By Joyce Ekeh
Spotify has launched its audiobook service in Nigeria, giving listeners access to more than 350,000 titles from October 14 as the digital streaming platform expands its global book offerings.
The service is available to both free and Premium users, who can subscribe to Audiobooks, a monthly plan offering 15 hours of listening for ₦2,300.
Listening hours reset with each billing cycle, and only time spent listening counts towards the monthly allowance.
Listeners who exhaust their allocated hours can purchase a 10-hour top-up for ₦2,700 or buy individual titles to keep, the company said.
Explaining the appeal of the service to Nigerian users, Spotify said audiobooks could fit into everyday routines, from commuting through Lagos traffic to relaxing at home.
“From the Lagos go-slow to a quiet evening at home, audiobooks fit into the moments listeners in Nigeria already fill with music and podcasts,” the company said.
The Nigerian launch is part of Spotify’s global expansion of audiobooks from 22 markets to more than 180 by the end of 2026. The company said the expansion would make audiobooks available to more than 750 million people, who would be able to stream or purchase titles on the platform.
Spotify’s Vice-President of Audiobooks, Owen Smith, said the service could help more people rediscover reading while creating new opportunities for authors and publishers.
“Books change how we see the world, and the people in it,” Smith said.
“For a lot of people, audiobooks are how they find their way back to reading, on the commute, on a walk, or at the end of a long day,” he added.
Smith said expanding the service to more markets would allow millions of additional listeners to discover books and give authors and publishers access to audiences they might not otherwise reach.
Features support flexible listening
Spotify’s audiobook offering includes Page Match, a feature that allows users to scan a book’s International Standard Book Number (ISBN) barcode and use page numbers to locate the corresponding section in the audio version.
Available in more than 30 languages, the feature enables listeners to switch between print books, e-books and audiobooks while keeping track of where they are in the story.
The platform also has a dedicated audiobooks section featuring recommendations based on users’ interests across music, podcasts and books.
Listening progress can be saved across more than 2,000 supported devices. Users can also download titles for offline listening or set a sleep timer.
Spotify said its audiobook partnerships were non-exclusive, allowing publishers and self-published writers to distribute their work through other channels as well.
Through Spotify for Authors, Nigerian publishers and independent writers can upload audiobooks, reach listeners in more than 180 markets and access information about their audiences.
“The catalogue in Nigeria will keep growing as new partners join and local authors upload their work,” the company said.
To access the service, users are advised to update their Spotify app, open the Audiobooks hub or search for a title, select a book and add Audiobooks. Subscription plans can be managed through their Spotify accounts.
