Head-to-head
Amazon Kindle vs Audible
Amazon Kindle
85
Winner
Amazon Kindle
Audible
75
Amazon Kindle is the better choice for readers who want a vast selection of ebooks and a customizable reading experience, while Audible is superior for those who prefer audiobooks and professional narration.
Full reviews: Amazon Kindle · Audible
Amazon Kindle and Audible both offer extensive digital content, but cater to different preferences: Kindle for text-based reading and Audible for audio experiences. Kindle users praise its convenience and font size options, despite some complaints about search and app stability. Audible users value its narration quality and library, though some find it expensive.
Head to head
Amazon Kindle Kindle offers a huge variety of books, with users finding 'everything what I want I can find and read' R5. However, some users report limited options in specific genres like 'supernatural dark books' R2 and frustration with search filters that return irrelevant results R1. There are also complaints about AI recommendations for books users want to block R10.
Audible Audible users appreciate the 'huge selection of books' and the ability to find 'almost any book you can think of' . The app is praised for its 'great selection of audiobooks' and the ability to download books for offline listening .
Amazon Kindle Kindle is lauded for its convenience, portability, and the ability to sync across devices R37. Users appreciate features like adjustable font size, which is a 'huge benefit' for those with declining eyesight R23, and easy annotation R17. However, recent updates have caused issues like books disappearing R30, collections being lost R32, and app crashes R9. Some users also report difficulties accessing Prime-eligible books R13 and issues with tracking read books R7.
Audible Audible is generally considered easy to use, with users finding it 'simple and easy to use' and appreciating the ability to download books . Features like car mode and sleep timer are highlighted as useful . However, some users experience issues with downloads failing and the app crashing or freezing . The app's interface for finding books is also criticized for being 'clunky' .
Amazon Kindle Kindle's reliability has been inconsistent, with recent updates causing significant problems such as the app crashing after every chapter R9, books vanishing R30, and entire collections being lost R32. Users also report issues with two-column page formatting R24 and the app not working on certain devices R28.
Audible Audible also faces reliability issues, with users reporting frequent app crashes and downloads failing or getting stuck . Some users mention the app freezing and being 'buggy' .
Amazon Kindle Kindle is a free app, but users purchase ebooks. Some Prime subscribers express frustration with not being able to easily access Prime-included books within the app R13. There are also complaints about the quality of some books, with 'no recognition of a publishers onus to provide any editing' R3.
Audible Audible is a free app, but users subscribe to access audiobooks. Many users find it 'a bit expensive' or 'too expensive' , especially considering the cost of credits. However, some consider it a 'good investment' and appreciate the value of the content.
Amazon Kindle Kindle users report poor support experiences, with one user stating that support was 'unable to help' after two days R16. A significant recurring complaint is the app's incessant requests for reviews, which users find 'annoying' R4R12R18.
Audible Audible users do not specifically mention support experiences in the provided reviews. However, the app's overall user experience is impacted by crashes and download issues .
Pick Amazon Kindle if
You prefer reading text-based books and want access to a vast library with customizable font sizes, and you don't mind occasional app glitches or persistent review requests R23.
Pick Audible if
You primarily enjoy listening to audiobooks and value professional narration, and you are willing to pay for a subscription despite some app stability issues .
Evidence note: The evidence for Audible is less comprehensive than for Kindle, with fewer distinct complaints and praises, making some comparisons less robust.
Frequently asked
Which app is better for reading on the go?
Do these apps have free content?
Both Amazon Kindle and Audible are free apps to download, but content typically requires purchase or a subscription; Kindle offers some books included with Prime, though access can be difficult R13, while Audible requires a subscription for its audiobooks .
What reviewers actually said
Built only from these 50 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.
- [R1] Amazon Kindle Filters very limited: Its a great app, when it works. Its searching that gets me. I want Historical non fiction. I tried just selecting “historical “. It apparently has 6 books, and 3 of them are novels. Drives me nuts!
- [R2] Amazon Kindle More book options: I love kindle but the supernatural dark books are brilliant - mostly - but there isn’t enough of them! Very limited compared to other series.
- [R5] Amazon Kindle Happy reader: I am so happy to have kindle on my all devices. Everything what I want I can find and read when I want. Try it and you will love it. Highly recommended.
- [R10] Amazon Kindle Love the app. HATE THE ai recommendations: Please please please can we allow readers to block ‘authors’ or at the very least allow the suggested books on the app to be removed with one click. No matter what I do blatant ai books are being shown to me constantly. I’ve just counted 22 shown on the app. I just want to get rid of them!!!
- [R7] Amazon Kindle Disappointing piece of technology: I’ve bought many books over the years and I am unable to track them appropriately. A book read at 98% qualifies as unread in the system. I think I will give up on this and go back to normal physical books. A very disappointing experience.
- [R9] Amazon Kindle Keeps crashing: Every time I finish a chapter the book goes back to the book cover the page blanks out .was working fine before the last update not happy today because I just want to read so it’s a 3 star for now
- [R13] Amazon Kindle Couldn’t use on iPhone, what’s the point: As Amazon Prime subscriber, I wanted to make use of Amazon Kindle offer to read books included with Prime. I prompted from Amazon app to download Kindle, log in and was hoping to download eligible books with a click of a button but it turned to be impossible- instead of Download button there was a button with Amazon website link clicking upon which, AppSt
- [R17] Amazon Kindle Excellent reader: So pleased with the latest update, all the features I wanted are here, easy to annotate, and easy to remove them afterwards. Thank you!
- [R24] Amazon Kindle Two Column Pages?: Since the most recent upgrade, whenever I open a book, the pages are in a two column format. Is this a bug or is there a way to choose between one and two columns.
- [R28] Amazon Kindle Does NOT work on Mac M5: Useless!
- [R30] Amazon Kindle Update: I have updated the app and all the books including the one I was reading has now vanished
- [R3] Amazon Kindle Needs editors: The level of error across the range I have read says that there is no recognition of a publishers onus to provide any editing. I suspect that this effort and cost has been shoved back at the authors. This is a bad business model, particularly since any reader is apparently able to report mistakes but nothing happens; books I read two years ago still have the same errors. It would no
- [R4] Amazon Kindle To many requests to rate: Bending
- [R12] Amazon Kindle Rarely reviews stuff: Bored with being asked to provide reviews
- [R16] Amazon Kindle My e reader is not working!: I contacted Amazon Kindle support 2 days ago and they have been unable to help.🥲Hopefully soon.
- [R18] Amazon Kindle App is fine but…: …keeps prompting me to write reviews and rate, even though I already did it. Gets really annoying.
- [R23] Amazon Kindle Kindle reading App: One man’s meat is another man’s poison”, but for me, electronic books are a joy. I’ve been a Kindle user since they first came out, and I still love them. The convenience of buying books instantly and carrying hundreds of novels, especially when going on holiday, is unbeatable. With my eyesight not being what it used to be, the ability to increase the font size is a huge benefit.
- [R25] Amazon Kindle Kindle: Absolutely loving my kindle/kindle app. Wished I’d gotten them sooner! So much easier for “on the go” reads if instead of carrying a book which sometimes can be just extra luggage. I do prefer a good old fashioned book however but would recommend getting a kindle so you have the choice of both!
- [R37] Amazon Kindle So convenient: As someone who always has their head in a book, I can only say that the Kindle reading app is a crucial part of my life. Makes life easy due to portability and the synching between whichever bit of tech I’m using makes it even better. A final benefit is that I no longer have over-full bookshelves in our study.
- [R32] Amazon Kindle Where have my collections gone: First the “Uncollected” collection meant missing. Followed the help desk advice to delete the app and reload. Now have lost ALL my collections. Not impressed and very annoyed. Come on Amazon sort it out and get your act together
Synthesized from 50 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store