Short Audible Review | Pros and Cons

Audible Pros:

1. Audible has a very large book collection. There are almost 5 million audiobooks on Audible, which makes the platform 5 times larger than another popular audiobook subscription service, Scribd.

2. The price is $14,95 a month; it enables you to slowly build an audiobook library. In addition, the single book access per month bolsters your productivity in a way as it helps you focus on the book you will be reading instead of wasting time shuffling between books trying to find for the best one.

3. Easy return and exchange policy.

4. A free 30-day trial that gives you access to two audiobooks and two Audible Originals. The audiobooks are yours to keep even if you decide to cancel your account.

5. Possibility to create Amazon Household Library and share your Audible content with family members.

6. 24/7 customer support.

7. Complimentary digital newspaper subscriptions.

8. You get to download two Audible Originals each month.

Audible Cons:

The greatest downside of Audible is that the basic subscription plan only gives you access to one audiobook a month. While that's enough for most people, some may not be satisfied with it. However, you can always upgrade your plan and get more books, or simply purchase extra credits whenever you need it.

Full Audible Review Features Explained

Audiobooks are the latest trend in the digital publishing industry. The most popular audiobook platforms now have millions of subscribers who consume billions of hours of audio content. The shift from written word to audio has been inspired by a lot of things, the most important being that audiobooks are easier to listen to as compared to reading a book.

A book requires you to give up multitasking and crank your eyes paying attention to each word, page after page; no wonder why many people complain of having eyestrain from reading too much. On the other hand, with audiobooks, your options are unlimited. You can be productive whilst on your morning jog, or on the commute to work, or before bed.

One platform that has inspired the trend by enabling people to listen to great content is Audible. Audible, an audiobook platform that is considered to be one of the best in the world, is owned by Amazon. The platform has a lot of book titles to either help you learn on the go or keep you entertained. Their library covers many categories, from self-improvement and finance to fiction and autobiographies. With affordable pricing at only 14,95 a month, Audible will give you the chance to choose any three books of your liking from their catalog every month.

How Audible Works | Getting Started With Audible 30-Day Free Trial

To get started with Audible, you need to sign up to their 30-day free trial. A free trial gives you access to two audiobooks and two Audible Originals of your choice that you can listen to anytime even if you choose to not go with the monthly subscription plan afterward. Signing up for a free trial will require you to provide the valid credit card information to be bonded with your account. But don't worry, you won't be charged anything during a 30-day free trial.

After the first month of use, if you choose to not cancel the account, the platform will automatically upgrade your account to a paid one and you will be getting one audiobook and two Audible Originals each month. However, if you don't like the service, you can cancel your account anytime during the trial and avoid any charges.

Audible Plans and membership benefits

For frequent audiobook listeners and for people who prefer annual subscription billing, Audible offers different plans bundled together to give their members the most content at a very affordable price.

The monthly plans are as follows:

· Gold Monthly: costs $14,95 a month, gives you one credit.

· Platinum Monthly: costs $22,95 gives you two credits.

· Gold Annual: costs $149,50 per year, gives you 12 credits.

· Platinum Annual: costs $229,50 per year, gives you 24 credits.

When you redeem a book using your monthly or annual credits it will be accessible to you in your account even if you choose to cancel Audible subscription. This means that you will be the owner of any audiobook in your account and can listen to it anytime, anywhere.

How To Return Or Exchange Your Audiobook

One of the things I absolutely love about Audible is the fact that they let you return and exchange any audiobook you purchased if you are unsatisfied with it. And this very nice feature that makes Audible worth even more to me. You have one year (365 days) from the date you purchased the book to return it. The process is very easy:

- Go to Audible Purchase History and click the "Return" button underneath the book that you are planning to return.

- In the drop-down menu choose the reason why you want to return it, click the "Return this title" button, and then click "Return". That's it!

If you purchased an audiobook using your Audible credits then you will receive the refund in credits right away. And if you used other payment methods, then it may take up to 7-10 days to get your money back. Keep in mind, that only active Audible members can exchange audiobooks. By the way, you can return audiobooks even during your free trial.

If you get the "Online Return Unavailable" message, contact Audible support team to get your refund.

This policy shouldn't be abused. So only return books that were purchased by mistake or that you really didn't like. Otherwise, your account may even be suspended.

Tips On Saving Money On Audible

There are several ways to save money on Audible. Today I want to share my three favorite ones in this Audible review.

1. Save 50% for 3 months

This trick only works on Audible official website, and not on their mobile app. Go to your Account Details and click the "Cancel Membership" button. Select the "It’s too expensive"’ reason for canceling your account. Then click on "Continue Canceling". After that, you will receive a special offer from Audible. This offer will give you 50% off the Gold Monthly plan for three months, meaning that you will be paying just $7,49 per month instead of $14,95.

2. Silver Membership Plan

Audible doesn't advertise this plan on their website but it does exist and it can save you money. If you decide to switch to Silver plan, then you'll be getting one credit every other month and pay $14,98 for two months. You will still be getting two Audible Originals every month and receive other benefits that Gold plan members get, like a 30% discount on all purchases and member-only sales.

If you want to switch to Silver plan then go to your Account Details and click the "Cancel Membership" button. Select the "I don’t use it enough" reason for canceling your account. Then click on "Continue Canceling". After that, you will be given two options: to switch to Silver plan or to place your membership on hold. Click the "Switch Membership" button and accept the offer.

3. Get 30% Off Audiobooks

Audible offers all members a 30% discount on audiobooks, and often it may be cheaper to purchase a book using your money instead of credits.

Audible Student Membership

Any student attending a college or university in the United States can get 30% off and join Audible for just $9,95 a month plus receive $10 in Amazon.com credits. Student membership includes three titles every month: one audiobook and two Audible Originals, plus audio-guided workouts.

If you want to purchase the student membership directly you won't get the free trial. So if you want to try Audible out before purchasing any plan, then sign up for a free trial first.

What Is Audible "Send This Book"?

"Send this book" is another great feature of Audible that is worth it. It enables you to send the book that you liked to family and friends for free. The receiver will be able to download the first audiobook that you send without paying a dime even if they don't have a membership. However, if they've already redeemed a book before, then they will get a message about your favorite title and will have an option of purchasing it.

Why You Should Create An Audible Wishlist

Sometimes Audible comes up with excellent offers on certain books. And if any of the books that you added to your wishlist go on sale, you will be notified by e-mail. It's a good idea to create an Audible wishlist and add every book you are interested in purchasing there.

Is Audible Free with Amazon Prime?

No. But if you have an annual Amazon Prime membership then you'll get access to a premium collection of content from Audible. You will be able to listen to full-length audiobooks that are exclusive to Prime members and Audible-produced podcasts, plus the biggest news stories from The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times.

Exclusive Audio-Guided Fitness Programs

These audio-guided fitness programs were created exclusively by Aaptiv for Audible. To the best of my knowledge, none of the other audiobook subscription services offer anything like this to their users. There are several guides available for different levels, ranging from beginner to intermediate. All fitness plans include the guidance of a certified Aaptiv trainer.

The guides are divided into two sections: Wellness and Fitness. Let's take a look at each one of them and see what they have to offer and is it worth even trying it.

Wellness:

Consists of 3 different guides: 21 Days of Guided Meditation, Everyday Meditation (20 days), and Sleep Better (7 days). All are suitable for all levels.

Fitness:

Consists of six different guides for two different levels.

For Beginners: Walk to Run One Mile (20 workouts), Introduction to Indoor Cycling (12 workouts), 5K Training (20 workouts), Quick Workouts for Busy People.

For Intermediate: Road Warrior Workouts (15 workouts), Beat Gym Boredom (16 workouts).

Until September 5, 2019, these audio-guided programs are available to all Audible users at no cost.

Best Audible Alternative For Audiobooks

I believe that Audible is a great platform that has many advantages that other companies don't have. However, there are several other excellent audiobook subscription services out there. I've tried many of them and still can't decide which one is the best. For example, if you enjoy listening to podcasts, then Audiobooks.com might be the right fit for you (check out my review of Audiobooks.com and find out whether it's a good alternative to Audible here at best audiobook services). If you want to get unlimited access to audiobooks plus be able to read as many digital books a month as you want at a very low price, then you might like Scribd (I shared my review of Scribd HERE). And if you are looking for a completely free option than read Librivox Review.

In conclusion to my Audible review: The only way to find out whether Audible is going to work for you is to give it a try. So if you think you could benefit from this service, sign up for a free 30-day trial and decide for yourself whether Audible is truly the best audiobook service on the market and is Audible worth it.