BookBeat Review

BookBeat is a European powerhouse in the audiobook industry. It’s well known across Europe and is making waves across the rest of the world too. So, it’s only fair that we review it. That’s why you should read ahead as we’ll discuss everything you should know about BookBeat and its services.

BookBeat At A Glance

Bookbeat was created in 2015 by Bonnier Books, a well known European brand. Bookbeat is Finnishin in origin, but as time went by it adapted to welcome users from around the world. Hence, you have the option of using it in many languages.

The site is a subscription service similar to many of the names reviewed so far. With a monthly subscription fee, you’re allowed complete access to its library, similar to Netflix. In its library, there is an array of e-books and audiobooks for you to choose from, each from major publishers.

The Pros

BookBeat is a relatively new name to the game. Since we ran through it’s background, let’s talk about the pros of using its services.

Do You Want A Free Trial?

If you want to try BookBeat out but don’t want to waste cash, you’ll be happy to know you can access the site’s services free of charge. BookBeat allows its users a free trial.

Now, the trial runs for 2 weeks which is fine. However, this isn’t as long as some of its competitors which offer a month-long free period. However, 2 weeks is more than enough time to decide whether you want to stick with BookBeat or not.

Of course, during the free period, you have complete access to its library and services, allowing you to download and keep the audiobooks even after the trial has ended.

Cancel At Any Time

Compared to its competitors, you can easily cancel your membership. In regards to other names in the game, you won’t be able to cancel your subscription at any time as you may be penalized and made to pay a penalty fee. Thankfully, this is not the case with BookBeat.

It’s Priced Well

If you’re thinking about subscribing to their services, do not hesitate because it’s considerably cheap. You can access BookBeat’s library for 12.90 pounds a month.  Unfortunately, if you’re outside of Europe, this can be expensive for you due to conversion rates as it translates to a little over 16 dollars.

With that price, you get complete access to its library. And what’s best about this is that you can access any audiobook you want as it’s unlimited. So the price is completely worth it. You can either stream the audiobooks or download them and read them later which saves you data.

Considerably Sized Library

In terms of the titles hosted in BookBeat’s library, you can expect over a thousand audiobooks. Although not the largest, the range is enough to keep you entertained. Of course, the books come from myriad genres and you can expect all kinds of audio and e-books.

One of the best things about BookBeat is that you don’t have to research books before scouring through the site as much of their audio and e-books come with reviews and ratings next to it. This lets you know what’s good and what’s not.

Moreover, BookBeat has an algorithm that shows you recommended books based on what you’ve been listening to/reading, making the hunt for a good book easier.

And as it’s a European based company, you can expect to find a number of audiobooks in your native language. There are comprehensive titles in Swedish, Italian, Portuguese and more.

It’s Easy To Use

BookBeat is easy to use as it’s a mobile app. You won’t be able to access the site through a computer and this can only be done through the app store, which means its specific to IOS and Android devices.

As it’s an app, BookBeat is very easy to use as it’s well known for having one of the best-looking interfaces.

It’s not usable on the computer as its creator wanted Bookbeat to be as easy and ‘’uncomplicated” to use.

The App Is Free

As BookBeat is only available on the Appstore, you may think it’s not free. Thankfully, this is not the case as BookBeat is a free app, letting anyone access to it.

The Cons

Since we’ve run through its major pros, let’s talk about some of the cons of using BookBeat’s services.

Limited Availability

As mentioned, it can only be used through the app which is available on mobile and tablet devices. Although most people prefer using their mobile phones, BookBeat is limited in availability to people who use their computer for this purpose.

Is Your Storage Full?

You’ll have to download the app from the Appstore which would tax your mobile data/wifi. Since the app is so large, it will take considerable space on your device. Though you can download audiobooks they will take up your device’s storage.

It’s Expensive

Well, 12.90 pounds is fine if you’re from Europe, but once you convert it to foreign currencies, the subscription fee is very pricey.

What’s worse is that most of its competitors offer unlimited library access at a much lower price.

Limited Library

It has over a thousand audiobooks in its library. However, this is a considerably low number if you compare this to other services.

For example, the number is minimal if you compare BookBeat with major names like Audible and Audiobooks.com. Audible has over 400,000 titles while Audiobooks.com has 200,000.

The Free Trial Is Short

It’s great that BookBeat offers potential users a free trial, but the fact that it’s only 2 weeks is not enough for most users.

Conclusion

There are a number of pros and cons of having a BookBeat account. As you can see, the pros outweigh its cons which is why it’s so popular in Europe.

BookBeat is great for you to use if you want unlimited access to a library of audiobooks, and in case you don’t mind paying a little extra. Although you’ll be paying a bit more than you normally would, they make up for it by having titles from a number of countries.