How is the durability of Audible?
Audible’s durability has drawn mixed reviews, with a majority of customers reporting technical reliability issues. Playback problems, app crashes, and inconsistent progress tracking occur frequently, especially on older devices and iOS versions. Users have lost listening progress, had to reinstall the app, or dealt with corrupted files, with some claiming to have lost years of library data. These issues persisted through late 2025 and early 2026, when ratings fell to as low as 1.67 stars. Despite this, many users still praise Audible’s long-term usability, smooth performance, and consistent content retention across devices. Overall satisfaction declined in 2026, but a core group of loyal users continues to value Audible’s reliability, indicating that durability problems are not universal but concentrated in specific device types or use cases.
What customers praise
Audible users value its long-term stability and consistent performance, especially during daily, extended use. The app reliably retains listening progress across devices. It runs smoothly in the background with minimal battery drain or system strain. Users report few issues requiring reinstallation or troubleshooting. The experience is consistently smooth and dependable.
What customers said:
- „Been using this app for years now.“
- „Since titles are also audible offline after a download.“
„Since titles are also audible offline after a download.“
Original„da Titel auch Offline nach einem Dounloud hörbar sind“
- „I've been using it for 5 years.“
„I've been using it for 5 years.“
Original„llevo 5 años con ella“
Common complaints
Playback failures are a common complaint, with the app resetting progress or failing to save the last listening point. Books restart from the beginning after reopening, even after hours of listening. The app freezes, crashes, or becomes unresponsive, requiring a full reinstall to resolve. These issues are especially common on older devices and iOS versions, with multiple users reporting reduced support for older hardware.
What customers said:
- „won't sync so I have to uninstall and reinstall every time“
- „great job bricking the app after an hour“
- „i just lost years of stuff from this app“
How it has changed over time
Durability concerns have increased since late 2025, with ratings dropping sharply. The lowest score was 1.67 stars in December 2025. A new low of 2.24 stars occurred in June 2026. A 3.6-star rating in January 2026 showed brief improvement. Overall, ratings stayed below 3 stars for most of 2026. This pattern suggests ongoing technical instability, possibly linked to app updates or reduced backend support for older devices.
Practical takeaways
Audible works reliably for users with newer devices and up-to-date software. Older devices and outdated iOS versions struggle with the app. Performance depends heavily on device compatibility. Check system requirements before using Audible for long sessions. Reinstalling the app or clearing cache can fix playback issues. Persistent problems usually require support, which many users find unhelpful.
What customers said:
- „App stopped working after one week.“
- „broken and getting worse day by day“
- „it's hard to find the next book in a series“
Over time
Data as table
| Month | Avg. rating | Count |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-09 | 3.40 | 5 |
| 2025-10 | 2.50 | 6 |
| 2025-11 | 3.33 | 12 |
| 2025-12 | 1.67 | 15 |
| 2026-01 | 3.60 | 5 |
| 2026-02 | 3.00 | 26 |
| 2026-03 | 2.94 | 16 |
| 2026-04 | 3.23 | 13 |
| 2026-05 | 3.06 | 16 |
| 2026-06 | 2.24 | 21 |
| 2026-07 | 2.89 | 27 |
| 2026-08 | 3.10 | 29 |
Sentiment over time
Data as table
| Month | Positive | Neutral | Negative | Count |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025-09 | 60% | 0% | 40% | 5 |
| 2025-10 | 33% | 0% | 67% | 6 |
| 2025-11 | 58% | 0% | 42% | 12 |
| 2025-12 | 7% | 7% | 87% | 15 |
| 2026-01 | 60% | 0% | 40% | 5 |
| 2026-02 | 38% | 0% | 62% | 26 |
| 2026-03 | 31% | 6% | 63% | 16 |
| 2026-04 | 46% | 0% | 54% | 13 |
| 2026-05 | 31% | 13% | 56% | 16 |
| 2026-06 | 14% | 10% | 76% | 21 |
| 2026-07 | 37% | 4% | 59% | 27 |
| 2026-08 | 45% | 7% | 48% | 29 |
Customer voices
Short excerpts - full reviews are available at the original source.
„once or twice a week“
„This issue has persisted across three different phones over several years.“
„Uninstalling only provides a temporary fix.“
„still going strong listening to books“
„the app frequently crashes on older iOS versions“
„At least no one can take those out of my cupboard once I've bought them“
„they have vanished from my Audible app and I have to keep downloading them“
„keeps starting over at the beginning of the book every time I reopen the app“
Cite this page
Citatio (2026). Audible Durability: customer reviews September 2026. Retrieved 18 August 2026 from https://citatio.ai/audible-reviews/durability/
Data verifiable via our public audit log: Methodology · Transparency