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5 top tips for saving money on Audible
Audible has opened up the world of audiobooks and made it accessible to all, however buying one-off titles can be pricey. Audible is the platform predominantly used by Vertebrate Publishing when selling our audiobooks. If you’re getting through several a month during the various lockdowns, the cost can soon add up.
Audible is the audiobook selling offshoot of Amazon where you can buy pretty much any book outright, but it is probably better known for its various subscription packages where you can build up a collection of credits (one credit lets you buy one book). Our best-selling titles are There is No Map in Hell, In It for the Long Run and Tides.
Whether you’re new to Audible and want to get started the cheaper way or an existing member who just want to save a few quid, you’re in the right place. Consider the following money saving tips when using Audible.
(#1) Existing Audible member? Here's how you can halve the cost of your subscription for three months to only £12 in total
The standard one-book-a-month subscription costs £7.99 a month, yet we’ve found a way you can cut this down to £3.99. Simply click through to cancel your membership and you may well find you’re offered a reduced-price membership of three months at £3.99/month to tempt you to stay.
REMEMBER, before trying this be sure to use up any unused credits. If your membership is cancelled, you’ll lose any remaining credits, but you will keep any audiobooks you’ve already bought.
Here’s what to do:
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Log on to Audible’s desktop website. Under Account Details, click ‘Cancel Membership’
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When asked why you want to leave, pick ‘too expensive’. Then you need to confirm that you wish to cancel – there is a chance that your account could be cancelled at this point.
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Immediately after that, it should offer you the £3.99/month for three months deal. You may also be given the option of getting one free credit instead.
It must be said that this isn’t guaranteed to work, it’s possible your account may actually be cancelled. However, MoneySavingExpert tested this out and only heard of a couple of occasions where it didn’t work. Apart from that, they had a high success rate!
(#2) New member? Get one book completely free!
Like most subscription services, Audible has a thirty day free trial in which you can test out its services and see if, after the trial period, you want to commit to a full membership. During these 30 days, Audible offers you a free audiobook which you can keep.
You’ll need to give your payment details when signing up and you’ll be charged the standard £7.99/month once the thirty days are up. Remember to cancel before payment if you don’t want to continue and if you’re only after the free book, cancel as soon as you’ve got it.
(#3) Send a free Audible book to a friend and get one back!
You probably know exactly what your friends look for in a book and vice versa so with this trick you can send them one of your audiobooks for free. Teaming up with a pal can save you both some money and you don’t even have to be an Audible subscriber to send or receive books.
To give someone a free book, open the Audible app, go to ‘My Library’. Click the three dots next to your chosen book and select ‘Send this book’. You’ll need to already own the book you want to send, but once you’ve gifted it, the title will remain in your library.
(#4) Upgrade your subscription package to get books from £4.50 each
The standard £7.99 one-book-a-month subscription is most promoted by Audible, but if you’re an avid listener, it can pay in the long run to opt for a more expensive option that gives you more credits each month instead.
The best value for money subscription is twenty four books a year for £109.99/ year, this works out as £4.58 per book. You could also choose twelve books a year £69.99/year, working out at £5.83 per book.
Both of these options do require you to pay upfront so before you commit, be sure that you’ll really use your subscription.
(#5) Audible isn't always the cheapest – compare prices with other sites
Audiobook prices often vary between sites. If you’re just buying a one-off book, it’s worth comparing the Audible price with that of Apple Play, iTunes and Google Play You will need to download and listen via their apps or programs rather than Audible so be sure your device is compatible before making any purchases.
For example, we checked The Ogre by Doug Scott and found that it was £7.99 on Google Play, £13.79 on Audible, and £6.64 as a Kindle edition. So, it can definitely pay to do a quick comparison before buying.
These are just a few tricks to help you save money when buying Audiobooks but there are plenty more out there so always it's worth doing your research.
