You’re scrolling through Spotify, looking for your usual true crime podcast or that one "Lo-fi Beats to Study To" playlist, and you see it. A new release from your favorite author. You click it, ready to dive in. But then, nothing happens. No "Buy" button. No "Add to Cart." Just a locked icon and a vague message about not being able to buy it in the app. It’s frustrating.
Honestly, it feels like Spotify is playing hard to get.
The reality of how to buy a book on Spotify is a bit of a workaround because of the massive legal and financial "war" happening behind the scenes between tech giants. If you’ve ever tried to buy a Kindle book inside the Amazon app on an iPhone, you’ve run into the same brick wall. It’s all about the "App Store Tax." Apple and Google want a 30% cut of every digital sale made inside their ecosystems. Spotify, understandably, doesn’t want to hand over 30% of your book money to a middleman.
👉 See also: Why No Signed Drivers Were Found is Killing Your Windows Install
So, they made it a web-based process.
The actual steps to get your audiobook
If you want to own a specific title that isn't included in the "15 hours of monthly listening" perk for Premium subscribers, you have to leave the app. There is no way around this. You can't just wish a button into existence on your Android or iOS device.
First, open a mobile browser or jump on your laptop. Go to the Spotify website and log in. You need to find the specific audiobook you’re looking for through their web player search bar. Once you're on the book's specific landing page, you'll finally see that elusive "Buy" button.
Once you click buy, you’ll enter your credit card info or use whatever payment method you have saved on your Spotify account. After the transaction clears, the book automatically unlocks in your library across all devices. It's a bit of a hop, skip, and a jump, but that’s the current state of digital commerce. You buy on the web, and you listen in the app.
Why some books are "free" and others aren't
This is where people get tripped up. Spotify Premium subscribers in certain regions—like the US, UK, and Australia—get 15 hours of audiobook listening per month for "free" (included in the sub price). But those 15 hours only apply to titles in the "Subscriber Catalog."
If you want a book that isn't in that catalog, or if you’ve already burned through your 15 hours and want to own the book permanently, you have to buy it. Buying a book on Spotify means you own it forever, even if you cancel your Premium subscription later. It’s your digital copy.
The "In-App" restriction explained
Why does this matter? Because most users think their app is broken.
It isn't.
When you see a lock icon, it’s basically Spotify’s way of protesting Apple and Google's billing systems. By forcing you to buy on the web, Spotify keeps 100% of the revenue (minus whatever they pay the publisher), which allows them to stay competitive with Audible. If they sold it in-app for $20, Apple would take $6 just for existing. To make the same profit, Spotify would have to charge you $26. Nobody wants that.
Browsing the library effectively
If you’re just browsing, the app is great. You can listen to samples. You can save titles to your "Your Library" section. You can even share the link to your Instagram story. But the moment you want to put money down, pull out Safari or Chrome.
Interestingly, Spotify has experimented with different UI layouts to make this clearer. In some versions of the app, they’ll send you an email with a direct link to the checkout page once you show interest in a book. It’s a clever way to bridge the gap without violating the strict "no external linking" rules that Apple sometimes enforces.
Things to watch out for
Not every book is available in every country. Licensing for audiobooks is just as messy as it is for music. You might see a book recommended on a US-based blog, search for it in Canada or Germany, and find absolutely nothing. This isn't a glitch; it's just the nightmare of international copyright law.
Also, keep an eye on your "Top Up" options. If you are a Premium member and you run out of your 15 hours mid-chapter, you don't necessarily have to buy the entire book. You can buy 10-hour "top-up" increments. However, if you really love the book and want to keep it forever, buying the full title is usually the better financial move in the long run.
The Audible Comparison
A lot of people ask if Spotify is better than Audible. It's different. Audible is a credit-based subscription. Spotify is a streaming service that happens to sell books on the side. If you are a heavy listener—someone doing 40 hours a week—Spotify's 15-hour limit will feel like a cage. But for the casual listener who already pays for music, the occasional purchase of a book on Spotify is incredibly convenient because everything stays in one app.
Actionable steps for your first purchase
If you're ready to pull the trigger on a book today, don't waste time tapping the locked button in your app.
- Head to the web: Open your browser and go to
spotify.com/audiobooks. - Search and Select: Find the title. Check if it's included in your Premium hours first—don't pay for something you might already have access to.
- Check your email: If you’re on an iPhone, sometimes clicking "Interest" in the app triggers an automated email from Spotify with a "Buy Now" link that bypasses the need to search again on the web.
- Confirm the purchase: Use a saved card. Once the "Success" screen pops up, force-close your Spotify app and restart it. The book will be sitting in your Library under the "Audiobooks" tab.
This "buy-on-web, listen-on-app" model is likely here to stay until the legal battles between Spotify and the mobile OS giants reach a new settlement. It's a minor hoop to jump through, but it keeps the prices from inflating by 30% just to cover app store fees. Once you’ve done it once, it becomes second nature.