Libro.fm Audiobooks vs PCL Mobile
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Libro.fm Audiobooks
Access a vast library of audiobooks while supporting local bookstores. Purchase audiobooks with credits, enjoy DRM-free downloads, and listen on the go with features like playback speed control and a sleep timer. Your purchases directly benefit independent booksellers.
- Explore 600,000+ audiobooks
- Use audiobook credits
- Apple Watch listening
- Automatic sync across devices
- Bookmarks and playback speed
- Sleep timer
- DRM-free downloads
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Looking to read audiobooks, and love supporting your local bookshop? We’re Libro.fm, an employee-owned audiobook company that shares profits with more than 4,000 indie bookshops around the globe. Whether you’re starting a membership or grabbing one of our 600,000+ audiobooks à la carte, every purchase supports your chosen store. • DRM-free (accessible audiobooks) • Reader-friendly features: Create bookmarks, set a sleep timer, adjust playback speed, create and assign tags, and automatically sync your spot across devices • Use your Libro.fm credits to redeem audiobooks in app • Supports Apple Watch and CarPlay • Recommendations from real booksellers As a Social Purpose Corporation and Certified B Corp™, we're proud to put time and resources into supporting indie bookshops and getting more folks to read—even if those goals may at times conflict with our financial interests. We care about the reading ecosystem and want it to thrive. Our privacy policy can be found at https://libro.fm/privacy Our terms of use can be found at https://libro.fm/terms
PCL Mobile
Access your library account, search the catalog, and reserve items. Discover digital collections, view event calendars, and make program reservations. Enjoy a comprehensive library experience on your mobile device.
- Catalog search
- Item reservation
- Account management
- Event calendar
- Program reservations
- Digital collections access
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PCL Mobile allows you to search the catalog, reserve items for pickup, take a look at your account, view our calendar, make reservations for programs and events, access our digital collections, and so much more!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is update cadence: Libro.fm Audiobooks at monthly against PCL Mobile's every 6 months. Libro.fm Audiobooks also leads on ratings volume (41K vs 2) and chart position (#83 vs unranked). PCL Mobile's advantage is monetization model (free vs free with in-app purchases) and review sentiment (100% vs 92%). On price, rating, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Libro.fm Audiobooks against 5.0 for PCL Mobile. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Libro.fm Audiobooks has 41K ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews are what separate them: 92% of Libro.fm Audiobooks's written reviews are positive against 100% of PCL Mobile's.
Libro.fm Audiobooks ships an update monthly, PCL Mobile every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 26, 2026 and October 24, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Libro.fm Audiobooks | PCL Mobile |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 4.9 (41K ratings) | 5.0 (2 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 91.8% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews — better |
| Number of ratings | 41K — better | 2 |
| Update frequency | Monthly — better | Every 6 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free with in-app purchases | Free — better |
| Best chart rank | #83 — better | — |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 16.2 | 16.0 — better |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 60 MB | 41 MB |
| Age rating | 12+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Libro.fm | Pendleton Community Public Library |
Customer experience
Libro.fm Audiobooks
PCL Mobile
Bugs and requests
Libro.fm Audiobooks
Reported bugs
3 issues- Playback stops when device goes to sleep
- Inability to download audiobooks on cellular data
- App crashes and loses progress in books
Requested features
4 requests- Add chapter support for audiobooks
- Improve search and browsing capabilities
- Allow in-app purchases and account management
- Implement syncing across devices
PCL Mobile
Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.
In-app purchases
Libro.fm Audiobooks
No in-app purchases
PCL Mobile
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is Libro.fm Audiobooks free?
Is PCL Mobile free?
Which has better reviews, Libro.fm Audiobooks or PCL Mobile?
Do Libro.fm Audiobooks or PCL Mobile have ads?
Which is updated more often, Libro.fm Audiobooks or PCL Mobile?
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