What is Audiobookshelf used for?

Audiobookshelf is a self-hosted server for streaming audiobooks and podcasts, with multi-user accounts, synced listening progress, metadata fetching and companion mobile apps. It is a good fit for hosting a personal audiobook library, sharing a collection with family members and managing podcast subscriptions on your own server.

Is Audiobookshelf open source?

Yes. Audiobookshelf is open source under the GPL-3.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at advplyr/audiobookshelf and is written mainly in JavaScript.

Is Audiobookshelf free?

Yes. Audiobookshelf is open source, so the software itself is free to use.

Can I self-host Audiobookshelf?

Yes. Audiobookshelf can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure; there is no official hosted version.

What is Audiobookshelf an alternative to?

Audiobookshelf is an open-source alternative to Audible, Storytel, Everand and Apple Podcasts. Other open-source alternatives to Audible include Grimmory.

Is Audiobookshelf actively maintained?

Yes. The most recent commit to Audiobookshelf was on 1 October 2026, and the latest release is v2.37.1, published on 29 September 2026. The project has 15k stars on GitHub.

Audiobookshelf: open-source alternative to Audible, Storytel

About Audiobookshelf

Audiobookshelf is a self-hosted server for audiobooks and podcasts. You point it at folders of audio files on your own hardware, and it serves them to a web player and companion mobile apps, so your collection stays on machines you control.

The server streams all audio formats on the fly, keeps listening progress per user and syncs it across devices, and supports multiple users with custom permissions. It can search for podcasts and auto-download new episodes, fetch metadata and cover art from several sources, edit chapters, merge files into a single m4b and embed metadata into audio files. Basic ebook support covers EPUB, PDF, CBR and CBZ, and ebooks can be sent to a device such as a Kindle.

Audiobookshelf is released under the GPL-3.0 licence and is fully open source, including the Android app and the iOS app, which are both in beta. A Progressive Web App, Chromecast support, automated daily backups and open RSS feeds are also available. Folder structure and naming affect how the library is detected, so the documentation on organizing media is worth reading first.

Key features

Streams all audio formats on the fly
Multi-user accounts with custom permissions
Per-user progress synced across devices
Podcast search with auto-download of episodes
Metadata and cover art fetching
Chapter editor and m4b merging
Basic ebook reader for EPUB and PDF
Android and iOS apps in beta

Good fit for

→Hosting a personal audiobook library
→Sharing a collection with family members
→Managing podcast subscriptions on your own server

Built with: JavaScript
Tags: audiobooks; podcasts; self-hosted; media-server; ebooks; streaming; open-source

Audiobookshelf: questions and answers

What is Audiobookshelf used for?: Audiobookshelf is a self-hosted server for streaming audiobooks and podcasts, with multi-user accounts, synced listening progress, metadata fetching and companion mobile apps. It is a good fit for hosting a personal audiobook library, sharing a collection with family members and managing podcast subscriptions on your own server.
Is Audiobookshelf open source?: Yes. Audiobookshelf is open source under the GPL-3.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at advplyr/audiobookshelf and is written mainly in JavaScript.
Is Audiobookshelf free?: Yes. Audiobookshelf is open source, so the software itself is free to use.
Can I self-host Audiobookshelf?: Yes. Audiobookshelf can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure; there is no official hosted version.
What is Audiobookshelf an alternative to?: Audiobookshelf is an open-source alternative to Audible, Storytel, Everand and Apple Podcasts. Other open-source alternatives to Audible include Grimmory.
Is Audiobookshelf actively maintained?: Yes. The most recent commit to Audiobookshelf was on 1 October 2026, and the latest release is v2.37.1, published on 29 September 2026. The project has 15k stars on GitHub.