Kindle+ Is the New KU? Here's What to Know

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Apparently, adding a plus sign to everything is still the going trend, and Amazon has officially joined the party. After more than a decade of Kindle Unlimited, it is getting a new name: Kindle+. But is this simply a rebrand of the product that many readers have come to love? Or are there actual changes to the subscription?

Since its launch in 2014, Kindle Unlimited has grown from a library of roughly 600,000 titles to a catalog of more than 5 million ebooks, alongside audiobooks, comics, manga, and magazines. Now, with Kindle+, Amazon is putting a greater emphasis on audiobooks, including the introduction of AI-narrated titles. And if there is anything the reading community hates, it’s AI (it is sure to get us talking).

So, what does Kindle+ actually mean for your Kindle Unlimited subscription? Here’s what’s staying the same, what’s changing, and whether readers are getting anything new for their $11.99 a month.

Is Kindle+ different than Kindle Unlimited?

If you’re worried that the switch from Kindle Unlimited to Kindle+ means losing access to your favorite books or paying more for the subscription, don’t be. For the most part, the switch from Kindle Unlimited to Kindle+ is a change in name alone.

Everything else about the program relatively stays the same. In fact, the switch has already been made on your devices.

Though the subscription remains separate from Amazon Prime, the price remains $11.99 per month, and you have the same access to the extensive library of books, magazines, comics, and manga.

You can also continue borrowing up to 20 titles at a time, returning them whenever you’re ready to make room for something new to hit your virtual shelf.

One big development in this change is Amazon’s focus on audiobooks, including those narrated by AI for select titles. This isn’t entirely surprising, considering Amazon-owned Audible has also been expanding its use of AI-narrated audiobooks in its catalog.

How to Access Kindle+ and Try It for Free

You don’t need a Kindle e-reader to enjoy Kindle+, you just need the Kindle app. As long as you have access to the free Kindle app on your smartphone, tablet, or computer, you can read books from your Kindle+ subscription with no problem. And if you do own things like the Kindle Paperwhite, Kindle Colorsoft, or another compatible Kindle device, you can browse and borrow eligible books directly from your e-reader without needing to use a separate app or even a browser.

Personally, I switch between my Kindle Paperwhite (here’s my favorite) and the Kindle app on my iPad, depending on where I am and what I’m reading. I’ll even pull up the Kindle app on my phone when I have a few minutes to spare, to squeeze in a quick reading session.

I appreciate that I can pick up where I left off across devices.

One of the reasons I personally subscribe to Kindle+ is to support indie authors. Many of the independent authors I read have their books available through the subscription, and I love being able to discover new stories while supporting the people who write them. Authors enrolled in KDP Select can earn royalties based on the pages subscribers read, which makes actually reading those books another way to support their work.

If you’ve been curious about Kindle Unlimited but haven’t taken the plunge, now might be the perfect time to give it a try. Eligible readers can explore Kindle+ with a free trial and discover their next favorite read.

But What’s the Catch?

Before you go filling up your Kindle library with every book that catches your eye like glitter, there are a few things worth knowing about the system.

First, you don’t actually own the books you borrow through Kindle+. You should think of it as a digital library rather than a bookstore. Your $11.99 monthly subscription gives you access to eligible titles, but if you cancel your membership, you’ll lose access to those borrowed books.

Secondly, not every book available in the Kindle Store is included in Kindle+. While the subscription does offer millions of titles, you’ll still come across books and even entire series that require a separate purchase. And yes, that means that sometimes you’ll discover a series you love only to realize that, well, the next book isn’t included in the catalog.

Then there is the fact that you can only borrow up to 20 books at a time. This means the limit is 20 books borrowed at once, and you’ll need to return one before adding another once you’ve hit that limit.

And finally, there’s the matter of AI-narrated audiobooks. While yes, it is expanding audiobook availability that could make more titles accessible to readers, AI narration also raises questions about the future of having a human narrate books and what that presence means for the publishing industry.

Ultimately, whether Kindle+ is worth the monthly subscription depends on how much you read and whether the books you’re interested in are included within the library.

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