Spotify announced Wednesday that it is expanding audiobook access to more than 180 markets worldwide, starting immediately and continuing over the coming months. The rollout extends well beyond the English-speaking countries and Germany where audiobooks were previously available, giving more than 750 million users access to the catalog.
The new markets will have access to over 350,000 titles in more than 120 languages. In Spain, for example, listeners will find over 45,000 Spanish-language titles. Spotify says it works with more than 300 publishers, including Planeta and Mondadori, to source local content.
Monetization varies by market. Premium subscribers in countries such as Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Poland, Chile, Norway, and Peru get 12 hours of audiobook listening. Spotify also sells a standalone Audiobook+ subscription with a 15-hour allowance, individual title purchases, and an Audiobook+ add-on for student plans in select regions starting in November.
The company reports that monthly audiobook listeners grew 40% and listening hours increased 30% over the past year. Audiobook+ has passed 1 million subscribers and $100 million in annual recurring revenue. Spotify has also added discovery features, an AI narration tool built with ElevenLabs, and physical book sales experiments in the U.S. and U.K.