Let’s face it, subscriptions have undoubtedly become a part of our everyday lives – and monthly bank statements.
With that in mind, it’s important to take stock of your monthly subscriptions and see where you can make cuts.
If you’re an avid reader or podcast lover, then you’ll have come across Amazon’s Kindle Plus (formerly Kindle Unlimited) and Audible subscriptions. But do you really need to sign up for both, or is one a better choice for your personal preference?
To help you choose, we explain the differences between Amazon’s Kindle Plus and Audible subscription services, and advise on which one is likely a better fit for you. Otherwise, check out our round-up of the best Amazon Kindles and best e-readers too.
Kindle Plus and Audible subscriptions comparisons
Kindle Plus costs £9.49/$11.99 each month and, as it’s a rolling subscription, can be cancelled at any time.
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Audible is slightly more complicated. Firstly, you can choose between a Standard or Premium subscription. Standard is the cheapest, at £5.99/$8.99 a month, and includes one audiobook of your choice from over 900,000 titles each month – yours to keep while you’re signed up to the service. In addition, Standard has unlimited access to podcasts too.
Premium is slightly different, as it’s available as either a monthly or annual subscription. If you choose the £8.99/$14.99 monthly option, you’ll be able to choose one audiobook a month, which will be yours to keep, and have access to Audible’s all-you-can-listen catalogue of over 15,000 audiobooks and podcasts.
Those in the UK can also pay for the whole year upfront, which gives you the choice between two options: 12 or 24 Credits. 12 Credits is cheaper, at £69.99 for 12-months, and gives you 12 credits to redeem for audiobooks throughout the year. 24 Credits is £109.99 for the year and, unsurprisingly, provides you with 24 credits ready to be redeemed.
What is Kindle Plus?
Kindle Plus is the new name for Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited subscription service. The monthly subscription allows users to access millions of ebooks, thousands of audiobooks and hundreds of magazines for £9.49/$11.99 a month.
Essentially, Kindle Plus is a way to borrow titles though, unlike a library service like BorrowBox, you can keep titles almost indefinitely. In fact, you can have up to 20 titles in your library at once and only need to return one when you’re finished with it.
Though you can access Kindle Plus via Kindles, the Amazon e-reader isn’t the only way to read ebooks. In fact, you can download the free Kindle app on both iOS and Android devices and on your computer too.
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What is Audible?
While Kindle Plus has access to both ebooks and audiobooks, Audible is purely designed for the latter and offers access to over 800,000 titles – including podcasts.
With Audible, you can download audiobooks for offline listening, adjust playback speed and switch between connected devices too. Those subscribed to Amazon Music Unlimited will also benefit from Audible.
Like Kindle Plus, you can access Audible on Amazon’s devices and via the iOS and Android smartphone app.
How does Audible work?
As touched upon earlier, Audible has a few different subscription options to choose from. Standard members can select one free audiobook each month, but can also purchase additional audiobooks at full price.
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Premium members receive one credit each month to buy any audiobook title, which is then theirs to keep – even if they eventually cancel their subscription. Credits rollover month by month, which means theoretically you can let them add up and buy multiple titles at once. Just note that credits can expire.
Should you choose Kindle Plus over Audible?
You should choose Kindle Plus if you prefer to either exclusively read books or both read and listen to audiobooks. It’s also a less complicated subscription service and still allows you to access plenty of audio content too.
Those who only listen to audiobooks and podcasts should opt for Audible subscription instead, as it promises an “unparalleled library of premium audio content”. Having said that, remember Audible is included with Amazon Music Unlimited so make sure you’re not paying for two subscriptions.