Audiobooks are recordings of texts read aloud, providing an alternative to traditional reading.
They are used by individuals who prefer listening over reading, those with visual impairments, or those engaged in other activities. They can be produced by professional voice actors, authors, or a group of actors, and are available through various platforms for purchase, rental, or borrowing.
In the following section, we will introduce a list of 17 Audiobook Players and Creator Apps.
These apps are compatible with a variety of platforms including Windows, Linux, macOS, Android, iOS, and the Web. Each of these apps offers unique features catered to different user needs and preferences.
1. Readarr
Readarr is a cross-platform Audiobook manager that comes with dozens of useful features such as a Calendar, advanced search, RSS feed reader and a book organizer.
Readarr is available for Windows, Linux and macOS.
Readarr2. Voice
Voice is a native ad-free minimal audiobook player for Android devices. You can install it using F-Droid Store or from source. It is also available at Google Play.
PaulWoitaschek3. The Unpaprd (Android)
An audiobook 🎧 📔 app made using Flutter. You can download an ad-free version from Google Play store.
gargakshit4. Cozy (Linux)
Cozy is a modern audiobook player for Linux. It is written using Python and it is available for many Linux distros as Debian, Ubuntu, Solus, openSUSE, Fedora, Arch Linux, and OpenBSD.
You can also install it from Flathub.
Features
- Import your audiobooks into Cozy to browse them comfortably
- Sort your audio books by author, reader & name
- Remembers your playback position
- Sleep timer
- Playback speed control
- Search your library
- Offline Mode! This allows you to keep an audio book on your internal storage if you store your audiobooks on an external or network drive. Perfect for listening on the go!
- Add multiple storage locations
- Drag & Drop to import new audio books
- Support for DRM free mp3, m4a (aac, ALAC, …), flac, ogg, opus, wav files
- Mpris integration (Media keys & playback info for desktop environment).
Julian Geywitz
geigi5. Homer Player (Android)
Homer Player Code is an audio book player designed for the visually impaired and elderly.
It transforms an Android tablet into a dedicated device for audio book playback, with a user-friendly interface that can be controlled with imprecise gestures and is resistant to accidental touch.
The device operates in a kiosk-like mode, providing access only to this single function.
Features
- Audiobook support with folder-based navigation
- Resume where stopped with a jump back feature
- Low vision friendly interface
- Flip-to-stop function
- Sleep timer
- Adjustable playback speed
- Single application mode (kiosk mode)
Download
msimonides6. Bookify
Bookify is a self-hosted online audiobook streaming website that utilizes the MERN Stack, Tailwind CSS, Firebase for Google authentication and storage, and Razorpay for payment integration.
shreyashkadam7. Wisp
Wisp is a cross-platform NodeJS audiobook reader built with Electron and VueJS, currently open for contributions. Initially a project for learning Electron and improving VueJS skills, the code may not meet all standards.
It officially supports mp3 and wav file formats, as it was tested, however other formats can work.
Key Features
- Cross-platform compatibility (built with Electron and VueJS)
- Open for contributions
- Database resets in development mode
- Easy project launch and build commands
- Supports mp3 and wav files
- Requires correct audio file tagging
Download
Although there are no official installation packages for the app, it can be easily built from source on macOS, Linux, and Windows.
TheStaticTurtle8. Audiofeed
Audiofeed is an app that turns audiobooks into podcast-like feeds. It remembers played episodes, resumes from the last stopped position, and allows direct online listening without the need for prior downloads.
This eliminates the need to download media files, saving storage space on your device.
parMaster9. Ambry (Audiobook Server)
Ambry is a personal audiobook shelf that allows you to upload your books to a self-hosted server and stream them to any device.
It also supports web-scraping for metadata import from external sources like GoodReads using a headless FireFox instance running marionette.
ambry-app10. ShelfPlayer
ShelfPlayer is a beautifully designed audio player for Audiobookshelf, crafted to perfection to fit seamlessly into iOS 17. It is not yet available at Apple Store, however, you can build it from source if you are a developer.
Features
- Beautiful design
- Explore your Audiobooks, Podcasts, Episodes, Authors & Series
- Download audiobooks & episodes and listen to them on the go
- Sleep timer (custom time or until end of chapter)
- Siri integration
- Custom playback speed
- Automatic downloads & notifications
- CarPlay integration (only downloads for now)
rasmuslos11. Audnexus
Audnexus is an audiobook data aggregation API that consolidates multiple data sources into one consistent source, facilitating integration into existing media servers and enabling rapid development of stable client plugins.
It was developed in response to the absence of a reliable, open-source single source of truth for audiobook metadata and aims to eventually seed a community-driven audiobook database.
laxamentumtech12. Bragibooks
Bragibooks is a web-based audiobook library cleanup and management app that functions as a frontend for m4b-merge.
It can merge multiple files, convert mp3s, and clean up existing data on an m4b file. The app runs in a docker, eliminating the need for OS-specific dependency installations.
djdembeck13. BookPlayer
BookPlayer is a free, open-source audiobook player with features such as importing from various sources, managing progress and playlists, and controlling audio playback.
It supports zip archives, chapters, smart rewind, volume boost, and VoiceOver. A Pro version offers cloud sync, additional color themes, and alternative app icons.
It can be downloaded from the Apple App Store.
TortugaPower14. Audiobook (Android & iOS)
Audiobook is a free, open-source mobile application developed with React Native and React ecosystem, providing a single code base for both Android and iOS.
homielab15. MenuTube
MenuTube is a macOS application that allows users to listen to YouTube content such as podcasts, audiobooks, and interviews without focusing on the video.
It features a fully functional YouTube website in the macOS's menu bar, browsing the mobile YouTube version, and controlling media playback using keyboard keys.
edanchenkov16. AudioBook Maker
This free open-source Python app allows you to create audiobooks by uploading PDF files into it.
deadmantfa17. Voice Audiobook Player
Voice Audiobook Player is a simple, intuitive audiobook player that remembers the last position, features a sleep-timer, and allows for easy position jumping.
