7 Platforms for Buying Audiobooks without Subscription

If you are getting started with audiobooks or are an occasional listener, you may not want to commit to a platform and prefer buying audiobooks without subscription.

I have shared 5 ways to get audiobooks at affordable prices and 6 ways to get paid audiobooks for free in the past.

One of the common questions about audiobooks is where to buy them without a subscription.

Here are 7 audiobook platforms in this article where you can buy audiobooks without any membership or commitment.

1. Audible

Audible allows users to purchase audiobooks without a subscription plan. You can buy audiobooks from Audible website or app.

To purchase audiobooks from website.

• Go to Audible’s website and sign in with your Amazon account. If you do not have an Amazon account, create a new account for free
• You can either search the audiobook from top search bar or use the Browse option to explore Audible’s entire catalog

• On the book’s details page, Audible offers you to get the audiobook for free by signing up for the free trial. Click on Buy for $XX.XX option to make purchase with cash

You will be asked to Add a payment method if you don’t have one attached to your account already.

Once you have purchased the audiobook, you can either go to the Library section to access it or listen to it on the audible app.

You can also purchase Audible books on Audible app

• Open the Audible app and sign in using your Amazon/ Audible account
• Tap on the Discover option from the bottom navigation bar and use the top search bar to search for the audiobook. You can also browse Audible catalog by categories to find your next listen

• On the book’s details page, tap on Buy for $XX.XX option to purchase audiobook with cash. You can also join Audible’s free trial and get the book for free

Follow the instructions to complete the purchase. The purchased title is available in the Library section of the app that you can access from the bottom navigation bar.

2. Buy Audiobooks from Amazon

You can purchase Audible books from Amazon and listen to them on the Audible app, using the following steps.

• Go to Amazon website and search for the audiobook from the top search bar. You can also browse Amazon’s audiobook collection to find your next title.
• On the book’s details page select the Audiobook format. You can listen to the narration sample before purchasing. You are offered to join Audible’s free trial and get the title for free. It is also possible to gift the audiobook to others.

• To buy audiobook without subscription, click on the Buy option and then Buy now with 1-Click

• Next, select a payment method. If you do not have a bank card connected to your Amazon account, you can add it. Click on Continue to proceed

• You have purchased the audiobook successfully

You can access and listen to your purchased audiobook on Audible website or Audible app by signing in with the same Amazon account that you used to purchase the title.

Audible offers 30% discount to its members on all cash purchases. If you are buying audiobooks without subscription, you may get better price on Amazon than Audible. 

I suggest checking both websites before making the purchase.

3. Chirp Audiobooks

Chirp is my favorite way to purchase audiobooks at discounts without any subscription or commitment.

You can create free account on Chirp audiobooks [app or website], receive personalized deals in your email, and save up to 95% on audiobook purchases.

Chirp is named the best budget app by Popular Science

You can listen to purchased audiobooks on Chirp app (iOS | Android), computer (web player), tablet, car or Alexa devices.

Here are a few important things about Chirp audiobooks.

• All sales are for limited time so act fact to avail an offer. Deal last for a few days showing countdown for how much longer the deal will last.
• You get a mix of popular and no so good audiobooks in sales. Select your favorite categories carefully during the signup process to receive offers according to your taste.
• Most deals are under $5 and a general price range is from $2.99 to $4.99
• You can view current sales and can also browse less than $1, less than $3, and less than $7 deals on Chirp’s website.

You can also put titles in your Wish List by tapping on the heart icon on the book listing and will receive notifications when titles in your Wish List go on a sale.

4. Libro.fm

If you are looking where to buy audiobooks without a subscription, I highly suggest checking out Libro.fm. They support local bookstores and you can even pick your local store to support with your purchases.

You can create a free account on Libro.fm and can either sign up for their membership plan or choose to buy audiobooks without a membership.

Libro.fm is one of the rare platforms that offer DRM-free audiobooks. This means you are not limited to listening your purchased books on Libro.fm app or website but can also download and enjoy them on your MP3 player.

Purchasing audiobooks from Libro fm is a simple process

• Find the audiobook you want to buy from Libro.fm catalog
• Select the Add to Cart option on book’s details page

• Next, go to your cart and select the Checkout option

Provide the payment details to complete the purchase. You can also listen to the sample of narration or gift audiobook to others from book’s details page.

5. Audiobooks.com

Audiobooks.com is one of the major audiobook platforms with over 500,000 titles in its catalog.

The Audiobooks.com app has over 10 million downloads and offers 10,000+ audiobooks for free.

You can purchase your next listen from Audiobooks.com without a subscription plan. They also offer monthly discounts on select titles for non-members. You can also grab major discounts on seasonal sales.

To purchase an audiobook without a subscription plan, create a free account on Audiobooks.com and browse their catalog to find your next listen.

On the book’s details page click the Add to Cart option to purchase the title.

Once you have added all audiobooks to your cart that you want to purchase, Go to your cart and click on the Begin Secure Checkout option to make the purchase

Follow on screen instruction to complete the purchase. You can access and listen to the purchased titles in Audiobooks.com’s app in My Library section.

You can currently only purchase audiobooks without a membership from Audiobooks.com’s website.

6. Buy Audiobooks from Kobo

Kobo offers different subscription plans for eBooks and audiobooks. You can also purchase audiobooks without a membership plan. Kobo has a catalog of 150,000+ audiobooks.

You can create a free account on Kobo.

To buy audiobook without subscription

• Go to Kobo’s website and search or browse Kobo Audiobooks to find your favorite title
• Click on the book cover to go on book’s details page
• If you are purchasing a single audiobook, click on Buy Now on book’s details page and proceed to checkout

• If you want to buy more than one audiobook, click on Add to cart option on book’s details page and continue browsing to add more book to your cart.
• Once you are ready to buy click on the shopping cart option at the top right of the page.
• Click on the Checkout option and follow on-screen instructions to complete the purchase.

You will receive a confirmation email once your purchase is complete. You can listen to Kobo audiobooks on iOS or Android app.

7. AudiobooksNow

AudiobooksNow offers one of the best audiobook collections with over 350,000 titles in its catalog. Although AudiobooksNow offers subscription plan, you can also buy audiobooks without subscription.

Casual audiobook listeners can purchase audiobooks at everyday low price without a membership plan.

You can explore AudiobooksNow catalog by categories and featured collections. When you want to buy an audiobook, go on book’s details page.

On the book’s details page, you have three prices

• List Price (Original price of audiobook)
• Sale Price (Discounted price)
• Club Price (Discounted price for members)

Click on Add To Cart option to buy the audiobook. When you purchase without a membership plan you will get Sale Price which is $19.59 in this case

You can browse and add more books to your cart. Once you are ready to make the purchase, click on the Cart option on the top right of the screen.

In the shopping cart section, you have option to choose club pricing (monthly or annual) to buy books with subscription or choose the Do Not Activate option for buying audiobooks without subscription.

Click on Continue to Checkout to proceed with your purchase and follow on-screen instructions to complete your purchase.

I hope this article helped you on how to buy audiobooks without subscription. You can also explore more ways to listen to your favorite titles without a membership.