Kindle Unlimited vs Audible (2023): Which One is Better
Kindle Unlimited vs Audible- which one is better? If you are an avid reader, this question might have popped into your head. When it comes to improving your reading habits, you need to learn more about these two great services for avid readers from Amazon.
It’s a tough pick if you are trying to decide between Amazon Kindle Unlimited and Audible. There are a lot of things you need to consider before making a decision.
Don’t worry. We have made it easier for you. Take a quick look at the comparison between Kindle Unlimited and Audible.
Kindle Unlimited Vs Audible: Comparison at a Glance
Introduction to Kindle Unlimited
Yes, there are e-books available with Prime Reading– but don’t confuse Amazon Prime with Amazon Kindle. Amazon Kindle is an e-book reading device owned by Amazon. The tool allows users to buy, read, and download e-books, magazines, newspapers, and other digital media with the Kindle app on any device, including smartphones, tablets, and computers, as well as on Kindle e-readers. At present, the Kindle store has over six million e-books available in the United States.
The first device of the Kindle series was launched in 2007. Since then, it has gone through some major modifications for optimum customer satisfaction.
Kindle Unlimited is a new service offered by Amazon Kindle that allows users to read over 1 million titles as well as thousands of Audiobooks. Users can browse new authors, books, and various genres, which range from mysteries and romance to Sci-Fi and more.
Trial Perks and Subscription Costs
The subscription fee is only $9.99 per month or $119.98 per year. There’s also a free 30-day trial, which users can cancel anytime. The trial version allows users to access the entire Kindle Unlimited library for one month. Click here to Sign Up for the Kindle Unlimited Free Trial.
Benefits of Kindle Unlimited
Kindle Unlimited is touted as the Netflix for books. Its vast library provides a great number of books to read and listen to. Instead of saying ‘library is the realm of knowledge,’ one can say ‘Kindle Unlimited is the realm of knowledge.’
Titles
It gives access to an extensive library with over one million titles, including e-books, magazines, and audiobooks. The majority of the books available to read are self-published books or published by Kindle’s platform.Â
It also contains some bestseller books like The Hunger Games, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Harry Potter.
Additional Audiobooks
Kindle Unlimited has a completely separate service that focuses solely on audiobook content. There are about 2,000 audiobooks that come free with the service.Â
There are about 40,000 books that are compatible with Audible. But the numbers of free ones are only about 2,000. For other audiobooks with Kindle Unlimited, you may receive a discounted price for the Audible version when you have that eBook version.
Compatibility
You don’t necessarily need a Kindle reader or device to subscribe to this program. You can use your subscription with pretty much any smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer.
Moreover, you can listen to Audiobooks from Kindle Unlimited on Kindle Fire, iOS, and Android mobile devices, as well as through Audible’s listening applications.
Share-ability
Books are the best gift to bring happiness to someone’s face within a second. Kindle Unlimited has made it easy and more straightforward. You can buy an extended subscription plan and send it via email to someone as a gift. It is quite similar to Amazon gift cards.
Borrowing and Purchasing
You can borrow up to 10 titles at a time with Kindle Unlimited. There are no return dates, so you can return them whenever you want!
There are some Kindle Unlimited books that come with audible narration. Basically, it’s a combination of a Kindle Book and an Audible Audiobook. Kindle books that have Audible narration, you have to borrow them together. However, they are considered two separate checkouts.
Geographical Availability of Kindle Unlimited
Right now, only US customers can enjoy Kindle Unlimited subscriptions on Amazon. People in the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, India, China, Japan, Brazil, Mexico, Canada, and Australia can subscribe to Kindle Unlimited in their local Amazon marketplace.
But Amazon has plans to expand this program to other countries as well. So if you are currently living outside of the US, you have to wait a little bit to use this program.
How to Cancel Kindle Unlimited
If you don’t want to want to continue your Kindle Unlimited subscription or one-month free-trial subscription, you can cancel it at any time. You just have to follow some easy and simple steps – “Accounts & Lists” → “Your Kindle Unlimited” → “Cancel Kindle Unlimited Membership” (on the left).
Remember, you can’t access the books when you cancel your membership. However, you can access the books through Audible even after you cancel your membership. They’re yours for life.
Related Post: Amazon Kids+ (formerly FreeTime Unlimited) Review
Introduction to Audible
Audible is one of the most popular online destinations for audiobooks. Concepts like ‘whenever you can’t read, listen’ or’ whenever your eyes are occupied, but your mind is free’ led to the establishment of Audible and helped it to gain fame and name within a short time.
Though Audible is owned by Amazon, Audible membership is separate from other Amazon memberships.
Initially, it was financed and backed by Audible Studios. Amazon bought Audible back in 2008 for an estimated cost of $300 million to make it one of Amazon’s subsidiaries.
Free Trial Perks and Subscription Fee
If you have never signed up for Audible before, you can take advantage of a 30-day free trial with the service. To get you started, Audible offers one free audiobook and two Audible originals. Click here to Sign Up for the Audible Free Trial.
After the trial, Audible charges $7.95 per month for the Plus membership and $14.95 for the Premium Plus membership. Audible gives a 30% discount to all Audible members who purchase regularly. Premium Plus membership costs a little more than the regular Plus membership because of some unique features it offers.
Key Features of Audible
Library size
Audible offers about 300,000 titles. Though the number is less than Kindle Unlimited, they have more audio titles.
Audible provides not only audiobooks but also radio programs, newspapers, and magazines in audio format. So its subscribers get a good variety of indie and mainstream titles.Â
Compatibility
You can listen to audiobooks with the dedicated Audible app, which is compatible with iOS and Android devices. You can also listen to Audible audiobooks on your Kindle as well as on Amazon Echo devices.
Student Membership
Audible has an exclusive membership for students in the US, which charges just $9.95 a month. This membership offer provides-
- Three titles every month: 1 audiobook & 2 Audible Originals.
- Audio-guided workouts.
- The perks of exchanging audiobooks for free.
Offline Accessibility
With Audible, you will have the luxury of listening to your favorite books without internet access.Â
Moreover, this feature doesn’t require an additional cost. The best part of this feature is no ads will annoy you while listening to your favorite books. So you can have a smooth and unique listening experience.
Whispersync for Voice
Whispersync is a smart feature that allows you to switch between reading on Kindle and listening to it with a tap of a button.
When your mind is ready to dive into the audiobook, but your eyes are just too busy to read, the feature will make your job done just in a flip.
This feature can be most useful when you are traveling, working out, or trying to sleep.
Customizable Listening speed
The customizable speed of Audible allows you to choose the audiobook’s speed to play. A range of several speed variations is available such as 0.5x, 1x, 1.25x, 1.5x, 2x, and 3x.
Sleep timer
The function allows you to set a time when you want your device to stop. This feature helps to save the battery of your device and stop playing the book all night long while you are sleeping.
Moreover, this function can be used to stop or pause the play at the end or interval of a chapter. So you don’t lose the continuity of it.
Borrowing and Purchasing
You do not need to borrow Audible titles; you can keep them as your own. Subscribers are given credits each month to purchase audiobooks.
One credit is to the Plus members, and two credits are given to the Premium Plus members. Both of them are also given two original Audible titles out of six to keep every month.
If you change your mind, you can easily exchange it for free. If you do not use your monthly credits within the month, these will remain usable in the following paid period but will expire if they remain unused for a year.
Geographical Availability of Amazon Audible
Audible is available to Amazon customers around the world. However, some US titles are not always available in other countries due to licensing restrictions.
Audible has a number of customized websites for several consumers classified by language preference and geographical location. So choosing the one which supports your region will be beneficial.
How to Cancel Amazon Audible
Users can terminate their subscription online anytime, including the free-trial period. The titles that are bought with credits remain with the user even though the user has canceled the membership. Once the membership is terminated, unused credits will be lost.
Major Differences Between Kindle Unlimited Vs Audible
Though both of them have some similar benefits, there are some key differences between Audible and Kindle Unlimited.Â
Subscription Fee
Kindle Unlimited is a little cheaper than Audible Premium membership. Though not as many as Audible, Kindle Unlimited also provides some Audiobooks.
Borrowing and Purchasing
With a Kindle Unlimited subscription, you can borrow up to 10 titles at a time. You can’t borrow titles on Audible, and you can keep them as your own. This feature is only available on Kindle Unlimited.
Sharing Feature
Sharing is caring. Kindle Unlimited allows you to send titles as a gift to someone. But this feature does not come with Audible.Â
Availability
Availability is also an important issue when you are deciding between Kindle Unlimited vs Audible. While Audible is available in most countries, Kindle Unlimited can only be accessed by customers from selected countries.
