ACX Alternative: Distribute Wide, Sell Direct, or Both
By Thomas Truong · Last updated October 15, 2026
ACX, Audible’s platform for audiobook rights holders, pays a 40% royalty for exclusive distribution or 25% for non-exclusive — 50% and 30% under Audible’s new royalty model, which new users have been on since May 26, 2026 — sets the retail price itself, and is open only to residents of the US, UK, Canada and Ireland; an exclusive title sells only on Audible, Amazon and Apple Books, for seven years. Those are ACX’s published terms as of October 15, 2026 — check ACX before you sign. Wide distributors such as Voices by INaudio (formerly Findaway Voices) and Author’s Republic deliver one recording to many stores and library services and pass on 80% of the royalties each store pays them. The third route is selling direct: with Bindery, Infinite Library’s book studio, you upload the chapter files you already have and your book’s own page sells the audiobook at your price — $1.99 to $99.99 — with 80% of every sale yours, chapter one free and no setup or monthly fee. A direct page reaches only the readers you bring, so it works best beside a non-exclusive deal.
TL;DR
ACX suits
authors in the US, UK, Canada or Ireland who want Audible’s audience and accept Audible setting the price. Exclusive pays the higher ACX rate but keeps the audiobook on Audible, Amazon and Apple Books alone for seven years.
Wide distributors suit
authors who want the audiobook in many stores and libraries at once — INaudio and Author’s Republic pass on 80% of what each store pays them (check the vendor).
Selling direct suits
authors with readers of their own — a newsletter, a website, talks — who want 80% of the price they set. It adds a shop, not reach, so pair it with a non-exclusive deal.
Key Takeaways
- Exclusive ACX pays the higher ACX rate but sells only through Audible, Amazon and Apple Books, for seven years.
- Non-exclusive ACX or a distributor leaves you free to sell the same recording on your own page too.
- Selling direct keeps 80% of the price you set, because no store takes its share first.
- The honest gap is reach: a store brings listeners, while your own page sells to the readers you bring.
Feature Comparison Table
| Feature | ACX (Audible) | Distributors (INaudio, Author’s Republic) | Your book’s page (Bindery) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where it sells | Audible, Amazon and Apple Books | Many stores and library services — Audible, Apple and Spotify among them (check vendor) | Your book’s own page, direct to your readers |
| Your royalty | 40% exclusive or 25% non-exclusive; 50% / 30% on Audible’s new model (check vendor) | 80% of what each store pays the distributor (check vendor) | 80% of the price you set |
| Who sets the price | Audible — you may suggest one on the new model | You set a list price (check vendor) | You — $1.99 to $99.99, or priced by length until you do |
| Exclusivity | Your choice; exclusive runs seven years, then renews yearly | Check each distributor’s terms | None — sell it beside any non-exclusive deal |
| Who can sign up | Residents of the US, UK, Canada and Ireland | Check each distributor’s countries | Authors anywhere Stripe or PayPal pays out |
| Reach | Audible’s listeners | Listeners across many stores and libraries | The readers you send to your page |
| Uploading | Chapter files to ACX’s audio requirements | Chapter files to each distributor’s requirements | MP3, WAV, M4A, AIFF or FLAC, up to 2 GB a file, matched to chapters for you |
| What the service keeps | The rest of each sale after your royalty | The store’s share, then 20% of what the store pays (check vendor) | 20% of each sale; no setup or monthly fee |
| How you’re paid | Monthly, by electronic payment | On the distributor’s schedule (check vendor) | To your Stripe account, normally within a day; by PayPal monthly where Stripe can’t pay out |
What ACX offers — and what it asks
ACX is Audible’s platform for audiobook rights holders. Choose exclusive distribution and Audible sells your audiobook on Audible, Amazon and Apple Books for seven years, at a royalty of 40% — or 50% under Audible’s new royalty model, which new users have been on since May 26, 2026 and which, Audible says, replaces the legacy model by the end of the year. Choose non-exclusive and the royalty is 25% (30% under the new model), but you may also sell the recording elsewhere.
Audible sets the retail price. Under the new model you can suggest one, but Audible decides and can change it, and sales to its members are valued by Audible’s own formula, not simply at the list price. ACX is open only to individuals and companies resident in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Ireland. These are ACX’s published terms as of October 15, 2026 — check its help center before you sign.
Selling direct from your book’s own page
The third route skips the store’s cut. In Bindery, Infinite Library’s book studio, you bring in your book, open its Listen tab and upload the chapter files you already have — MP3, WAV, M4A, AIFF or FLAC, up to 2 GB a file, each matched to its chapter. Your book’s own page then sells the audiobook exactly as recorded, at the price you set from $1.99 to $99.99 (until you set one, it is priced by length, from $6.99 under an hour to $29.99 past twenty hours), and you keep 80% of every sale. There is no setup or monthly fee.
Chapter one plays free on the page, a reader ordering your paperback can add the audiobook in the same checkout, and every purchase comes with an invoice a school or company can put its tax ID on. Your share is released to your Stripe account, normally within a day of the sale — or paid by PayPal in the first week of each month in countries Stripe can’t pay out to.
What it does not do is distribute: nothing goes to Audible, Apple Books, Spotify or libraries. It sells to the readers you bring — from your newsletter, your website, your talks — which is exactly where a store’s share costs you most.
Can you do both?
Yes, unless you signed an exclusive deal. A non-exclusive ACX title, or a recording sent wide through a distributor, can also be sold from your own page. An exclusive ACX title cannot, while it is exclusive: ACX’s current agreement allows one change to non-exclusive once the audiobook has been on sale for at least 90 days, but a Royalty Share title — where your narrator is paid from its sales — must stay exclusive. Read your own agreement before you sell anywhere else.
A common pattern is stores for discovery and your own page for the readers who already know you — on their purchases you keep 80% of your price instead of a store’s royalty share.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best alternative to ACX?
It depends on what you want instead. For more stores and libraries, a wide distributor such as Voices by INaudio (formerly Findaway Voices) or Author’s Republic delivers your audiobook to many services and passes on 80% of the royalties each store pays it. For a bigger share of each sale, sell direct: on your book’s own page with Bindery you keep 80% of the price you set. Many authors do both. Check each service’s current terms.
How much does ACX pay authors?
As of October 15, 2026, ACX lists royalties of 40% for exclusive distribution and 25% for non-exclusive under its legacy model, and 50% and 30% under Audible’s new royalty model, which new users have been on since May 26, 2026. Audible sets the price, and sales to its members are valued by Audible’s own formula. Check ACX’s help center for current rates.
Can I sell my audiobook outside Audible if it’s on ACX?
If you chose non-exclusive distribution, yes — ACX says you can sell it in other places and formats as well. If you chose exclusive, Audible holds the right for seven years; ACX’s current agreement allows one change to non-exclusive once the audiobook has been on sale for at least 90 days, but a Royalty Share title must stay exclusive. Read your own agreement first.
Can I use ACX if I don’t live in the US, UK, Canada or Ireland?
Not directly: ACX says it is open to individuals and companies resident in those four countries, with a local mailing address, tax number and bank account. Authors elsewhere can look at wide distributors (check their eligible countries) or sell direct — Bindery pays its 80% through Stripe or, in countries Stripe can’t pay out to, by PayPal.
How do I sell my audiobook directly to listeners?
Bring your book into Bindery, open its Listen tab and press Upload recordings, then drop the chapter files or the whole folder; each file is matched to its chapter. Hear it on a private listening link, set your price and publish your book’s page: it sells the audiobook with chapter one free, and you keep 80% of every sale. There is no setup or monthly fee.
Do I have to leave Audible to sell direct?
No. Selling from your own page isn’t exclusive: keep a non-exclusive ACX title or a wide distributor and sell direct as well. Only an exclusive deal stands in the way, for as long as it lasts.
Your audiobook is finished. Sell it yourself.
Upload the chapter files, set your price, keep 80% of every sale. No setup or monthly fee.