Early this month, the Sydney Morning Herald’s Jason Steger mentioned, in his weekly email, a recent survey into Australian audiobook listeners. It was also reported by the Australia Reads* website.
This survey was conducted by the Australian National University (ANU), but Australia Reads also shares the findings of a second report, Creative Australia’s 2026 and most recent survey of arts participation, which includes audiobooks in its research. The two projects had rather different goals but both found overall that audiobook listening is increasing in Australia. However, before I delve more into the findings, I’ll outline the two projects, because their aims and methodologies affect our understanding of their results.
Both reports are based on surveys conducted in 2025, but the ANU’s was smaller and focused specifically on the form. It had just over 500 participants, all of whom had read an audiobook at least once in the preceding year. By contrast, Creative Australia’s broader report is based on data coming from an online survey completed by a little over 9,000 participants drawn mostly from the general population.
The ANU’s report is part of a wider research project titled, Audiobooks and Digital Book Culture: Australian Books and Publishing at a Time of Global Disruption, but this report focuses specifically on audiobooks. It aims to analyse “the role of audiobooks in shaping book culture and consumption, and how they are driving major global changes to Anglophone publishing and media industries”. The project collaborates widely with book industry professionals through their peak bodies, other organisations (like Vision Australia) and academics. In addition to academic articles and reports, it plans to produce “a comprehensive database of Australian audiobook titles”. (Incidentally, Jason Steger referenced an article by Barry Diavola listing the top 10 audiobooks released this year to date, but it’s paywalled so I can’t share that with you.)
By contrast, Creative Australia’s report is the sixth in a series, with the previous ones dated 2009, 2013, 2016, 2019 and 2022. They say that “the National Arts Participation Survey is a cornerstone of Creative Australia’s research on arts participation, seeking to understand Australians’ attitudes towards and engagement with the arts”. The research informs government policy, strengthens advocacy and supports audience development strategies for the arts. It covers the gamut of the arts, but a chapter is devoted to “Reading Books”.
Here I will digress, briefly, to mention terminology. The ANU found that less than half (40%) of Australians think “listening” to audiobooks counts as “reading”, but I will use the term “reading” rather than “listening” in this post, except where the report has specifically used “listening”. (Apparently in Germany, only 21% call it reading.) Although I find audiobooks a less satisfactory form of reading, I am more than happy to count it as such.
Staying on this topic, before I move to the wider figures, Australia Reads summarised the ANU’s findings. Apparently 33.6% see ‘listening’ as something distinct from reading, while the remaining 26.4% “gave answers that were ambivalent, neutral or undetermined”. However, those who used audiobooks more frequently were “more likely to consider it reading” which suggests how “frequency of reading overlaps with a sense of ‘reader identity’”.
The ANU’s report includes some participant comments. I loved this one on the reading/listening issue:
“If it is a volume of something that is new to you, that is reading. If you are listening to it for a second or subsequent time, that is listening”. (Australian respondent, female, late 40s)
Now, the overall figures
- Creative Australia found that 37% of Australians listen to audiobooks (which I think means had done so at least once in the previous year), an increase on 34% in 2022, and 31% in 2019. Breaking this down into age groups, they say that 69% of 15–24 year olds, and 69% of 25–49 year olds listened to audiobooks, with around 33% for those over 50. The frequency of reading audiobooks had also increased. 24% read audiobooks at least once a week. (Worth noting is that reading for pleasure is holding strong at around 69% of Australians, and the proportion of those who read weekly has increased across all format.)
- The ANU found that 59.2% of audiobook readers listen to an audiobook at least once a week, and that around 83% of audiobook readers multitask. Because they only surveyed exisiting users these figures don’t “necessarily reflect the attitudes of the general public”. However, research is ongoing, so this may be part of future study.
ANU’s 59.2% is very different from Creative Australia’s 24%, due, of course, to their different survey group, but conclusions can be drawn. For example, Australia Reads draws from the ANU’s figure that “over half of audiobook listeners have successfully embedded audiobooks into their weekly routines, and are regularly making time and space for listening to books”. Further, they suggest that the fact that you can listen to audiobooks while doing something else (multitasking) – like commuting, housework, cooking, exercising – is a reason for their increasing popularity.
An aside: Creative Australia found reading of eBooks had declined, but those who did read them had increased their frequency! The decline in numbers reading interests me, because, anecdotally, I am hearing that there is a developing (or renewed?) interest in analog media. Are we becoming tired of devices?
As to what people are listening to, it appears that fiction is the most popular. Jason Steger summarised the ANU’s findings as follows:
The survey says that 46 per cent of Australians listen to fiction, 29 per cent to cookbooks and similar instructional non-fiction, 29 per cent to creative non-fiction, 13 per cent to a graphic novel or comic, which seems an odd way to read what is also a visual form, 9 per cent to poetry, and 6 per cent to a play.
The ANU also found, not surprisingly, gendered differences in audiobook preferences. You can guess – probably rightly – what those might be, so I won’t explore this further. More interesting is that they also found “a strong correlation between audiobook and podcast listening” and, further, that those ‘who “very often” listen to audiobooks read print at a far higher rate too’. In other words, people who love reading, read across the formats. Are you surprised?
I’d love to hear your thoughts on audiobooks (or anything else I’ve mentioned here).
Sources
Creative Transformations: Results of the National Arts Participation Survey (Creative Australia, 2026)
Dr Millicent Weber, Audiobook Reading in Australia: A Report on the Audiobooks and Digital Book Culture Survey (Australian National University, 2026)
* Australia Reads was founded in 2019 as an industry-led initiative aimed at getting more Australians reading. Its Board draws from publishers, authors, booksellers and librarians. This year, 2026, it was formalised as “an independent not-for-profit and registered charity”.
Whispering Gums 
After a false start when I tried replacing paperbacks with audiobooks, I have fully embraced audio as an additional way to read. I now have one paperback and one audio on the go at any one time. Audio when I am walking, cooking, cleaning (almost makes housework bearable!), paperback for bedtime or a rare afternoon on the couch – unless I’m also crafting, in which case, audio!
And for the record, those of us in Library Land totally count audiobooks as reading 🙂
Thanks Angela. When I do audio it is as an additional way to read. Mostly that was on long drives. But now we prefer to be quiet on long drives. We don’t even listen to music as we once did. Sometimes I listen to a podcast which is just an hour rather than an audiobook which might be 8+ hours. I think I need to clean more! That would be a perfect time to do them for me.
And thanks for confirming the reading terminology.!
In the US, people say, “I read, I mean listened….” so it’s always what they mean and then an apology. I’m sure I’ve mentioned many times in our knowing each other that I think listening is reading, and when people are against that, I note that there saying listening to a book isn’t “reading” is a form of ableism that degrades people with low/no vision, dyslexia, and other learning disabilities. It helps nursing moms and busy drivers (like Bill!) and older folks who don’t have the vision to read anymore even though they’ve read thousands of text books in their lives. LONG LIVE READING IN ORAL FORMAT.
Thanks Melanie for making all those points. One of the main values I see for audiobooks and eBooks – for me – is that I think they will help me keep reading as I age. eBooks of course because you can increase the print size. Overall thought I agree that we need as many reading formats as possible, but the point is what is written not how you read it, isn’t it. (I thought of Bill too when I was writing this.)
I think people also forget that there was a time in human history when writing down a story was considered lazy because it meant you couldn’t retain the entire story mentally and repeat it orally.
Haha, Melanie, good point! I certainly don’t trust my memory!
Hi Sue, I do not like audio books. I have tried listening to them and I was too easily distracted from listening to them. I also think the problem is that I am listening to a voice that is not the author’s. Sorry, I do not consider audio books reading.
I understand the distractability too Meg. That is a problem that listening while multitasking might avoid. Just listening in a chair for example can send me to sleep. Not that I’ve tried for years. But I do think it is “reading” in the wider meaning of the word.
I listen to audiobooks a lot but I am picky about what I listen to. First person written books are great innaudio as it is as though the person is in the room. A complex book I would either eRead or book read it. I need to flip pages back and forth. Being vision impaired I can’t see the text in smaller paperbacks without a really bright light over my shoulder. It is easier to see the larger paperbacks. A pleasing narrator is necessary too. Some authors read their own books bit have a voice that is not pleasant to listen to. Little do they know. As long as people are picking up and reading books and enjoying it who cares how they get the information?!
I like your nuanced approach Pam. When I do do audiobooks, they need to be the things like more straightforward plot-driven books or memoirs. Complex language or structures don’t work well in audio for me.
I agree 🙂🌻
Audio books are not for me… I have tried… and failed. I get too distracted and my mind starts wandering, and half the time I hate the voice/accent. But I know plenty of people who do listen to audio books and love them — and I think that’s a good thing.
I’m pretty much this way too Kimbofo. My mind wanders and if the voice is wrong (for me) I get irritated. I also love seeing the words on the page, knowing how names are spelt, being able to flip back easily to something. But I agree that my personal preference does not mean I’m judging either audiobooks or those who like them. It’s the reading (consuming) books that’s the thing.
I agree with your comment that you find audiobooks a less satisfactory form of reading, but are more than happy to count it as such. I prefer a physical book but do make use of my 15 hours a month via Spotify premium but use it for mostly non-fiction though. The odd fiction has not been in a “voice” I preferred. Mind you in the last 12 months I did listen to Jeremy Irons narrating both The French Lieutenant’s Woman and Brideshead Revisited and thought them both sublime, (both the books and the narration)
Not surprised Jeremy Irons captivated either those books John. Sounds like you and I are on a similar page when it comes to audiobooks.
I know we have discussed this before, but audiobooks do not work for me. I simply loose the train of thought. I’ve tried listening in cars, in the bath, cleaning the house and whilst out walking. but none of them work. The only time recently I had some success was when I was travelling by train between the mountains and Sydney regularly before we moved up here completely. But it only worked if the book was about 2hrs long otherwise it had to wait weeks before my next train trip. Oh I forgot, I also enjoyed listening to a Dylan Thomas audio of his plays for voices and poetry and I’ve been meaning to try another poetry selection to see how I go.
Yes that’s my problem too Brona … I done have enough times when I WANT to listen to get through a typical book. When I’m out walking I much prefer peace, and enjoying the environment plus I mostly walk in company. I expect to move to audiobooks when (if I’m still around then) my eyesight is poor.
I enjoyed reading these stat’s: I wonder if there are any like that for Canadian books (I’ll check). At various times, I’ve been a more regular listener and, for a time, I really enjoyed the pairing of a book on audio with a print copy (for checking the spelling or reviewing plot points or simply different reading opportunities… listening on the move and switching to the print when I got home again). But the past couple of years I’d nearly completely lost the habit, so I set a goal for this year of twelve audiobooks for the year. Like any other habit change, I resist it mightily but, when I do listen, I have had some good experiences. I was late finishing my June choice (and it was super short too), so it remains to be seen if I can keep up with my intention, but the lack-of-focus on spoken word is something I find unsettling: I want to improve my attention, especially in this era. Even though I don’t see it as replacing my love of holding and reading a book.
It’s funny how you can lose habits like this – the audiobook reading one I mean – isn’t it Marcie. I am not keen on having things in my ears – because it cuts you off from the world which I don’t like for various reasons (safety being one, and isolating yourself from others being another.) But to listen to audiobooks without earphones can intrude on others. These are big reasons why I don’t do them, besides the others to so with distractibility and liking to see the words. Like you I would like to improve my attention because there might come a time when it will be the best reading format for me. (So far, though my sight is good.)
I rarely listen in both ears, so that I can be part of a “did you know?” conversation erupting when I’m sharing the space at home, or so that I can hear someone coming up behind me when I’m not at home. One advantage of earbuds (compared to the 80s walkmans /giggles). But I do understand why some prefer the Noise Cancelling sort (they give me a headache) in work environments… where you’re in a large shared space and there’s a constant thread of noise to disrupt your focus. That would drive me mad!
Thank you for another fascinating post that has got me thinking! I know young people who listen and older people who have eye issues or hand issues who find traditional books challenging. For me, I love the multitask, but only in specific situations, to listen when walking places I often go, such as to the library, to the city etc. I like to walk as I get health benefits, but it is boring as I have walked those streets hundreds of times, so this gives me company along the way. But when hiking I would never listen as I want to take in my surroundings and maximise my experience. I also love to listen when I cook alone. The characters keep me company 🙂
Thanks Rach … I love your examples of who, why and/or when audiobooks might work for others or for you.
It is such an interesting new form of experiencing the written novel. We will need to watch where it goes from here… whether it continues to grow or declines and I think so much of that will be based on Audible an what they do with their service. I love Libby and the other library one, but the subscription is affordable and they have the range and quality… but… who knows…
I’m not sure I’d call it new Rach. Audiobooks have been around for decades? And novels before that used to be read over the radio. Does that count as audiobook? I’ve used library audio apps too as I don’t want to subscribe to a service.
Oh I didn’t mean that it was new, more that if Audible or other providers change their terms (make the books less accessible or more accessible) it would likely have a significant impact on demand. But then I rationalised my comment as you do have Libby etc which are the library platforms for audible books and you would have to imagine that these will remain..
Ab sorry Rach. I misunderstand the “new” bit. You are right the the platforms and their accessibility will have a big impact on how this form goes on the future.
One can do things in text meant to be read that one cannot do in text meant to be heard. Any sort of interruption of the narrative, or intertwining of multiple narratives is harder to follow when heard than when read. For complicated prose (never fiction, rarely history, more often philosophy) I will make notes in the margin, sometimes referring to other pages. What is the equivalent in audio formats?
And there is license granted to what is spoken With the movie of The Odyssey now showing, an obvious example is from oral epic poetry: the winged words, the hedge of the teeth, all the formulas that fill in the meter. They don’t really move the story forward, and to a cold, modern, reader’s eye they can look otiose. (The Goncourts recorded, to disparage, the acquaintance who loved “the unharvestable sea”.)
Yes, I essentially agree with this George, which is why when I have read audiobooks it’s mostly been plot-driven stories like crime, when we’ve been driving. I do write notes in my fiction, and like you I have been known to reference other pages – such as when a certain idea or image, mostly, appeared, particularly if it’s surprising or intriguing.
As for license granted to what is spoken? Are you saying the spoken word is given some leniency, some free pass, that the written word isn’t?
The spoken, still more the sung word gets a pass where the written word doesn’t. It is always open to the facetious critic to write out the words to popular songs to make fun of them. And there are the formulae. Virgil wore out some of his readers with “pius Aeneas”. A modern writer can get away with rosy-fingered down, the wine-dark sea. oxen-eyed Hera, etc. only on two conditions: he or she is translating Homer; he or she is using them as Wodehouse uses snippets from the Authorized Version, for comic effect. In the former case, I’d still advise against it–don’t let those winged words escape the hedge of your teeth! I have yet to see the latter.
I’ve been enjoying audiobooks for years, and have evolved a hybrid system for books that I really enjoy. Sometimes I’ll read a book and enjoy it so much that I track down the audiobook (my local library has access to several ebook and audiobook apps) and listen to it. I find that this adds another layer to the book experience, as I tend to read quickly and the audiobook slows me down. I’ve discovered books the other way as well: listening to an audiobook, then tracking down other books by the author. The narration is critical, and there are some narrators that really enhance the experience with their style and bringing characters to life. I’m definitely one of the multitaskers, and listen to audiobooks as I clean, walk the dog, drive etc. Thanks for a thoughtful post on this subject.
Thanks for all this jml. I don’t think I’ve heard of many people going to audiobook after reading! I’ve heard of the opposite, and of people reading them simultaneously, but not so much book first audio later. I completely agree with you about narration. And, I love that you have put your hand up on the multi-taking side! I guess I’m on this side too, inasmuch as I do audiobooks at all. In fact, I think that if I weren’t multitasking – usually driving or being driven – I fear I could doze off!