Spotify's Audiobooks Are Growing Fast — Here's What That Means
Spotify's Audiobooks Are Growing Fast — Here's What That Means
Spotify's audiobook service added users and listening hours at nearly the same rate in its second year, growing 36% in users and 37% in total hours listened, according to Bloomberg. That small difference matters: it suggests people who already use audiobooks on Spotify are listening to them more, not just trying them out once.
Moving Beyond Just Music
When Spotify launched audiobooks in October 2022, the company bundled them into its regular subscription — you got 15 hours of audiobook listening each month as part of your music plan. You could buy more hours if you wanted. This was Spotify's biggest move into new kinds of content since it invested heavily in podcasts.
Spotify's approach was different from its podcast strategy. With podcasts, the company spent billions buying exclusive shows and signed big-name creators. With audiobooks, Spotify worked with major publishers to get access to a huge catalog of titles. The idea is simpler: offer a lot of choices rather than a few blockbuster shows.
Why These Numbers Tell an Interesting Story
For context, Spotify's overall user base grows about 11% each year. Audiobook users growing at 36% is striking by comparison. It shows two things are happening: existing Spotify customers are discovering audiobooks through the app, and some people are signing up for Spotify specifically to listen to audiobooks.
The fact that listening hours grew just slightly faster than the number of users (37% vs. 36%) suggests the service is moving past early adopters. When a new feature first launches, the people most excited about it tend to use it a lot. As more casual users join, the overall amount of time spent per person tends to level out.
How Spotify Is Different From Other Audiobook Services
Amazon's Audible is still the market leader for digital audiobooks, and Apple also offers audiobooks through its ecosystem. But Spotify's approach is different: instead of making you pay separately for audiobooks or subscribe to a dedicated service, audiobooks come bundled into your Spotify plan.
The broader context here is that bundling has worked before. When Netflix first offered streaming movies and TV as part of one cheap subscription, it changed what people expected from entertainment. Spotify seems to be trying the same thing with audiobooks — betting that convenience matters more than where you get your content.
The Technical Side
Spotify adapted its music-streaming technology to handle audiobooks. The same network that delivers songs now delivers spoken word. The company's recommendation system — the one that suggests songs based on what you listen to — now suggests audiobooks too.
Audiobooks need features that songs don't: chapter navigation, the ability to rewind by chapters, different playback speeds, and bookmarks. Spotify built those features into the app rather than assuming the music tools would work as-is. Everything still syncs across your devices, and you can still download content to listen offline, just like with music.
How Publishers Are Paid
The money side of audiobooks works differently than music. With songs, Spotify pays a tiny amount each time you stream a track. With audiobooks, publishers still control pricing and when their books are available, much like they would with a bookstore. Publishers are working with Spotify and accepting that some people will listen through a subscription bundle rather than buying the audiobook outright.
What Comes Next
If audiobook growth continues at this pace, Spotify could become a major player in audiobooks within a few years. But audiobooks are fundamentally different from music — people listen for longer stretches, and they discover new titles differently. The platform will need to keep expanding its library and make it easier for people to find books they want to hear.
The modest difference between user growth and listening hours tells us the service is probably on solid footing. Spotify has moved audiobooks from a side experiment to something that matters to its business. How the company invests in this part of the service next will shape whether audiobooks become as central to Spotify as music itself.
