Due to the high prices of books and magazines, buying books is not an accessible deal for every book reader; this is why I have noticed a huge shift from physical book reading to online reading. Among online valuable and reliable book-reading platforms, Scribd and Audible are two famous options.
However:
Scribd is better than Audible due to its cheap rates, awesome book suggestion features, and excellent customer service. It charges less than $10 for audiobooks, digital books, magazines, sheet music, and more, while Audible only provides audiobooks and charges a higher price per month.
So, it is safe to consider Scribd for listening to the best-selling books of almost every renowned author — in short, Scribd is a treasure of audiobooks.
In this blog post, I have covered much more about Scribd; you can read it thoroughly and decide which platform is leading!
Why Choose Scribd Over Audible?
While discussing audiobook platforms, Scribd and Audible are the first two most significant options that click to mind. These two well-known online communities for audiobooks and other digital content provide helpful services for individuals who pay subscription fees. Although their customer bases overlap in some instances, the platforms differ enough, so users can easily decide what they need to prefer.
There are some obvious reasons to prefer Scribd over Audible – let’s dig it out!
Cheap Rates
First and foremost is Scribd’s cheaper rates, and most importantly, it might be more practical for those with little free time to listen to audiobooks.
Multi-Content Platform
The second reason you can consider subscribing to Scribd is that this incredible site shares the eBook library, which can easily be changed into audiobooks using brilliant text-to-speech software.
Moreover, this multi-content forum can inspire you due to its collection of magazines, sheet music, podcasts, documents, and other interesting and knowledgeable content that Audible does not offer.
Good Audio Quality
Both services provide audiobooks of great audio quality. It is acceptable that Audible has a larger selection, but the Scribd library outperforms it due to its greater variety of material. Users can find popular podcasts on both platforms.
Offer Suggestions for Related Books
Scribd shows hundreds of great suggestions for books similar to your reading interest. There are typically dozens of recommendations in each distinctly offered section. You may immediately start reading or listening to the book by clicking on it.
Some Perks of Scribd
Scribd has a few standout qualities and advantages:
- App has a simple and user-friendly design
- Countless streams of audiobooks
- Inexpensive membership
- Access to all collection titles
- Ebooks and podcasts containing a variety of content
- There is nothing to return; hence Scribd doesn’t have a return policy. However, it continues to provide subscribers with email-based customer assistance.
- Offers the opportunity to join up for the Scribd + NYT bundle, which includes a subscription to The New York Times and all the perks of the premium membership, for $12,99 per month.
Scribd Vs. Audible: A Quick Comparison
Here is a quick comparison between Audible and Scribd.
|
Scribd |
Audible |
|---|---|
|
The Subscription Fee is $ 9.99/Month |
The Subscription Fee is $14.95/Month |
|
No Yearly Membership |
Membership for $149.50/Year |
|
32 kbps Audio Quality |
64 kbps Audio Quality |
|
Provide access to eBooks, Magazines, Podcasts, and Audiobooks |
Offer access only to Audiobooks, and Podcasts |
|
Audiobooks have 150,000 titles |
More than 470,000 titles |
|
Unlimited/Throttled |
One Audiobook per month |
Compatible Devices for Audible and Scribd
Let’s look at which devices are compatible with Scribd and Audible.
Scribd Compatible Devices
- iOS devices having iOS 9 and later, plus Apple Watch
- Kindle gadgets having Fire OS 4 or older (Aside from the Kindle Paperwhite)
- Android devices having Android 4.4 or later
- Apple Macs
- Windows PC
Audible Compatible Devices
- Windows Phones
- Android devices, including tablets and smartphones
- iOS devices such as iPods, iPhones, and iPads
- Kindle Fire
- 10th Generation Kindle Paperwhite
- 8th Generation Kindle Oasis
- 9th Generation Kindle Oasis
- Macs
- Windows computers
- TomTom GPS and Garmin devices
- VictorReader System
- Sandisk and Creative MP3 players
Content Available on Scribd and Audible
Undoubtedly both Audible and Scribd offer excellent audio quality. Audible has a considerable number of Audiobooks of well-known authors, whereas Scribd provides not only audiobooks but magazines, ebooks, documents, popular magazines, and sheet music.
Scribd might be an excellent option if you are a musician, but remember, purchasing sheet music might be pricey. If you love listening to podcasts, both platforms are incredible.
Readers can quickly find new books and bestsellers on Audible as it has more customers and a vast market share. On the other hand, Scribd takes time to add new titles to its collection.
Over 200,000 volumes, including numerous audiobooks, podcasts, and more, are available on Audible. Over time, even its material has expanded.
How Good is the Audio Quality of Scribd?
Scribd uses a 32 kbps bitrate stream, while Audible has a great audio quality of 64 kbps. It is possible that listeners may not feel the difference in audio quality while using standard speakers, but a set of premium earphones, headphones, or desktop speakers can do wonders.
No matter what, people are happy with the Scribd audio quality because they can listen to their favorite authors’ books for less than ten dollars.
Frequently Asked Question
Is Scribd Offering Unlimited Audiobooks?
Scribd advertises limitless listening; if you listen to more than four books per month, it throttles and limits access as per Scribd User Agreement policy.
Does Scribd Offer Free Trial?
Happily, all subscribers can enjoy a 30-days free trial. After the end of the trial period, Scribd charged just $9.99 per month.
Does Scribd Allow You to Keep Books?
No, the books and audiobooks you access on Scribd are not yours. It is not legal and Scribd is very strict regarding the copyright claims.
Conclusion
Scribd and Audible both are great in their ways, which is why sometimes it becomes difficult to choose one.
After comparing both, I can conclude that Scribd can be a preferable choice for those who prefer to avoid paying heavy prices for audiobooks, digital books, podcasts, and more. Another reason for opting for this reading platform is the availability of different content.
So, you can choose Scribd if you want to read bestseller magazines and famous podcasts of well-known people; additionally, if you are a die-hard fan of music, it also offers music sheets. Ultimately, the choice is yours; enjoy a free trial or pay a subscription fee to cheer all digital content.
