the Audible Originals).
If you want more, you get deep member discounts on audiobooks.
I still think this is a great membership model.
Those of us old enough to remember a time before streaming and smartphones will remember how damn expensive audiobooks used to be.
You used to go into a bookstore and buy the audiobooks on tape and they were crazy experience.
Audiobooks were a luxury good.
And that makes sense given the amount of work and effort and money that goes into producing them.
Even now buying audiobooks is crazy expensive.
We’re talking anywhere from fifty to a hundred bucks being standard for many great audiobooks.
And you can now get $100 audiobooks for a small fraction of that price as part of your Audible subscription.
Audible is dangerous for binge-listeners
If I consumed 2-3+ audiobooks a week, I’d consider an Audible subscription a necessity.
The deep discounts make it a requirement.
But I know what it’s like to be a binge-consumer of entertainment.
The more options available, the more I’ll spend.
Audible is addictive.
So you might need to exercise some control when it comes to spending.
Luckily you can’t impulse buy through the Audible app (I’m guessing they did this because they know their audience has a lot of binge-listeners).
Audible has DRM on its content.
This isn’t a problem for me.
And while, as an artist and producer myself I understand why DRM is so important, I’m not pro-DRM myself, I totally understand why Audible has this in place.
But I’ve never had any problem downloading my content across multiple devices.
Audible seem to be very generous with how many devices you can download your content on, which also means sharing your content with friends and family is easy.
I’m not sure why people complain about this, but something to keep in mind.
But once you’ve downloaded an audiobook, it’s yours to keep.
Even if you cancel your subscription, you’ll still have the audiobook. So I think we’re all good here.
Audible Originals vary in quality.
I do like the Audible Originals generally speaking as an idea.
I just wish the quality was more consistent.
Occasionally they have some truly great stuff.
But just as often they’ll have a bunch of duds.
Personally, I would prefer either an extra credit with my Audible membership or they give me some credits for classic audiobooks. But, hey, we’re splitting hairs here.
Best audiobooks on Audible – my top 10 picks
Two caveats before I list my favourite Audible books.
First, it’s extremely difficult to narrow a book list down to ten books. In fact, it’s impossible. So this is an imperfect list.
Secondly, this is just my personal list. The Audible catalogue is so diverse that you’re list of top ten audiobooks on Audible will likely look very different from mine.
But feel free to check out my recommendations anyway. I’m sure they’ll be at least a few audiobooks that you’ll enjoy.
I picked these audiobooks based on story, narrator quality, and value for money. So these are long audiobooks, written and performed extremely well.
1. World War Z by Max Brooks (full cast production)
This audiobook about the zombie apocalypse shows you the potential of what powerful audio experiences can be.
Beautiful production (it feels like you’re listening to a movie) with wonderful voice acting.
A real stand-out audiobook gem.
2. Complete Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle (narrated by Stephen Fry)
There are any number of great audiobooks I could have chosen narrated by Stephen Fry (Harry Potter, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, the stories of Anton Chekhov), but I decided to go for this 70+ hour complete collection of the greatest detective ever committed to the page.
Stephen Fry truly has the most musical, melodic voice I’ve ever experienced.
He makes listening to audiobooks a sumptuous and decadent experience.
3. The Martian by Andy Weir (narrated by R. C. Bray)
Great story.
And the narrator is chosen perfectly.
He really captured the essence of Andy Weir’s main character, an astronaut trapped on Mars and fighting to survive.
4. The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan (narrated by Kate Reading and Michael Kramer)
One of the greatest longest running fantasy series around.
If you want to get the most bang from your Audible buck, and you’re a fantasy fan, start off with the 30-hour volume one of The Wheel of Time series.
The narrators are a husband and wife team that do a tremendous job of absorbing you in this rich vivid story.
5. Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman (narrated by Neil Gaiman)
Neil Gaiman, like Stephen Fry, is another narrator with a magical voice.
His stories are delightful and, no matter your genre preference, you’re sure to find something to fill you with joy.
Gaiman reads his own audiobooks and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
He’s an author who really knows how to bring his works to life (if you’re interested in how Gaiman constructs his stories, I also recommend his masterclass which I’ve reviewed here).
6. Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie (narrated by Kenneth Branagh)
There are tons of audiobook versions of Murder on the Orient Express.
Make sure you get the Kenneth Branagh one.
Branagh is superb and I’ll listen to and watch anything he’s involved in.
He has his background as a Shakespearean actor (one of my favourite thespians of all time) and all of that classical training translates to a glorious audio experience.
7. How to Listen to and Understand Great Music by Robert Greenberg (narrated by Robert Greenberg)
I can’t make a top ten Audible list and not include at least one audiobook from the Great Courses.
I reviewed the Great Courses more in-depth here.
If I had to choose just one (and, trust me, that’s impossible), I’d have to go for this wonderful deep dive into musical theory.
Greenberg is the kind of lecturer who would have altered my entire life tractors if I’d encountered him during my school years.
8. Dune by Frank Herbert (full cast production)
Dune is another most-bang-for-your-buck audiobook if you’re a fantasy or sci-fi fan in any form you have to give this gorgeous full-cast production audiobook a listen.
For me, the best audiobooks, through a combination of beautiful soundscapes and skilful narration, create a movie in my mind.
And Dune does this fantastically.
9. 11.22.63 by Stephen King (narrated by Craig Wasson)
When it comes to picking a top ten Audible audiobook, you have to include a Stephen King book in there.
Firstly, King writes stories that sweep you up in another world.
Secondly, King writes long stories, so you’ve got a lot of listening to get through.
And thirdly, King’s books have a lot of great narrators.
I could have chosen The Stand.
I could have chosen It.
But I’ll plump for 11.22.63 because Craig Wasson’s narration is superb.
10. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (narrated by Maggie Gyllenhaal)
I’m going to throw a wild card out there and recommend you check out this Audible Original: a 35-hour long reading of one of the greatest books ever written by one of my favourite actresses.
Simply marvellous.
If you’ve always wanted to get through some Tolstoy, but have been scared of it being difficult or arduous, you can rest assured that this reading will bring this classic to life.
Benefits of listening to audiobooks
There are so many benefits of listening to audiobooks.
You’ll come up with your own list of benefits the more you listen to audiobooks, but here’s mine.
You can do other things while listening.
This is the ultimate multitasking life hack.
If you’re doing monotonous repetitive grunt-work, audiobooks can take something that would typically be miserably boring and turn it into a joy.
As I’ve already mentioned, one of my favourite things in the world now is to listen to a great book on audio while I’m doing the cooking.
I also love stretching and listening. Some days I just don’t want to do my yoga routine. I’d rather kick back with a book. Well, now I have no excuse. And my stretching will almost always go on longer than it otherwise would have because I want to hear the rest of the story.
Stephen Fry (one of my favourite narrators) even credited audiobooks as helping him lose a momentous amount of weight. He’d go on these long walks outside and he’d just keep walking and walking because he’d want to get to the end of the chapter, and then another chapter. He just wanted to keep listening, so he kept walking and kept burning those calories.
It’s easier to remember stuff.
My method of reading paperback books is extremely active, so I do remember more than most people. I highlight and underline liberally and then I write book reviews.
But there is something about listening to the information that just makes it stick in my mind that much more easily. I guess because it sounds like a real person is actually talking to me and telling me something.
Audiobooks are a pleasurable way to pass the time.
Great narration is an art form.
I’ve always longed for those bygone days of radio theatre, but now those days are back in the form of audiobooks.
There are countless audiobooks that can go up against any big budget movie or Netflix Original and give them a real run for their money.
Shared listening experience
There are few experiences more pleasurable for a bookworm than to curl up with their partner and listen to the book you love with the person you love.
A lot of couples binge Netflix together. But if you’re lucky enough to find a fellow book lover, sharing an audio experience is truly a special experience.
You can also share the story with your family and friends whenever you take a long road trip.
Utilise gaps of wasted time (like commuting)
Adding listening to audiobooks to my commute and my gym time means I was able to listen to an extra book a week.
For other people, this could easily climb to 2-3 books a week depending on how much time they need to fill.
This time is normally wasted. So it’s a prize!
On top of the 2-3 physical books I read per week (minimum), I’m able to read at least over a hundred books a year.
Listening to audiobooks can be easier than reading physical books
I read physical books quicker most of the time. But there are times when I’m tired or the environment makes me not want to look at a book (like on a plane) and in those times I absorb an audiobook way quicker.
I have dyslexic friends who find reading physical books very frustrating because they can’t absorb it as well as an audio version. For them, audiobooks are a godsend.
Is Audible worth it?
An absolute 100% resounding YES for me.
Audible is so worth it.
When I think about how much the audiobooks I want typically cost (up to a hundred bucks) and how much of a steep discount I get as an Audible member, the price factor alone is a massive win for me.
But on top of that, Audible has got me listening to more books.
Always a win.
I’ve fallen in love with the spoken and written word.
I’ve been swept up in amazing stories by wonderful narrators.
I’ve listened to books I otherwise wouldn’t have encountered.
And I’ve had a hell of a lot of fun.
I’m a simple man. And I’m a massive geek. All I need is my Audible app loaded up with rich stories and I’m extremely happy.
You can check out Audible here and if you follow this link you’ll get your first 3 audiobooks for free.
It’s a 30-day free trial and you can cancel anytime so you have absolutely nothing to lose and a great big world of story goodness to gain.
Become an Audible member here today.
