# xigxag: Audiobooks, but Better — Bestsellers. No Subscription. > Subscription-free audiobooks with a unique listen-and-read format and tiered pricing. (iPhone/iPad app by xigxag ltd.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/xigxag-audiobooks-but-better/id1499273469 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [xigxag ltd](https://appshunter.io/developer/1499273468) - Category: Books, Education - Price: Free with in-app purchases - Rating: 4.10/5 from 15 App Store ratings · 100 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 12+ - Requires: iOS 15.6 · 97 MB - Languages: American English - Released: 2020-08-27 - Data updated: 2026-09-14 - Monetization: free with in-app purchases - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/xigxag-audiobooks-but-better/id1499273469/reviews.md ## What is xigxag? Buy the audiobooks you want, keep them forever, and pay less the more you listen. xigxag is the UK's home for audiobooks, and home of the x-book®, our exclusive listen-and-read format. Books narrated by real people. No subscription, no credits, no monthly fee. Just great books, priced fairly. EVERY AUDIOBOOK, NO SUBSCRIPTION No monthly fee, no hourly limits, no "one book a month" rules. Every 5 full-price titles you buy unlocks a lower price for a whole year, automatically. Plus, you can always find discounted titles available in our monthly Listen For Less selection. ONLY IN THE X-BOOK® Our exclusive x-book® format combines the audiobook with the full text and illustrations in one purchase. Listen, read, or switch between the two mid-chapter without ever losing your place. Search inside the text, look up a word, and pick up exactly where you left off, on any device. 145,000+ TITLES Bestsellers, new releases, classics, and everything in between, read by human narrators. With more than 96% of Sunday Times bestsellers available, you can search by title, author, genre, or filter for x-book® titles only. EVERY DETAIL, DESIGNED FOR LISTENERS Phrase-boundary navigation so you never land mid-sentence, variable narration speed, a sleep timer, offline listening, and quotes you can save and share straight from the player. MY STATS Track your streaks, hours listened, and books finished, and set yourself a reading challenge for the year. See your progress build as you go. BUZZ: FOR LISTENERS, BY LISTENERS xigxag is the first social platform built specifically for audiobook listeners. Follow the Buzz feed for reviews, quotes, and recommendations from other listeners who care as much about the book as the narration and production quality. AN EXCITING ALTERNATIVE TO BIG TECH xigxag is a certified B Corporation and an Ethical Consumer Best Buy. Built by listeners, for listeners, keeping people and planet at the heart of everything we do. REAL HUMANS REPLY No bots, no ticket mazes. Message us and a real person gets back to you. It's the thing our listeners thank us for most. GIVE THE GIFT OF READING Gift an audiobook directly to someone, or send a xigxag gift card. No subscription required to redeem. Founded in 2019 by two audiobook lovers who wanted something better than a rigid one-credit-a-month subscription, xigxag is built to make reading easier, more accessible, and more enjoyable for everyone, however you like to read. ## Key features - Subscription-free audiobooks - Tiered pricing discounts - Listen-and-read x-book format - Thousands of titles available - Curated collections and social feed - Offline listening and downloading - Sync across multiple devices ## Pricing and in-app purchases Base price: Free. **One-time purchases** | Purchase | Price | Type | | --- | --- | --- | | Audiobook | $13.95 | one-time | | Audiobook | $7.95 | one-time | | Audiobook | $12.95 | one-time | | Audiobook | $11.95 | one-time | | Audiobook | $10.95 | one-time | | Audiobook | $9.95 | one-time | ## What do users think of xigxag? Overall sentiment: positive **Pros** - 👍 No subscription fee - 💰 Price reduction with more purchases - 📚 Great selection of books - 🎧 High-quality audiobooks - 🌟 Exceptional narrators - 💡 Innovative X-book feature (audio + ebook) - 🤝 Helpful and friendly customer service - 💸 Fairly priced / cheaper than competitors - 💯 Feels ethical / not trying to rip off users - 📱 Easy to use app - 🚀 Quick and easy book downloads - ✨ Personalized support - ✅ Fixed price point for books - 👍 Great bargain finds - 📖 Read more as a result - 💡 Brilliant functionality - ✅ Simple and reliable app - 👍 Great concept for audiobooks - 🤝 Responsive developers - 🤩 Supports ethical practices / B-Corp - 👍 Great value - 🌟 Thoughtfully curated selection - 💯 Supports artists properly - 👍 Great alternative to Audible/Amazon - ✅ Easy to navigate interface - 👍 Intuitive interface - 💡 Ability to switch between audio and ebook - 💯 Supports UK based enterprise - 👍 Pay-as-you-go model - ✅ Control over purchases **Cons** - 🐛 Clunky UI - 🪲 Annoying notifications - 🐛 App can be glitchy - 🐛 Playback speed issues after update - 🐛 App won't open after update - 🐛 Auto-sync for X-books doesn't work well - 🐛 Footnotes hard to flick between - 🐛 Note taking difficult with audio - 🐛 Inconsistent UI navigation - 🐛 App doesn't connect well with Bluetooth headphones - 🐛 Download means download to app, not actual file - 🐛 Catalogue is lacking / can't find desired books - 🐛 Misleading pricing advertised - 🐛 X-book text not always available - 🐛 Limited range compared to Audible - 🐛 No wish list from website - 🐛 Tiny writing / no chapter titles - 🐛 Sleep timer not gradual **Commonly reported bugs** - Playback speed keeps randomly going up to 2x - App won't open after recent update - Auto-sync for X-books not working well - Footnotes are hard to flick between - Note taking is near impossible with audio - UI navigation is inconsistent - App doesn't connect well with Bluetooth headphones - Downloaded books only available within the app, not as standalone files - App is glitchy, titles not loading - Purchased books not showing after reinstall - App crashes or freezes - Sleep timer just stops audio, doesn't taper off **Most requested features** - Dark mode option - Basket to add multiple books for bulk purchase - Easier to get playback speed back to 1x - Allow app to go in portrait mode on iPad - Higher playback speeds (up to 2.5x or 4x) - Sync X-book reading progress more seamlessly with audio progress - Add older titles / bargain bookshelf - Improve UI and user experience - More user-friendly app - Chapter titles - Wish list functionality from website ## Recent user reviews (10 of 100) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/xigxag-audiobooks-but-better/id1499273469/reviews.md ### 5/5 — Easily rivals the big smile *2026-08-26* I was so happy to find an audiobook app that isn’t evil. There are a few tweaks needed to bring it to exactly the same functionality as Audible but I am happy to live with these. (Eg the sleep timer just stops the audio rather than tapering off gradually.) There is an innovative extra that goes beyond Audible - their X book format which is an ebook along with the audio book and so the text can be followed whilst listening to it at no extra cost. Hurrah! There are again a few tweaks which would make it even more accessible for some disabled users but I really like that many of the books are available in this format. There isn’t a payment that has to be made each month either - so no need to worry about how to finish one book before buying another one. **Developer response:** Thank you for the lovely review! Please note you can choose whether the audio tapers or stops with the sleep timer. Go to My xigxag / Settings / Preferences and make sure the 'Sleep auto fade volume' is toggled right (you should see green). And, we appreciate your feedback on the x-book...we're looking to make more accessibility improvements to the listen-and-read experience soon. 💜 ### 5/5 — Best app on my phone *2026-05-25* Let me tell you about this app! Out of all of the apps on my phone it is the one that has changed my life the most. If I could only keep one app it would be this. This app has an amazing selection. It is rare that I can’t find the book I want on it. The audiobooks are of the highest quality with exceptional narrators. There is NO subscription fee. You pay for what you buy. Thats it. Not to mention that the more books you buy the cheaper they become! I have bought so many books on this platform and I have rarely been disappointed (and where I have it was a fault of the book, not the app). Customer service is always helpful and friendly and I have told so many people about this app. It honestly feels like it’s not there to rip people off to make a profit. It feels like it’s one of those rare things that are actually there to improve people’s lives and help, not just look for ways to fleece them. I can’t tell you the sheer hours of pleasure this app has bought me. I’m a busy at home mum and I do not have time to sit and read, but I can stick on my headphones and listen to a book whilst I’m doing my cleaning, cooking, errands etc. The pleasure it brings me is insane. I might look like I’m peeling potatoes, but in reality my heart is in my mouth entering some gothic haunted house (or whatever the genre). I am just so thankful this app exists and yes it does weirdly mean a lot to me and I’m not going to apologise for that! ### 5/5 — Excellent *2026-04-24* Easy to use app with a great variety of books. Download of books is quick and easy, and it is a great way to get new releases for a reasonable (or even cheap!) price. The customer service team are really friendly and super helpful, you really get personalised support if required. Much cheaper than audible, and I would highly recommend for audiobook fans ### 5/5 — Best App on my phone *2026-03-09* I absolutely love this App. I have used lots of different reading Apps but this is by far my favourite. I love that I don’t have to subscribe and that the books have a fixed price point that get cheaper the more you purchase. They have a great selection and are fairly priced with some great bargain finds too. I find I read a lot more as a result of having this app. ### 5/5 — Fantastic! *2026-02-18, version 2.3.4* Brilliant functionality and no silly monthly subscription. Cheap books too! A real winner. ### 5/5 — Excellent audiobook app *2026-02-06, version 2.3.4* I have been using this app for over 2 years, and love it! The prices get lower as you buy more. The App is simple to use and reliable. ### 5/5 — What audiobooks were meant to be *2025-12-14, version 2.3.2* I love xigxag. I have very much enjoyed the books I have come across on the app. The books are wonderful, the narrations in my experience have been outstanding, and to cap it all the concept of the X-book is just what you might have hoped Amazon, with Kindle and Audible together, would have done: many of the books on the platform are “X-books”, which means that they include both audiobook and e-book. You can listen to them for a while, pick up reading the story where you left off, and then switch back to narration once again. This is particularly good for me as I like to listen to an audiobook while going about daily tasks, but also like to read in bed without disturbing my wife. The price of an individual book starts out reasonable, and if you buy more than five a year they just get cheaper. I never feel ripped off, I never feel I have to buy a book to avoid wasting a “credit”, money does not get taken from me every month whether I am using the app or not. If I buy as many as a subscription model would force me to it works much cheaper, and I remain in control. I don’t mind spending money on things I’m using, but I can’t help feeling ripped off more and more these days as everybody wants to lock you into a subscription model - it’s just like the old gym membership scam where they make half their money from people who are not even using the service. Xigxag instead just offers great products at a reasonable price. ### 5/5 — The Best way to Aufiobook *2025-11-16* This app has been awaited for years! A non subscription model for audiobooks that doesn’t force you to choose a book a month but lets you choose at your own pace. And the more you choose, the cheaper the price. Very pleased to have discovered this brilliant app - highly recommended to audio readers of all ages. ### 5/5 — Best audio! *2025-10-27, version 2.3.1* Really impressed. Xigxag is simple to use, cost effective and high quality. My children especially enjoy the x-books. The subscription free yet growing discount for listening to more books is a great model. Highly recommended ### 5/5 — Easily rivals the big smile *2025-09-27* I was so happy to find an audiobook app that isn’t evil. There are a few tweaks needed to bring it to exactly the same functionality as Audible but I am happy to live with these. (Eg the sleep timer just stops the audio rather than tapering off gradually.) There is an innovative extra that goes beyond Audible - their X book format which is an ebook along with the audio book and so the text can be followed whilst listening to it at no extra cost. Hurrah! There are again a few tweaks which would make it even more accessible for some disabled users but I really like that many of the books are available in this format. There isn’t a payment that has to be made each month either - so no need to worry about how to finish one book before buying another one. **Developer response:** Thank you for the lovely review! Please note you can choose whether the audio tapers or stops with the sleep timer. Go to My xigxag / Settings / Preferences and make sure the 'Sleep auto fade volume' is toggled right (you should see green). And, we appreciate your feedback on the x-book...we're looking to make more accessibility improvements to the listen-and-read experience soon. 💜 ## Frequently asked questions about xigxag ### What is xigxag? xigxag is an audiobook service that offers audiobooks without subscription fees. It provides a unique 'x-book' format that combines listening and reading, allowing users to view text, illustrations, and take notes. The app focuses on accessible and sustainable books, with pricing that becomes more affordable the more you purchase. ### How does the pricing work? There are no monthly subscription fees. Instead, prices decrease as you buy more audiobooks. The first five books cost £7.99 each, with subsequent tiers offering lower prices, eventually reaching £3.99 after 20 books. This pricing automatically updates in the app and resets annually after your first purchase. ### What is the x-book format? The exclusive x-book® format allows you to seamlessly switch between listening to an audiobook and reading the text. You can also view illustrations, take notes, and share quotes, all within a single interface. This enhances understanding and retention of the content without any extra fees. ### Can I listen offline? Yes, you can stream audiobooks directly within the app or download them for offline listening. This feature ensures you can enjoy your books even without an internet connection, making it convenient for commutes or travel. ### What kind of books are available? The app offers a wide selection of thousands of audiobooks, including bestsellers, classics, and new releases from popular authors and narrators. You can search by author, title, or genre, or explore curated collections and a social feed for recommendations. ## Version history (last 5 releases) ### 2.4.0 — 2026-09-12 My Stats is here. - Track your listening streaks, hours, and books finished - Set yourself a yearly reading challenge - Watch your progress build as you go My Books, redesigned. - Lists now live inside My Books - Sort and organise your library your way - Everything you've saved, bought, and organised in one place Plus - Accessibility improvements - Enhanced location accuracy ### 2.3.12 — 2026-08-24 New My Stats page (let us know what you think?) Bug fixes and stability improvements ### 2.3.11 — 2026-08-07 Reflects updated UK pricing in app and metadata ### 2.3.10 — 2026-07-29 Improvements to searching Bug fixes and security updates ### 2.3.9 — 2026-07-02 Play speed down to 0.5x (user request) Security and stability updates ## Apps similar to xigxag | App | Rating | Price | Category | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Glassboxx](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/glassboxx/id1464705712) | 2.5 (55) | Free | Books | | [FreeBooks: 76,000 Top Reads](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/freebooks-76000-top-reads/id6464310229) | 4.7 (2,921) | Free | Books | | [StoryShots: Book Summaries](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/storyshots-book-summaries/id1430885497) | 4.7 (1,251) | Free | Books | | [Kobo Books & Audiobooks](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/kobo-books-and-audiobooks/id301259483) | 4.5 (27,165) | Free | Books | | [uLIBRARY](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/ulibrary/id977511203) | 5.0 (2) | Free | Books | | [World of Books App](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/world-of-books-app/id6698896097) | 3.7 (49) | Free | Books | ## Related topics [xigxag](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/xigxag) --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-09-14.*