Where to listen

A finished book is yours. The Listen view exports it as a single M4B with chapter marks and cover art, or as per-chapter MP3s — tagged with title, author and cover, ready to file. Both exports are free for every book, and both are ordinary audio files: any player you already use will take them. The six below are the ones we test against, with the practical route into each.

Audiobookshelf

Open-source library server — your books, your server. Self-hosted, with iOS, Android and web clients that stream from it and keep your place across devices.

Getting your book in: Audiobookshelf treats each subfolder of its library root as one book. Export per-chapter MP3s into a folder under that root; the book appears after the server’s next library scan.

BookPlayer

A lightweight, well-mannered audiobook player for iOS.

Getting your book in: import a folder per book through the Files app, or AirDrop it from a Mac. The exported MP3s arrive tagged with title, author and cover art, ready to import.

Smart AudioBook Player

The Android default for sideloaded audiobooks: folder-per-book library, 0.5×–4× speed, automatic bookmarking, a sleep timer.

Getting your book in: point it at a books directory and drop the exported folder there. A sync folder (Syncthing or similar) between your machine and the phone makes new chapters appear on their own.

Apple Books

The native Apple library, on iPhone, iPad and Mac.

Getting your book in: drop the M4B into Books. Your listening position syncs across devices via iCloud.

PocketBook

The e-reader maker’s own audiobook app — Android, iOS, and PocketBook e-readers with audio support.

Getting your book in: side-load the M4B into the PocketBook Reader app. Chapter markers and cover art are honoured.

Voice

An open-source Android audiobook player (GPLv3, on F-Droid and the Play Store): folder-based library, per-book resume, custom bookmarks, Android Auto.

Getting your book in: drop the chaptered M4B into the folder Voice watches; it appears on the next scan.

The companion app

At launch, the Cast Pass includes Castwright’s own companion app for iOS and Android. It pairs your phone to Castwright with one QR code; your library — covers, chapters, the lot — syncs over your own Wi-Fi, and nothing touches a cloud. Download a book and it plays offline, with chapter marks, playback speed, auto-advance, and your listening place kept in sync. Until then, the exports above are the way onto your phone — and they remain so after; the companion app is a convenience, not a gate.