Questions, answered
Everything authors ask before they start: getting paid, fees, files, and what your readers get.
Getting paid with Stripe
Why Listenkeep uses Stripe
Stripe is one of the world's largest payment companies, trusted by millions of businesses, from one-person shops to the biggest names online. When a reader buys your audiobook, they pay your own Stripe account. You keep the customer, the money goes straight to you, and you get:
- Checkout readers trust: cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Link, on any phone or computer.
- Your own dashboard: every sale, refund and payout, in your own Stripe account.
- Bank-grade security: card details never touch Listenkeep or you. Stripe handles them.
- Payouts to your bank on Stripe's regular schedule. Instant payouts are also available, so you can have your sales money in minutes.
- No lock-in: it's your Stripe account. If you ever leave Listenkeep, you keep it.
What do I need to set up Stripe?
About ten minutes and the basics Stripe asks every seller for, by law, to verify who's getting paid:
You fill this in on Stripe's own secure pages, not on Listenkeep. We never see your SSN or bank details.
Do I need a business or an LLC?
No. Most indie authors sign up as an individual (a sole proprietor) using their own name and SSN. If you have an LLC or a company, you can use that instead.
What should I put for my website?
Your Listenkeep book page works fine (listenkeep.com/b/your-book), or your author website if you have one.
I already have a Stripe account. Can I use it?
Stripe's setup recognizes you and reuses your saved details, so it's quick. Your Listenkeep sales go to a Stripe account under your same Stripe login.
How long until I can take payments?
Usually minutes after you finish Stripe's form. Sometimes Stripe takes a day or two, for example if it asks for a photo of your ID. Your dashboard shows "Stripe is verifying your details" in the meantime, and payments switch on automatically when it's done.
When do I get paid?
Stripe pays out to your bank on its normal schedule, typically a couple of business days after a sale for US accounts. You can see and change your payout schedule in your Stripe dashboard.
Need it sooner? Stripe also offers instant payouts to an eligible debit card or bank account, usually arriving within minutes, for a small fee set by Stripe. Turn it on from your Stripe dashboard.
What about PayPal?
Readers can pay with cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Link at checkout, which covers almost everyone. If you already sell somewhere that takes PayPal (Payhip, Gumroad, your own store), you can still deliver through Listenkeep: send those orders in with a backer-style CSV list or our API, and your readers get the same listening link.
Who handles refunds and disputes?
You do, from your own Stripe dashboard, since you're the seller. When you refund a sale in full, Listenkeep switches off that reader's link automatically and gives back its fee.
Who handles sales tax?
You're the seller, so sales tax on your books is yours, as it would be on any store you run yourself. Stripe Tax can calculate and collect it for you if you switch it on in your Stripe account. If you're not sure what applies to you, ask an accountant.
Pricing and fees
What does Listenkeep cost?
- Founders special: $0 a month for 1 book. Listenkeep takes 2.5% of each sale through your book page. No sales, no cost.
- Plus: $10 a month for up to 3 books. Your first 25 sales each month are fee-free, then 2.5%.
- Unlimited: $30 a month for unlimited books and up to 5 pen names. First 25 sales a month fee-free, then 2.5%.
No per-hour, per-download or bandwidth fees, ever.
And Stripe's fee?
Stripe charges its standard card fee on each sale (2.9% + 30¢ for US cards at the time of writing), taken from the payment before it reaches you. That's the same fee you'd pay on any Stripe-powered store. On a $6.99 audiobook on the Founders plan, you'd keep about $6.32: Stripe's fee is about 50¢ and Listenkeep's about 17¢.
Do gift copies or Kickstarter backers cost anything?
Copies you deliver outside checkout (adding a reader by hand, importing a backer list, or using our API) never carry a Listenkeep fee. Founders includes 25 of those a month; Plus and Unlimited have no limit.
Can I leave?
Yes, anytime. Your Stripe account and your customers are yours. If Listenkeep ever shut down, every buyer would get their files and you'd get your full buyer list.
Your readers
Do readers need an app or an account?
No. They tap the link in their email and the book plays in their browser: speed control, sleep timer, chapters, lock-screen controls, and their place saved across devices.
Can they listen offline?
Yes. They can save chapters to their phone and listen with no signal, or download their own copy (an M4B with chapters and cover) to use in any audiobook app.
How do you stop sharing?
Each purchase works on up to 3 devices, and new devices are confirmed with a code emailed to the buyer. Downloaded copies carry the buyer's name. If a link looks shared across many networks, we let you know.
Your audiobook
What files can I upload?
One M4B with chapters, or one MP3 (or M4A) per chapter. We read chapter names from your files' title tags or file names, and you can rename and reorder them before publishing.
My audiobook is AI-narrated. Is that OK?
Yes. Digital narration is welcome and labeled honestly on your book page and in the player.
Any upload tips?
We stream at 64 kbps, so there's no need to upload studio masters: a 64–96 kbps file uploads several times faster and sounds the same to listeners. If your files live in OneDrive or Dropbox, copy them to your computer first.
Rights and policies
Do I need to own the rights?
Yes. You confirm that you own or control the audio rights when you add a book. Books that turn out not to be yours are taken down.
I'm in KDP Select. Can I sell my ebook here?
Ebook sales are coming soon. KDP Select doesn't allow selling the ebook elsewhere, so they'll stay off for KDP Select books. Audiobooks aren't affected. Check KDP's terms for your situation.
Ready when you are
Hear what your readers get, then join the waitlist for the pilot.