US audiobook sales up 22.7% in 2017

Friday, 22 June 2018 Books+Publishing

In the US, a new report by the Audio Publishers Association (APA) has found that audiobook sales experienced another consecutive year of double-digit growth, estimating that sales in 2017 were up 22.7% compared to the previous year, reports Publishers Weekly.

Estimated sales totalled US$2.5 billion (A$3.4bn) in 2017, compared to US$2.1 billion (A$2.8bn) in 2016, while estimated unit sales rose 21.5%.

The total sales figures are calculated by extrapolating from the reports of around 20 audiobook publishers to derive an estimate for the entire market.

In 2016, the APA also reported double-digit growth of 18.2%.

The report also found that the format tends to attract younger listeners, with 54% of audiobook listeners under the age of 45. Smartphones continued to be the device of choice for 47% of the audiobook audience, up from 29% in 2017 and 22% in 2015, while the most popular genres were mysteries/thrillers/suspense, science-fiction and romance.

Libraries were the major drivers for audiobook consumption, and 43% of listeners said they have downloaded an audiobook from a library in the past year, while 14% said they most often use the library for their digital audiobook listening.

Category: International news