The service, which begins rolling out to Nigerian listeners on October 14, is part of the company’s broader global expansion of audiobooks from 22 markets to more than 180 by the end of 2026. The move is expected to extend access to audiobooks to more than 750 million people worldwide, who will be able to stream or purchase titles through the platform.
The launch introduces a new listening option for Nigerians seeking to incorporate books into their daily routines, including those navigating the country’s busy roads or looking for convenient ways to enjoy literature during their leisure time.
Under the new arrangement, both Spotify Free and Premium users in Nigeria can subscribe to Audiobooks+, a monthly add-on priced at ₦2,300. The subscription provides 15 hours of audiobook listening per billing cycle, with only the time spent actively listening deducted from the allocated hours.
Unused listening hours reset at the beginning of each new billing cycle. Listeners who exhaust their monthly allocation can purchase an additional 10 hours for ₦2,700. Alternatively, users can buy individual audiobook titles to keep.
The introduction of audiobooks represents another step in Spotify’s efforts to broaden its offerings beyond music and podcasts, while creating additional opportunities for authors and publishers to reach audiences across different markets.
Speaking on the expansion, Spotify’s Vice President of Audiobooks, Owen Smith, highlighted the role audiobooks can play in reconnecting people with reading and making literary content more accessible.
“Books change how we see the world, and the people in it. 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. Bringing audiobooks to more than 180 markets means millions more people can discover that, and authors and publishers can reach readers they’ve never been able to reach before,” Smith said.
With the Nigerian rollout, Spotify is positioning audiobooks as an additional way for listeners to engage with stories and ideas throughout their day, while extending the platform’s reach among readers and publishers in the country.
Features made for everyday listening
- Page Match: Read a few chapters in bed, then pick up the story on your morning commute, right where you left off. More than one million readers have used Page Match to move between print, ebook and audio. Now listeners can simply scan a book’s ISBN barcode and use page numbers to find their place. Page Match works in over 30 languages.
- A home for books: A dedicated Audiobooks space in the app to search, browse and discover, with recommendations based on what each listener loves across music, podcasts and books.
- Never lose your place: Spotify saves your progress across the more than 2,000 devices it’s available on, so you can start on your phone and carry on in the car or on a speaker.
- Sleep Timer: Set a timer for night-time listening so the story stops when you drift off.
- Listen offline: Download audiobooks to listen without a connection, just like music and podcasts.
Spotify believes authors should find the largest possible audience, which is why all of its audiobook partnerships are non-exclusive. Through Spotify for Authors, local publishers and self-published authors in Nigeria can upload their audiobooks and reach listeners in more than 180 markets, with insights into who is listening. The catalogue in Nigeria will keep growing as new partners join and local authors upload their work.
A world of stories
Three years ago this fall, Spotify brought audiobooks into Premium to build a better home for book lovers, authors and publishers. Over the past year, monthly audiobook listeners grew nearly 40% and listening hours climbed more than 30%. Since launching just over a year ago, Audiobooks+ has grown to more than one million subscribers.
How to get started
- Update to the latest version of the Spotify app and open the
- Audiobooks hub, or search for any title.
- Choose a book and add Audiobooks+
- Manage your plan at spotify.com/account..
- Press play.