Personal Finance News
Audible Introduces New Lower Tier for Audiobook Subscription
Amazon-owned audiobook platform Audible is rolling out a new lower-cost subscription plan in the U.S. and elsewhere.
About Audible Standard Plan:
Today, Audible announced the debut of its Standard membership plan. This new option is now available to customers in the United States, as well as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Germany, and France. Additionally, testing is underway in other global markets.
Priced at $8.99 in the U.S., the Standard tier joins the existing Premium membership. That option is currently $14.95 a month.
Similar to the existing Premium subscription, the Standard membership will allow users to download one audiobook a month from Audible’s catalog — which features more than 1 million titles. However, while downloads were previously available to customers in perpetuity, books downloaded as a Standard-tier member will only be accessible for as long as they have an active subscription. In addition to the monthly audiobook selection, Standard members will also enjoy unlimited access to a curated collection of Audible Originals and other podcasts.
According to Audible, members can choose to switch their plan between Standard and Premium at their leisure. Plans can also be canceled at any time. Additionally, a 30-day free trial is currently available for either plan option.
What They’re Saying:
Discussing the new plan option, Audible’s Chief Financial & Growth Officer Cynthia Chu said, “The launch of our Standard plan reflects Audible’s ongoing commitment to serving the diverse preferences and listening habits of story-lovers everywhere, By expanding our membership options, we’re maximizing access for lighter listeners while enabling publishers and creators to reach new audiences — a win-win that grows the entire audiobook category.”
My Thoughts:
,As a fan of Audible overall, I have mixed feelings on this one. While I love the idea of having a lower membership price, it’s unfortunate that you won’t be able to keep your downloads unless you’re perpetually subscribed. Then again, though, there are only a handful of times I can remember going back to an audiobook I’d already listened to and consuming it again. In that context, maybe it’s worth taking the savings while you’re subscribed and then just purchasing (perhaps even physical copies?) of those few titles you really want to preserve.
On that note, if you are okay with not owning your audiobooks, then another option you may want to consider is Spotify. Although Spotify’s Premium Individual plan is currently $12.99 a month, it includes up to 15 hours of audiobook content per month in addition to unlimited ad-free music streaming. Depending on how much music you stream and how long the books you tend to listen to are, this could end up being a better deal. That said, at this time, Spotify’s audiobook library isn’t as large as Audible’s.
Personally, if I were to rejoin Audible, I might give the new Standard tier a try since I’m often just listening to books in order to review them. Nevertheless, before you choose a plan, make sure you know the benefits and downsides of both so you aren’t unpleasantly surprised.
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