Is Audible Worth It? Here’s What We Think
While listening to audiobooks sounds like cheating to many, it is a pretty good way to gain insight from books passively.
Sure, it kills the charm of reading books traditionally- sitting on your bed wrapped in a blanket burrito, but I think we all can agree that it’s better than not reading at all.
Today, we’re going to review one of the world’s most popular audiobook services, Audible, for you. We will start by looking at what this Amazon app features and the benefits it brings to you as well as the cost and limitations of this app.
Next, we will pit the pros against the cons and determine whether Audible might be worthwhile for you- depending on what you expect to gain from it. Let’s begin.
What Is Audible
Audible is Amazon’s subscription-based audiobook service that allows users to listen to their books instead of reading them the traditional way.
A calm and clear automated voice reads out your books for you, allowing you to close your eyes, sit back, and relax as you effortlessly soak in insights from your favorite books or get immersed in the compelling stories from your favorite novels.
The fact that you don’t have to keep your eyes focused on reading your books actively also means that you’re free to carry on with other tasks. This is why audiobooks are so great for those who love multitasking.
You could be cleaning your room, flying long hours on a plane, staring out the car window on a long road trip, or even working your job as you listen to all of the books you don’t get time to read- You get wiser every day, and you don’t have to lose any more time in the day.
Who Is It For?
By being a listening app, Audible is great for anyone who loves multitasking and would like to up their knowledge without losing a lot of time trying to do so.
These people have super-tight schedules where making the time to read would mean compromising elsewhere. Audible’s passive nature allows these people to put on their books as background noise while they work.
It’s like listening to a song or tuning into a radio- they can focus when they need to and phase out when the work gets intense.
The second demographic that gets the most out of Audible comprises people who know the benefits of reading, want to get started with the habit, but always end up procrastinating because staring at a book, maintaining focus, engaging your brain, and decoding several hundred lines of plain text seems like too much of a chore.
Audible provides a great way for such people to ease into the habit of reading. This way, without spending too much of their time and energy, such people benefit from the insights of books and eventually start to see the benefits and utility of forming a reading habit.
Once this is done, they can start reading books traditionally and gradually increase their daily reading goals.
Another type of people who greatly benefit from Audible is those who are trying to improve their English. Whether they want to learn to be better writers, speakers, or both, reading through Audible will give them a voice, show them how to articulate their thoughts, and introduce them to new ideas that will make them better disseminators of knowledge.
Of course, they can gain all of these benefits from traditional reading as well (perhaps even more), but what makes Audible such a great option for these people is that it is less time-consuming. Secondly, it allows these people to learn without reading in a flow- which they struggle with.
Writers or aspiring writers also have a lot to gain from Audible. Again, these benefits stem from Audible getting you through books faster, introducing you to new ideas, and showing you different ways to articulate them cleverly.
Lastly, Audible is generally a great way to “read” books for anyone. Whether you’re a student, a professional, or just staying home, Audible is your shortcut to getting tonnes of insights quickly at a low price.
Pros and Cons of Audible
Now, we’ll discuss the pros and cons of Audible and later pit them against each other to see whether Audible might be a worthwhile purchase for you.
Pros
Tonnes of Things to Listen To
One great thing about using Audible is that you have a tonne of different material you can listen to via Amazon’s clear, automated voice, not just books.
Essays, podcasts, meditation guides, and much more make this more than just an audiobook service.
A Lot of Great Options to Choose From
Within each category of items you can listen to, i.e., books, podcasts, etc., Audible gives you many options.
Hardly any book on your bucket list won’t be available on Audible (although there may be some). This means you can use Audible as your learning center without looking for alternatives to complete your list.
Clear Voice With a Lot of Setting Options
Audible’s friendly, clear, and tone-optimized voice makes your listening experience so much better. It’s not the usual robotic voice you hear in your regular speech-to-text apps/programs.
It sounds much more like an actual person reading things to you- laying appropriate emphasis on certain words not to sound monotonous.
Saves You Time
We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again because this is one of Audible’s main selling points. Not only does Audible save you time by not restricting you to the fully occupying activity of reading, but it also saves you time by reading your books to you in one flow- no chance of you getting distracted unless you pause or stop the audio yourself.
Plus, with the speed adjustment feature on Audible, you get to control how quickly text is read out to you. This way, you get to cover even more reading ground through Audible.
Boosts Your Knowledge
This is more of a reading benefit, but since Audible is providing you a platform to read easily and access one of the world’s best-selling books, we think it’s fair to count this as an Audible pro point.
Gives You a New Inner Voice
When you listen to wise insights and thoughts being read out to you, you learn to adopt that manner of thinking over time.
This helps you break free from your thought patterns and evolve into a new and better way of looking at life and thinking about things.
It helps you articulate your thoughts better- Getting exposed to new ideas is great. Still, another huge benefit from using Audible for a while is that you learn to express the same idea in multiple ways.
This will help you become a better communicator and speaker, and it will help you add flamboyance to your writing.
Easy Access
Audible allows you to store your books/audio files by category, making it easier for you to access them. Additionally, since you can log in to Audible using your credentials from any device, you take your books wherever you go- it would be impractical to do this with traditional paper books.
Affordable
Audible only has two subscription plans, which are pretty cheap (considering the benefits). Audible Plus is available for a $7.95 monthly charge, whereas Audible Premium Plus is available for a $14.95 monthly charge.
Lots of Helpful Settings
with Audible, you can organize your books and audio content in a way you could never do with traditional books. You can manage your content in organized folders, choose your favorite voice, choose the play speed, discover new books, get personalized recommendations, and so much more.
Cons
It’s an Additional Expense
Even though the monthly subscription charges for this service aren’t that high, it is still an extra expense you will have to pay.
With so many services demanding subscription fees, these tiny expenses can add up and take a big bite out of your income or savings.
You Won’t Find Everything There
while there are many options available on Audible, you won’t find everything over there. You will need to turn to other sources to get your hands on content not available on Audible.
Our Verdict
All things considered, we think Audible is a great way to boost your knowledge, get into reading, and improve your English writing and speaking abilities no matter which demographic you belong to.
The only reasons this service may not be suitable for you is if you don’t get yourself to listen to audiobooks regularly, or if you’ve already subscribed to a thousand other services and your budget has gone tight- in which case maybe reading traditional books will be a budget-friendly way to reap these benefits.
FAQs
What Plans Can You Subscribe To – And How Are They Priced?
Audible has two subscription options. The first is their classic Audible Plus plan, allowing users to listen to a range of audiobooks, original series, sleep tracks, podcasts, and meditation programs.
The plan starts with a free 30-day subscription to allow users to assess whether it is the right fit for them. After that, users are charged $7.95 per month for this service.
The second plan Audible offers are called Audible Premium Plus. This one offers all of the benefits of Audible Plus- and an extra title per month from an exclusive collection of books, podcasts, and more.
The best part is that you get to keep these with you so that you can refer back to them anytime. The subscription for Audible Premium Plus also starts with a 30-day free trial which, upon expiry, turns into a $14.95 monthly bill.
Is Audible Free With Amazon Prime?
No, an Amazon Prime membership does not give you free access to either of Audible’s subscription plans.
Is There a Way to Get Audible for Free?
No, Audible is a subscription-based service that you can only use if you choose to pay for either of the two plans they offer.
Of course, there is a free 30-day trial period where you can use the service to decide on it, but otherwise, there is no way to get Audible for free.
If I Cancel My Audible Subscription, Do I Still Get To Keep My Audiobooks/Files?
You can read all of the books present in your library even after the subscription is canceled. This includes the books you received as part of one of the Audibles’ free trials and the ones you’ve purchased via credits.
