What can you use instead of Kindle+ (Kindle Unlimited)?
If Kindle+ (renamed from Kindle Unlimited on 22 October 2026) is not earning its $11.99 a month, the best alternatives are a library card in Libby or Hoopla for free borrowing, Kobo Plus for a cheaper buffet ($7.99 for ebooks, $9.99 with audiobooks), and Everand at $11.99 for a broader mix of ebooks and audiobooks. If what you really want is bestsellers, none of the buffets will satisfy you and the library is the answer.
Why would you leave Kindle+?
Usually because the catalog does not fit. Kindle+ is deep in self-published and small-press genre fiction and long series, and thin on new releases from the big publishers. If most of the books you want do not carry the Kindle+ badge, you are paying $11.99 a month to browse. Our 10-book test puts a number on it: list your next ten books and count how many are in the catalog. Three or fewer means the catalog is not built for you.
The second reason is format lock. Kindle+ books open only in Kindle apps and on Kindle devices. If you read on a Kobo or want to move away from Amazon, a Kindle+ subscription pulls the other way.
Which alternative fits which reader?
The genre-series reader who finishes four or more books a month: Kobo Plus. It costs $7.99 a month for ebooks only, $7.99 for audiobooks only, or $9.99 for both (checked on kobo.com on 3 November 2026), with a 14-day free trial. Its catalog has a similar shape to Kindle+, strong in genre fiction, and it reads in the Kobo app or on a Kobo e-reader. Check your next ten books against it before switching.
The reader who mixes ebooks and audiobooks: Everand at $11.99 a month carries both in one app. Title availability can shift for heavy users, so it rewards readers who are flexible about what comes next.
The reader who wants bestsellers: your library. Libby lends new releases with a holds queue, Hoopla lends instantly against a monthly cap, and both are free with a card. Libby can even send many library ebooks to a Kindle in the US, which our Libby on Kindle guide walks through.
The reader who wants a gentle habit: Serial Reader delivers public-domain classics in daily ten-minute installments for free, with an inexpensive upgrade. It is not a Kindle+ replacement for genre readers, but for someone who subscribed to read more and did not, it is the cheaper experiment.
How do the prices compare per book?
A buffet's price per book is its monthly fee divided by the books you finish. At one book a month Kindle+ costs $11.99 a book, Kobo Plus Read costs $7.99 and the library costs nothing. At four books a month Kindle+ falls to $3.00, Kobo Plus Read to $2.00 and Everand to $3.00. The table below runs those numbers. The calculator on this site lets you put in your own reading rate and book prices.
What happens to your Kindle+ books when you cancel?
Borrowed titles are returned when your subscription ends; nothing you borrowed through Kindle+ stays. Your highlights and notes stay in your Amazon account, and books you bought outright are unaffected. Amazon says access continues to the end of the billing period you have paid for, without a refund for the rest of it, so cancel a day or two before renewal rather than mid-month.
Before you cancel, finish or note your place in anything you are partway through. If you pick the same title up later from the library or in print and the plot has gone fuzzy, Kindle's own Story So Far only works inside a Kindle ebook; for a print or library copy of a supported novel on iPhone, Magic Bookmark recaps up to your page.
Should you cancel or just pause?
If your reading comes in waves, the cleanest move is to cancel at the end of a heavy month and resubscribe when the next wave arrives. Subscriptions charge for the months you do not read, and buffets only pay at volume. Write the renewal date in your calendar the day you subscribe.
| Service | Monthly price | Per book at 1 a month | Per book at 4 a month | Formats | Keep after cancel? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kindle+ | $11.99 | $11.99 | $3.00 | Ebooks, audiobooks, comics, magazines (Kindle only) | No |
| Kobo Plus Read | $7.99 | $7.99 | $2.00 | Ebooks (Kobo) | No |
| Kobo Plus Read & Listen | $9.99 | $9.99 | $2.50 | Ebooks and audiobooks (Kobo) | No |
| Everand | $11.99 | $11.99 | $3.00 | Ebooks, audiobooks, magazines | No |
| Libby | $0 | $0 | $0 | Library ebooks and audiobooks | No, loans expire |
| Hoopla | $0 | $0 | $0 | Instant library borrows, monthly cap | No, loans expire |
Questions readers actually ask
- Is there a free alternative to Kindle Unlimited?
- Yes: your public library. Libby and Hoopla lend ebooks and audiobooks free with a library card. The trade is a holds queue on popular titles in Libby and a monthly borrow cap in Hoopla.
- Is Kobo Plus cheaper than Kindle+?
- Yes. Kobo Plus Read is $7.99 a month and Read & Listen is $9.99, against $11.99 for Kindle+, on US prices checked on 3 November 2026. Whether it is better depends on whether your books are in its catalog.
- Can I read Kobo Plus books on a Kindle?
- No. Kobo Plus titles read in the Kobo app or on Kobo e-readers. Kindle+ titles read only in Kindle apps and on Kindle devices.
- Did Kindle Unlimited change its price when it became Kindle+?
- No. Amazon renamed it on 22 October 2026 and the US price stayed at $11.99 a month, with the same 20-title borrowing limit.
Sources
Refresh schedule: Monthly, and on any Kindle+ or Kobo Plus price change