Libro.fm, the digital audiobook platform that funnels sales through independent bookshops, will start selling ebooks this autumn. The Seattle-based company, which already works with over 5,000 bookstores across the United States, plans to launch its ebook catalogue in fall 2026 (Publishing Perspectives).

For readers, the appeal is simple: one app, two formats, same local bookshop getting the sale. Libro.fm currently lets independent stores offer audiobooks and monthly memberships through a co-branded storefront at no cost to the bookseller (American Booksellers Association). Adding ebooks means a customer who buys a membership credit could spend it on an audiobook one month and an ebook the next.

The company said the expansion came directly from its partner bookshops, which wanted more format options beyond print and audio to offer customers. Mark Pearson, Libro.fm's co-founder and chief executive, said the company had long imagined offering more than audiobooks and called ebooks "a natural next step" (Publishing Perspectives).

The new ebook platform will carry several features designed to match — and in places exceed — what big digital retailers already offer. A function called LibroSync, similar to Amazon's WhisperSync, will let readers switch between the audiobook and ebook versions of a title without losing their place. Flexible credits will work across both formats. Member exclusives will include ebook-specific offers, and the platform will host digital ARCs — advance reader copies, the early galley proofs publishers send to booksellers, librarians, influencers and educators ahead of publication (Publishing Perspectives).

Before the catalogue goes live to customers, Libro.fm's bookselling partners will get first access so they can test the system and suggest changes. Emma Kaas, co-owner of The Norwich Bookstore in Norwich, Vermont, said she was excited that Libro.fm was turning its expertise to ebooks (Publishing Perspectives).

What makes the move quietly significant is the gap it addresses. Amazon dominates ebook retail through its Kindle store, and until now the indie-friendly alternative from Libro.fm covered only audio. A combined audio-plus-ebook platform gives independent bookshops a fuller digital counter — one where a customer might pre-order a hardback, pick up the audiobook and read the ebook, all while the sale is credited to a shop they chose rather than to a default marketplace.

Libro.fm has been building toward this kind of breadth for some time. The platform marked Independent Bookstore Day in April 2026 with free audiobook giveaways and a membership promotion (Book Riot), signalling a push to widen its base ahead of the ebook launch. The full rollout is scheduled for later this year.