Experts Debate Whether Or Not Audiobooks Count As Reading

Science and semantics are only part of the debate.

About 40% of Brits hadn’t finished a book in the 12 months between 2024-2025, YouGov reported.

Of those who had, 30% listened to an audiobook; 18% had ticked titles off their list through headphones, without ever picking up a physical book.

Some people think that shouldn’t “count,” though. For instance, author Nathan Bransford said in his blog, “Consuming an audiobook is a fundamentally different activity than reading. We already have a word for it: LISTENING”.

He also argued that reading from a page engages the brain differently. But not everyone agrees.

What does science say?

In 2016, Dr Beth Rogowsky, a professor specialising in language learning styles from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, co-authored a study comparing comprehension rates for people listening to audiobooks to those who read........

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