On Friday, Spotify revealed its launch of Audiobook Charts for both the U.S. and U.K. Similar to its existing Music and Podcast Charts, the Audiobook Charts will refresh on a weekly basis, showcasing the most popular audiobooks overall and by genre. The rankings are determined by user listening habits and engagement on the platform, according to the company.
These new charts are available to all users, whether they are on a free or premium plan, in the audiobooks section. To find them, just tap the search icon in the app and choose the “Audiobooks” tile to access the hub. After that, you can scroll down to the “Dive deeper” area to locate the charts.
This initiative represents Spotify’s newest commitment to the audiobooks market, following its formal endorsement of the medium in 2022.
Since that time, Spotify has been actively investing in audiobooks with new features like the freshly introduced “Page Match” tool, which allows users to scan a page from a physical book to seamlessly jump to that point in the audiobook, and “Audiobook Recaps,” which provide succinct audio summaries to help you catch up on your reading progress.
Spotify claims that the new Audiobook Charts will assist both listeners and authors by offering a reliable method for discovering popular titles, while also creating fresh opportunities for authors and the publishing sector to engage broader audiences.
“As we’ve shown with Music and Podcasts Charts, when content is simplified for access, discovery, and enjoyment, demand increases,” stated Duncan Bruce, Spotify’s Director of Audiobook Partnerships and Licensing, in a blog entry. “We are thrilled to extend this to audiobooks, facilitating even more avenues for users, publishers, and authors to see what’s trending on Spotify and connecting books with culture in real-time.”
It’s important to highlight that Spotify’s interests aren’t confined to audiobooks, as the streaming powerhouse has also recently entered the realm of physical book sales. Earlier this month, Spotify announced that users in the U.S. and U.K. will soon have the ability to buy physical editions of books directly within the app via a collaboration with Bookshop.org.