fbpx
skip to Main Content
8 Ebook Discovery Services Compared

8 Ebook Discovery Services Compared

EbookDiscovery_2400x1200

Free and discounted ebooks can be a powerful tool for increasing sales, but only if readers know about the deal.

That's where ebook discovery services come into play. These mailing lists can put your free or discounted books in front of tens of thousands of interested readers.

We've gathered the data on eight popular services so you can compare pricing, audience, and features to find the right platform for promoting your free and discounted books.

  1. The Criteria
  2. The Services
  3. Pricing and Value
  4. Conclusion

The Criteria

To be included in this comparison, a service must:

  • specialize in free or deeply discounted books
  • offer genre-specific pricing
  • maintain a median list size of at least 20,000 readers
  • disclose the number of subscribers for each genre

That last point is of critical importance: without knowing the number of impressions authors can expect their book to receive, there is no way of evaluating whether the service justifies the expense.


The Services

Freebooksy / Bargain Booksy
Logo: Freebooksy ebook discovery serviceLogo: Bargain Booksy ebook discovery service

Freebooksy and Bargain Booksy are sister sites. Freebooksy promotes permanently and temporarily free ebooks to their audience of over 230,000 readers, while Bargain Booksy promotes discounted titles to more than 170,000 subscribers. Deal of the Day features are available to distribute ads to a combined audience of Freebooksy and Bargain Booksy subscribers.

Freebooksy and Bargain Booksy recently lowered some of their fees, giving them a competitive edge in several genres.

Requirements: Books must be free for Freebooksy, and between $0.99 and $5.00 for Bargain Booksy. Professional writing, editing, and cover design are required. Amazon reviews are preferred. Deal of the Day ads must be Kindle Countdown deals or must be priced at $2.99, and must have a minimum of 20 4-star reviews on Amazon.

Strengths and Weaknesses: Attractive mailings with a limited number of books. Notification of acceptance usually happens within two days.

Best Categories: Bargain Booksy's nonfiction categories are great values, particularly the Cooking, Travel, General Nonfiction, and Self Help categories.

https://www.freebooksy.com
https://www.bargainbooksy.com

BookBub
Logo: BookBub ebook discovery service

BookBub is arguably the best-known service on the market, dominating the ebook discovery landscape with its huge subscriber base. BookBub owes some of this success to a substantial infusion of capital: $3.8 million in funding in 2014, plus another round of $7 million in 2015.

BookBub promotions have limited space and high demand: only 10-15% of BookBub applicants are accepted out of 200-300 submissions daily.

In addition to its genre-based mailings, the site offers distribution to a regional subset of its list, for either US distribution or international distribution (UK, Canada, India, and Australia). These options are available at a reduced price (approximately 82% of full price for US, 24% of full price for international), however, they may also reduce the chances of your promotion being selected.

Requirements: Books must be discounted by at least 50%. Discounts (other than permanently free) must be limited-time offers, and must be the best price available in the last 90 days. Short stories and novellas are not accepted. Eligible books must meet length requirements which vary by the book's type. Books will not be featured more than once every 6 months.

Strengths and Weaknesses: Massive subscriber base. Best median value for free books; ties with Fussy Librarian for $0.99 books. High demand and stringent quality standards mean low acceptance rates for applicants. BookBub's wider distribution comes with a high price tag in popular genres, and titles priced higher than $0.99 generally offer a lower return on investment.

Best Categories: Teen & Young Adult, New Adult Romance, Romantic Suspense, Crime Fiction, Action & Adventure.

Unique Categories: True Crime, Supernatural Suspense, Historical Mystery, New Adult Romance.

https://www.bookbub.com

BookSends
Logo: BookSends ebook discovery service

Formerly BookBlast, BookSends operates its own discovery service as well as providing lists to other services like EReaderIQ (profiled below).

BookSends has an unusual pricing model in that ads for $0.99 books are priced lower than ads for free books.

Requirements: Five reviews with a high average, sale price under $3.00, and discounted to at least 50% of full price. Novellas and collections of short stories are unlikely to be accepted as paid books.

Strengths and Weaknesses: Generally good reports of high downloads and sales. BookSends may ask applicants to reschedule rather than rejecting them for scheduling reasons. Authors can use affiliate links on free book promotions. High CPM (second only to EReaderIQ, a BookSends partner).

Best Categories: At the $0.99 price point, Children's Books, Teen/YA, and Mysteries/Thrillers are BookSends' best values.

http://booksends.com/

Fussy Librarian
Logo: Fussy Librarian ebook discovery service

Fussy Librarian launched in 2013 with the promise of recommendations tailored to the individual reader. Subscribers can choose from 11 nonfiction and 29 fiction categories; specify their preferred language (English, Spanish, Hindi, Portuguese, German, French, Japanese, Russian, or Italian); and can filter books by their level of profanity, violence, and sexual content.

Fussy Librarian has approximately 121,000 subscribers. Authors can promote their book to a second genre list at half price.

Requirements: Books must be $5.99 or less on the day of the promotion, and must have either 10-19 reviews with a 4.0 rating on Amazon (may be split across multiple stores), or 20+ reviews with a 3.5 rating. Only Amazon reviews are accepted.

Strengths and Weaknesses: Best median value for books priced over $0.99 and over. 50% discount when promoting in a second category. Content filters allow more precise targeting. Most approved books are notified within 24 hours.

Best Categories: Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Young Adult, Science Fiction, Mystery.

Unique Categories: Suspense, Mystery – Female Sleuths, Mystery – British Detective.

http://www.thefussylibrarian.com

Robin Reads
Logo: Robin Reads ebook discovery service

Robin Reads lists books which are free or $0.99 and sends out daily email bulletins to approximately 120,000 subscribers. (Although the site does not separate genres in its mailers, it does provide statistics for its readers' genre preferences. Price comparisons are based on these figures.)

Requirements: Books must be well-formatted ebooks priced at free or $0.99. No minimum length requirement, but full-length books are given priority over shorter works. Professional presentation. No minimum number of reviews required.

Strengths and Weaknesses: Same fee for free and $0.99 books. Comparatively poor CPM on smaller genre lists. Less attractive mailers.

Best Categories: Mystery, Romance, Thriller.

Unique Categories: Dystopia.

http://robinreads.com/

EReaderIQ
Logo: eReaderIQ ebook discovery service

EReaderIQ is an ebook tracking service which allows users to monitor authors, titles, or an Amazon wish list, and to receive notifications when the prices of their items change. They also maintain an ebook discovery service that combines its own lists with partner BookSends' database to reach more than 150,000 subscribers.

Requirements: Identical to BookSends. Five reviews with a high average, sale price under $3.00, and discounted to at least 50% of full price. Novellas and collections of short stories are unlikely to be accepted as paid books.

Strengths and Weaknesses: Charges less for books at the $0.99 price point. In general, EReaderIQ charges more than its partner BookSends, but the increase in the number of subscribers doesn't always match the increase in the fee.

Best Categories: Mysteries/Thrillers, Historical, Literary, and Action/Adventure.

http://www.ereaderiq.com/

BookGorilla
Logo: BookGorilla ebook discovery service

BookGorilla's categories are the most detailed on the market, offering a menu of more than 260 subcategories of fiction and nonfiction to its 350,000-member audience. Subscribers receive ebook listings tailored to their preferences.

Requirements: Books must be priced below $3.99. Books over $1.99 are a minority. Discounted prices are not a requirement. Books with less than a 4-star rating or fewer than 5 reviews on Amazon are likely to be rejected. Book ads may only run once in a 14-day period.

Strengths and Weaknesses: Extensive subcategories allow superior targeting of readers. Some genres offer poor CPM at higher price brackets.

Best Categories: Mystery, Thrillers, Crime Fiction.

Unique Categories: Numerous; BookGorilla's granular breakdown of categories provides a number of unique subgenres such as Vampire Romance, Steampunk, Arts & Photography, and Fantasy Anthologies.

http://www.bookgorilla.com/


Pricing and Value

For each genre below we have evaluated four price brackets — Free, $0.99, $1.99, and $2.99 or higher. Each tab lists the services from best to worst value, determined by the cost to reach 1,000 subscribers (CPM). The higher on the list an option is, the better its value.

Although most services assign a genre to your book, they may honor requests for a specific genre. Only genres which have comparable categories among two or more services are shown.

Prices, categories, and subscriber counts were gathered on May 24, 2016. Consult the companies' websites for the most recent details.

Mystery and Thriller

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianMysteries97,421$ 16.00$ 0.16
BookGorillaMysteries192,500$ 50.00$ 0.26
FreebooksyMystery157,600$ 85.00$ 0.54
Robin ReadsMystery64,500$ 40.00$ 0.62
EReaderIQMysteries/Thrillers98,000$ 100.00$ 1.02
BooksendsMysteries/Thrillers57,500$ 75.00$ 1.30

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianMysteries97,421$ 16.00$ 0.16
BookGorillaMysteries192,500$ 50.00$ 0.26
Bargain BooksyMystery124,700$ 50.00$ 0.40
Robin ReadsMystery64,500$ 40.00$ 0.62
EReaderIQMysteries/Thrillers98,000$ 80.00$ 0.82
BooksendsMysteries/Thrillers57,500$ 50.00$ 0.87

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianMysteries97,421$ 16.00$ 0.16
Bargain BooksyMystery124,700$ 50.00$ 0.40
BookGorillaMysteries192,500$ 100.00$ 0.52
EReaderIQMysteries/Thrillers98,000$ 120.00$ 1.22

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianMysteries97,421$ 16.00$ 0.16
Bargain BooksyMystery124,700$ 50.00$ 0.40
BookGorillaMysteries192,500$ 100.00$ 0.52
EReaderIQMysteries/Thrillers98,000$ 160.00$ 1.63

Although Fussy Librarian has a smaller reach, it offers a superior value in the general Mystery category, handily beating competitors across all price brackets.

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubCozy Mysteries3,340,000$ 455.00$ 0.14
Fussy LibrarianMystery-cozy44,486$ 14.00$ 0.31
FreebooksyCozy Mystery155,800$ 85.00$ 0.55

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubCozy Mysteries3,340,000$ 910.00$ 0.27
Fussy LibrarianMystery-cozy44,486$ 14.00$ 0.31
Bargain BooksyCozy Mystery123,900$ 50.00$ 0.40

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianMystery-cozy44,486$ 14.00$ 0.31
Bargain BooksyCozy Mystery123,900$ 50.00$ 0.40
BookBubCozy Mysteries3,340,000$ 1585.00$ 0.47

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianMystery-cozy44,486$ 14.00$ 0.31
Bargain BooksyCozy Mystery123,900$ 50.00$ 0.40
BookBubCozy Mysteries3,340,000$ 2275.00$ 0.68

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookGorillaPolice Procedurals178,500$ 50.00$ 0.28
Fussy LibrarianPolice procedural38,685$ 12.00$ 0.31

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookGorillaPolice Procedurals178,500$ 50.00$ 0.28
Fussy LibrarianPolice procedural38,685$ 12.00$ 0.31

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianPolice procedural38,685$ 12.00$ 0.31
BookGorillaPolice Procedurals178,500$ 100.00$ 0.56

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianPolice procedural38,685$ 12.00$ 0.31
BookGorillaPolice Procedurals178,500$ 100.00$ 0.56

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubCrime Fiction3,640,000$ 505.00$ 0.14
BookGorillaCrime Fiction185,500$ 50.00$ 0.27

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubCrime Fiction3,640,000$ 1010.00$ 0.28
BookGorillaCrime Fiction185,500$ 50.00$ 0.27

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubCrime Fiction3,640,000$ 1745.00$ 0.48
BookGorillaCrime Fiction185,500$ 100.00$ 0.54

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookGorillaCrime Fiction185,500$ 100.00$ 0.54
BookBubCrime Fiction3,640,000$ 2525.00$ 0.69

BookBub offers the superior value for free Crime Fiction promotions, but low acceptance rates and a steep price tag will put it out of reach of many authors. Although BookGorilla is not a solid value for free books, it matches Bookbub's value at the $0.99 price point and exceeds it at the $2.99 – $3.99 price range (the highest price BookGorilla will accept).

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubThrillers2,760,000$ 380.00$ 0.14
Fussy LibrarianThrillers96,109$ 16.00$ 0.17
BookGorillaThrillers185,500$ 50.00$ 0.27
FreebooksyThriller156,500$ 85.00$ 0.54
Robin ReadsThriller49,500$ 40.00$ 0.81

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianThrillers96,109$ 16.00$ 0.17
BookGorillaThrillers185,500$ 50.00$ 0.27
BookBubThrillers2,760,000$ 760.00$ 0.28
Bargain BooksyThriller124,200$ 50.00$ 0.40
Robin ReadsThriller49,500$ 40.00$ 0.81

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianThrillers96,109$ 16.00$ 0.17
Bargain BooksyThriller124,200$ 50.00$ 0.40
BookBubThrillers2,760,000$ 1300.00$ 0.47
BookGorillaThrillers185,500$ 100.00$ 0.54

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianThrillers96,109$ 16.00$ 0.17
Bargain BooksyThriller124,200$ 50.00$ 0.40
BookGorillaThrillers185,500$ 100.00$ 0.54
BookBubThrillers2,760,000$ 1900.00$ 0.69

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubAction and Adventure2,410,000$ 290.00$ 0.12
Fussy LibrarianAction-adventure26,072$ 10.00$ 0.38
BookGorillaAction and Adventure112,000$ 50.00$ 0.45
EReaderIQAction/Adventure59,000$ 75.00$ 1.27
BooksendsAction/Adventure35,000$ 50.00$ 1.43

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubAction and Adventure2,410,000$ 580.00$ 0.24
Fussy LibrarianAction-adventure26,072$ 10.00$ 0.38
BookGorillaAction and Adventure112,000$ 50.00$ 0.45
BooksendsAction/Adventure35,000$ 40.00$ 1.14
EReaderIQAction/Adventure59,000$ 70.00$ 1.19

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianAction-adventure26,072$ 10.00$ 0.38
BookBubAction and Adventure2,410,000$ 1000.00$ 0.41
BookGorillaAction and Adventure112,000$ 100.00$ 0.89
BooksendsAction/Adventure35,000$ 60.00$ 1.71
EReaderIQAction/Adventure59,000$ 105.00$ 1.78

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianAction-adventure26,072$ 10.00$ 0.38
BookBubAction and Adventure2,410,000$ 1450.00$ 0.60
BookGorillaAction and Adventure112,000$ 100.00$ 0.89
BooksendsAction/Adventure35,000$ 80.00$ 2.29
EReaderIQAction/Adventure59,000$ 140.00$ 2.37

Speculative Fiction

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianScience fiction109,513$ 16.00$ 0.15
BookBubScience Fiction1,790,000$ 300.00$ 0.17
BookGorillaAll Science Fiction70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57
FreebooksyScience Fiction65,400$ 70.00$ 1.07
Robin ReadsSciFi and Fantasy18,000$ 25.00$ 1.39
BooksendsScience Fiction24,000$ 50.00$ 2.08
EReaderIQScience Fiction29,000$ 75.00$ 2.59

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianScience fiction109,513$ 16.00$ 0.15
BookBubScience Fiction1,790,000$ 600.00$ 0.34
Bargain BooksyScience Fiction69,400$ 35.00$ 0.50
BookGorillaAll Science Fiction70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57
BooksendsScience Fiction24,000$ 25.00$ 1.04
EReaderIQScience Fiction29,000$ 35.00$ 1.21
Robin ReadsSciFi and Fantasy18,000$ 25.00$ 1.39

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianScience fiction109,513$ 16.00$ 0.15
Bargain BooksyScience Fiction69,400$ 35.00$ 0.50
BookBubScience Fiction1,790,000$ 1030.00$ 0.58
BookGorillaAll Science Fiction70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07
BooksendsScience Fiction24,000$ 35.00$ 1.46
EReaderIQScience Fiction29,000$ 50.00$ 1.72

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianScience fiction109,513$ 16.00$ 0.15
Bargain BooksyScience Fiction69,400$ 35.00$ 0.50
BookBubScience Fiction1,790,000$ 1500.00$ 0.84
BookGorillaAll Science Fiction70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07
BooksendsScience Fiction24,000$ 50.00$ 2.08
EReaderIQScience Fiction29,000$ 70.00$ 2.41

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubFantasy1,830,000$ 270.00$ 0.15
Fussy LibrarianGeneral fantasy32,168$ 12.00$ 0.37
BookGorillaFantasy80,500$ 40.00$ 0.50
FreebooksyFantasy / Paranormal104,500$ 100.00$ 0.96
Robin ReadsSciFi and Fantasy18,000$ 25.00$ 1.39
BooksendsFantasy26,000$ 50.00$ 1.92
EReaderIQFantasy35,000$ 75.00$ 2.14

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubFantasy1,830,000$ 540.00$ 0.30
Fussy LibrarianGeneral fantasy32,168$ 12.00$ 0.37
Bargain BooksyFantasy / Paranormal92,400$ 40.00$ 0.43
BookGorillaFantasy80,500$ 40.00$ 0.50
BooksendsFantasy26,000$ 25.00$ 0.96
EReaderIQFantasy35,000$ 35.00$ 1.00
Robin ReadsSciFi and Fantasy18,000$ 25.00$ 1.39

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianGeneral fantasy32,168$ 12.00$ 0.37
Bargain BooksyFantasy / Paranormal92,400$ 40.00$ 0.43
BookBubFantasy1,830,000$ 930.00$ 0.51
BookGorillaFantasy80,500$ 75.00$ 0.93
BooksendsFantasy26,000$ 35.00$ 1.35
EReaderIQFantasy35,000$ 50.00$ 1.43

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianGeneral fantasy32,168$ 12.00$ 0.37
Bargain BooksyFantasy / Paranormal92,400$ 40.00$ 0.43
BookBubFantasy1,830,000$ 1350.00$ 0.74
BookGorillaFantasy80,500$ 75.00$ 0.93
BooksendsFantasy26,000$ 50.00$ 1.92
EReaderIQFantasy35,000$ 70.00$ 2.00

In addition to the general Fantasy category, BookGorilla and Fussy Librarian offer Epic Fantasy and Urban Fantasy categories which may provide slightly better value.

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianFantasy-urban31,948$ 12.00$ 0.38
BookGorillaFantasy – Urban Fantasy91,000$ 40.00$ 0.44

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianFantasy-urban31,948$ 12.00$ 0.38
BookGorillaFantasy – Urban Fantasy91,000$ 40.00$ 0.44

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianFantasy-urban31,948$ 12.00$ 0.38
BookGorillaFantasy – Urban Fantasy91,000$ 75.00$ 0.82

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianFantasy-urban31,948$ 12.00$ 0.38
BookGorillaFantasy – Urban Fantasy91,000$ 75.00$ 0.82

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianFantasy-epic32,856$ 12.00$ 0.37
BookGorillaFantasy – Epic Fantasy91,000$ 40.00$ 0.44

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianFantasy-epic32,856$ 12.00$ 0.37
BookGorillaFantasy – Epic Fantasy91,000$ 40.00$ 0.44

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianFantasy-epic32,856$ 12.00$ 0.37
BookGorillaFantasy – Epic Fantasy91,000$ 75.00$ 0.82

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianFantasy-epic32,856$ 12.00$ 0.37
BookGorillaFantasy – Epic Fantasy91,000$ 75.00$ 0.82

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubHorror1,030,000$ 155.00$ 0.15
Fussy LibrarianHorror58,620$ 12.00$ 0.20
FreebooksyHorror52,000$ 40.00$ 0.77
BookGorillaAll Horror59,500$ 50.00$ 0.84
Robin ReadsHorror/Dystopia15,000$ 20.00$ 1.33
BooksendsHorror19,500$ 50.00$ 2.56
EReaderIQHorror22,000$ 75.00$ 3.41

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHorror58,620$ 12.00$ 0.20
BookBubHorror1,030,000$ 310.00$ 0.30
Bargain BooksyHorror51,300$ 25.00$ 0.49
BookGorillaAll Horror59,500$ 50.00$ 0.84
BooksendsHorror19,500$ 20.00$ 1.03
Robin ReadsHorror/Dystopia15,000$ 20.00$ 1.33
EReaderIQHorror22,000$ 30.00$ 1.36

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHorror58,620$ 12.00$ 0.20
Bargain BooksyHorror51,300$ 25.00$ 0.49
BookBubHorror1,030,000$ 535.00$ 0.52
BooksendsHorror19,500$ 30.00$ 1.54
BookGorillaAll Horror59,500$ 100.00$ 1.68
EReaderIQHorror22,000$ 45.00$ 2.05

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHorror58,620$ 12.00$ 0.20
Bargain BooksyHorror51,300$ 25.00$ 0.49
BookBubHorror1,030,000$ 775.00$ 0.75
BookGorillaAll Horror59,500$ 100.00$ 1.68
BooksendsHorror19,500$ 40.00$ 2.05
EReaderIQHorror22,000$ 60.00$ 2.73

Romance and Erotica

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookGorillaRomance101,500$ 50.00$ 0.49
FreebooksySweet Contemporary Romance140,600$ 100.00$ 0.71
Robin ReadsRomance53,000$ 40.00$ 0.75
EReaderIQRomance86,000$ 110.00$ 1.28
BooksendsRomance44,500$ 85.00$ 1.91

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookGorillaRomance101,500$ 50.00$ 0.49
Bargain BooksySweet Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
Robin ReadsRomance53,000$ 40.00$ 0.75
EReaderIQRomance86,000$ 90.00$ 1.05
BooksendsRomance44,500$ 60.00$ 1.35

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksySweet Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookGorillaRomance101,500$ 100.00$ 0.99
EReaderIQRomance86,000$ 135.00$ 1.57
BooksendsRomance44,500$ 90.00$ 2.02

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksySweet Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookGorillaRomance101,500$ 100.00$ 0.99
EReaderIQRomance86,000$ 180.00$ 2.09
BooksendsRomance44,500$ 120.00$ 2.70

In general Romance, BookGorilla offers a superior value for titles priced at $0.99 and below, while Bargain Booksy tops the $1.99 and over brackets. However, see Contemporary Romance and other subgenres below which may have a better CPM than the general category.

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubNew Adult Romance1,150,000$ 130.00$ 0.11
BookBubContemporary Romance2,290,000$ 365.00$ 0.16
Fussy LibrarianRomance-contemporary95,342$ 16.00$ 0.17
BookGorillaContemporary Romance126,000$ 50.00$ 0.40
FreebooksySweet Contemporary Romance140,600$ 100.00$ 0.71
FreebooksySteamy Contemporary Romance140,600$ 100.00$ 0.71

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-contemporary95,342$ 16.00$ 0.17
BookBubNew Adult Romance1,150,000$ 260.00$ 0.23
BookBubContemporary Romance2,290,000$ 730.00$ 0.32
BookGorillaContemporary Romance126,000$ 50.00$ 0.40
Bargain BooksySweet Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
Bargain BooksySteamy Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-contemporary95,342$ 16.00$ 0.17
BookBubNew Adult Romance1,150,000$ 450.00$ 0.39
BookBubContemporary Romance2,290,000$ 1285.00$ 0.56
Bargain BooksySweet Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
Bargain BooksySteamy Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookGorillaContemporary Romance126,000$ 100.00$ 0.79

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-contemporary95,342$ 16.00$ 0.17
BookBubNew Adult Romance1,150,000$ 650.00$ 0.57
Bargain BooksySweet Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
Bargain BooksySteamy Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookGorillaContemporary Romance126,000$ 100.00$ 0.79
BookBubContemporary Romance2,290,000$ 1825.00$ 0.80

BookBub's New Adult Romance category is an outstanding value for eligible books.

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubChick Lit650,000$ 105.00$ 0.16
Fussy LibrarianRomance comedy40,903$ 14.00$ 0.34

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubChick Lit650,000$ 210.00$ 0.32
Fussy LibrarianRomance comedy40,903$ 14.00$ 0.34

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance comedy40,903$ 14.00$ 0.34
BookBubChick Lit650,000$ 355.00$ 0.55

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance comedy40,903$ 14.00$ 0.34
BookBubChick Lit650,000$ 525.00$ 0.81

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubHistorical Romance1,600,000$ 300.00$ 0.19
Fussy LibrarianRomance-historical45,960$ 13.00$ 0.28
BookGorillaHistorical Romance122,500$ 50.00$ 0.41
FreebooksyHistorical Romance140,600$ 100.00$ 0.71

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-historical45,960$ 13.00$ 0.28
BookBubHistorical Romance1,600,000$ 600.00$ 0.38
BookGorillaHistorical Romance122,500$ 50.00$ 0.41

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-historical45,960$ 13.00$ 0.28
BookBubHistorical Romance1,600,000$ 1050.00$ 0.66
BookGorillaHistorical Romance122,500$ 100.00$ 0.82

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-historical45,960$ 13.00$ 0.28
BookGorillaHistorical Romance122,500$ 100.00$ 0.82
BookBubHistorical Romance1,600,000$ 1500.00$ 0.94

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-western37,204$ 12.00$ 0.32
BookGorillaRomance – Westerns101,500$ 50.00$ 0.49

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-western37,204$ 12.00$ 0.32
BookGorillaRomance – Westerns101,500$ 50.00$ 0.49

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-western37,204$ 12.00$ 0.32
BookGorillaRomance – Westerns101,500$ 100.00$ 0.99

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-western37,204$ 12.00$ 0.32
BookGorillaRomance – Westerns101,500$ 100.00$ 0.99

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubRomantic Suspense1,600,000$ 205.00$ 0.13
Fussy LibrarianRomance-suspense89,502$ 16.00$ 0.18
BookGorillaRomantic Suspense129,500$ 50.00$ 0.39
FreebooksyRomantic Suspense140,600$ 100.00$ 0.71

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-suspense89,502$ 16.00$ 0.18
BookBubRomantic Suspense1,600,000$ 410.00$ 0.26
BookGorillaRomantic Suspense129,500$ 50.00$ 0.39
Bargain BooksyRomantic Suspense116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-suspense89,502$ 16.00$ 0.18
BookBubRomantic Suspense1,600,000$ 715.00$ 0.45
Bargain BooksyRomantic Suspense116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookGorillaRomantic Suspense129,500$ 100.00$ 0.77

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-suspense89,502$ 16.00$ 0.18
Bargain BooksyRomantic Suspense116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookBubRomantic Suspense1,600,000$ 1025.00$ 0.64
BookGorillaRomantic Suspense129,500$ 100.00$ 0.77

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubParanormal Romance920,000$ 205.00$ 0.22
Fussy LibrarianRomance-paranormal39,908$ 14.00$ 0.35
BookGorillaParanormal Romance119,000$ 50.00$ 0.42
FreebooksyParanormal Romance140,600$ 100.00$ 0.71

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-paranormal39,908$ 14.00$ 0.35
BookGorillaParanormal Romance119,000$ 50.00$ 0.42
BookBubParanormal Romance920,000$ 410.00$ 0.45
Bargain BooksyParanormal Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-paranormal39,908$ 14.00$ 0.35
Bargain BooksyParanormal Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookBubParanormal Romance920,000$ 715.00$ 0.78
BookGorillaParanormal Romance119,000$ 100.00$ 0.84

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-paranormal39,908$ 14.00$ 0.35
Bargain BooksyParanormal Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookGorillaParanormal Romance119,000$ 100.00$ 0.84
BookBubParanormal Romance920,000$ 1025.00$ 1.11

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubTime Travel Romance200,000$ 80.00$ 0.40
BookGorillaRomance – Time Travel101,500$ 50.00$ 0.49

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubTime Travel Romance200,000$ 160.00$ 0.80
BookGorillaRomance – Time Travel101,500$ 50.00$ 0.49

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubTime Travel Romance200,000$ 280.00$ 1.40
BookGorillaRomance – Time Travel101,500$ 100.00$ 0.99

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookGorillaRomance – Time Travel101,500$ 100.00$ 0.99
BookBubTime Travel Romance200,000$ 400.00$ 2.00

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubErotic Romance1,150,000$ 340.00$ 0.30
BookBubDark Romance & Erotica296,000$ 90.00$ 0.30
Fussy LibrarianRomance-erotic40,269$ 14.00$ 0.35
BookGorillaAll Sex & Erotica77,000$ 40.00$ 0.52
FreebooksySteamy Contemporary Romance140,600$ 100.00$ 0.71
FreebooksyErotic Romance61,900$ 100.00$ 1.62
Robin ReadsSteamy Romance/Erotic21,000$ 40.00$ 1.90
BooksendsErotic Romance16,000$ 75.00$ 4.69
EReaderIQErotic Romance19,000$ 100.00$ 5.26

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-erotic40,269$ 14.00$ 0.35
BookGorillaAll Sex & Erotica77,000$ 40.00$ 0.52
BookBubErotic Romance1,150,000$ 680.00$ 0.59
Bargain BooksySteamy Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookBubDark Romance & Erotica296,000$ 180.00$ 0.61
Bargain BooksyErotic Romance46,800$ 70.00$ 1.50
Robin ReadsSteamy Romance/Erotic21,000$ 40.00$ 1.90
BooksendsErotic Romance16,000$ 40.00$ 2.50
EReaderIQErotic Romance19,000$ 70.00$ 3.68

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-erotic40,269$ 14.00$ 0.35
Bargain BooksySteamy Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookGorillaAll Sex & Erotica77,000$ 75.00$ 0.97
BookBubErotic Romance1,150,000$ 1180.00$ 1.03
BookBubDark Romance & Erotica296,000$ 310.00$ 1.05
Bargain BooksyErotic Romance46,800$ 70.00$ 1.50
BooksendsErotic Romance16,000$ 60.00$ 3.75
EReaderIQErotic Romance19,000$ 105.00$ 5.53

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianRomance-erotic40,269$ 14.00$ 0.35
Bargain BooksySteamy Contemporary Romance116,600$ 70.00$ 0.60
BookGorillaAll Sex & Erotica77,000$ 75.00$ 0.97
BookBubErotic Romance1,150,000$ 1700.00$ 1.48
Bargain BooksyErotic Romance46,800$ 70.00$ 1.50
BookBubDark Romance & Erotica296,000$ 450.00$ 1.52
BooksendsErotic Romance16,000$ 80.00$ 5.00
EReaderIQErotic Romance19,000$ 140.00$ 7.37

In the Erotic Romance category, BookSends and its partners disappoint with inflated pricing.

Historical Fiction

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHistorical fiction110,974$ 10.00$ 0.09
BookBubHistorical Fiction2,180,000$ 385.00$ 0.18
BookGorillaAll Historical Fiction115,500$ 50.00$ 0.43
EReaderIQHistorical60,000$ 75.00$ 1.25
BooksendsHistorical37,500$ 50.00$ 1.33

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHistorical fiction110,974$ 10.00$ 0.09
BookBubHistorical Fiction2,180,000$ 770.00$ 0.35
BookGorillaAll Historical Fiction115,500$ 50.00$ 0.43
BooksendsHistorical37,500$ 40.00$ 1.07
EReaderIQHistorical60,000$ 70.00$ 1.17

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHistorical fiction110,974$ 10.00$ 0.09
BookBubHistorical Fiction2,180,000$ 1335.00$ 0.61
BookGorillaAll Historical Fiction115,500$ 100.00$ 0.87
BooksendsHistorical37,500$ 60.00$ 1.60
EReaderIQHistorical60,000$ 105.00$ 1.75

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHistorical fiction110,974$ 10.00$ 0.09
BookGorillaAll Historical Fiction115,500$ 100.00$ 0.87
BookBubHistorical Fiction2,180,000$ 1925.00$ 0.88
BooksendsHistorical37,500$ 80.00$ 2.13
EReaderIQHistorical60,000$ 140.00$ 2.33

Historical Fiction represents Fussy Librarian's best bargain, and one of the best values across any genre, price, or service.

Literary Fiction

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianLiterary fiction110,242$ 15.00$ 0.14
BookBubLiterary Fiction1,630,000$ 250.00$ 0.15
BookGorillaContemporary Fiction & Literature – Literary Fiction101,500$ 40.00$ 0.39
FreebooksyLiterary Fiction74,500$ 60.00$ 0.81
EReaderIQLiterary38,000$ 50.00$ 1.32
BooksendsLiterary16,000$ 25.00$ 1.56

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianLiterary fiction110,242$ 15.00$ 0.14
BookBubLiterary Fiction1,630,000$ 500.00$ 0.31
BookGorillaContemporary Fiction & Literature – Literary Fiction101,500$ 40.00$ 0.39
Bargain BooksyLiterary Fiction78,800$ 35.00$ 0.44
EReaderIQLiterary38,000$ 30.00$ 0.79
BooksendsLiterary16,000$ 20.00$ 1.25

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianLiterary fiction110,242$ 15.00$ 0.14
Bargain BooksyLiterary Fiction78,800$ 35.00$ 0.44
BookBubLiterary Fiction1,630,000$ 870.00$ 0.53
BookGorillaContemporary Fiction & Literature – Literary Fiction101,500$ 75.00$ 0.74
EReaderIQLiterary38,000$ 45.00$ 1.18
BooksendsLiterary16,000$ 30.00$ 1.88

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianLiterary fiction110,242$ 15.00$ 0.14
Bargain BooksyLiterary Fiction78,800$ 35.00$ 0.44
BookGorillaContemporary Fiction & Literature – Literary Fiction101,500$ 75.00$ 0.74
BookBubLiterary Fiction1,630,000$ 1.00$ 0.77
EReaderIQLiterary38,000$ 60.00$ 1.58
BooksendsLiterary16,000$ 40.00$ 2.50

Memoir and Biography

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubBiographies and Memoirs2,350,000$ 385.00$ 0.16
Fussy LibrarianBiography/memoir80,381$ 14.00$ 0.17
BookGorillaBiographies & Memoirs – Memoirs94,500$ 40.00$ 0.42

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianBiography/memoir80,381$ 14.00$ 0.17
BookBubBiographies and Memoirs2,350,000$ 770.00$ 0.33
BookGorillaBiographies & Memoirs – Memoirs94,500$ 40.00$ 0.42

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianBiography/memoir80,381$ 14.00$ 0.17
BookBubBiographies and Memoirs2,350,000$ 1335.00$ 0.57
BookGorillaBiographies & Memoirs – Memoirs94,500$ 75.00$ 0.79

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianBiography/memoir80,381$ 14.00$ 0.17
BookGorillaBiographies & Memoirs – Memoirs94,500$ 75.00$ 0.79
BookBubBiographies and Memoirs2,350,000$ 1925.00$ 0.82

Specific Audience

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianWomen's fiction95,932$ 16.00$ 0.17
BookBubChick Lit650,000$ 105.00$ 0.16
BookBubWomen's Fiction1,750,000$ 310.00$ 0.18
BookGorillaWomen's Fiction108,500$ 50.00$ 0.46
BooksendsWomen's Fiction18,000$ 50.00$ 2.78
EReaderIQWomen's Fiction17,000$ 75.00$ 4.41

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianWomen's fiction95,932$ 16.00$ 0.17
BookBubChick Lit650,000$ 210.00$ 0.32
BookBubWomen's Fiction1,750,000$ 620.00$ 0.35
BookGorillaWomen's Fiction108,500$ 50.00$ 0.46
BooksendsWomen's Fiction18,000$ 20.00$ 1.11
EReaderIQWomen's Fiction17,000$ 30.00$ 1.76

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianWomen's fiction95,932$ 16.00$ 0.17
BookBubChick Lit650,000$ 355.00$ 0.55
BookBubWomen's Fiction1,750,000$ 1080.00$ 0.62
BookGorillaWomen's Fiction108,500$ 100.00$ 0.92
BooksendsWomen's Fiction18,000$ 30.00$ 1.67
EReaderIQWomen's Fiction17,000$ 45.00$ 2.65

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianWomen's fiction95,932$ 16.00$ 0.17
BookBubChick Lit650,000$ 525.00$ 0.81
BookBubWomen's Fiction1,750,000$ 1550.00$ 0.89
BookGorillaWomen's Fiction108,500$ 100.00$ 0.92
BooksendsWomen's Fiction18,000$ 40.00$ 2.22
EReaderIQWomen's Fiction17,000$ 60.00$ 3.53

Related categories may be found under the Romance heading.

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubLGBT235,000$ 90.00$ 0.38
Fussy LibrarianGay/lesbian22,965$ 10.00$ 0.44
BookGorillaAll LBGT – LGBT Fiction14,000$ 40.00$ 2.86

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianGay/lesbian22,965$ 10.00$ 0.44
BookBubLGBT235,000$ 180.00$ 0.77
BookGorillaAll LBGT – LGBT Fiction14,000$ 40.00$ 2.86

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianGay/lesbian22,965$ 10.00$ 0.44
BookBubLGBT235,000$ 310.00$ 1.32
BookGorillaAll LBGT – LGBT Fiction14,000$ 75.00$ 5.36

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianGay/lesbian22,965$ 10.00$ 0.44
BookBubLGBT235,000$ 450.00$ 1.91
BookGorillaAll LBGT – LGBT Fiction14,000$ 75.00$ 5.36

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubAfrican American Interest340,000$ 65.00$ 0.19
Fussy LibrarianAfrican-American / multicultural23,399$ 10.00$ 0.43

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubAfrican American Interest340,000$ 130.00$ 0.38
Fussy LibrarianAfrican-American / multicultural23,399$ 10.00$ 0.43

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianAfrican-American / multicultural23,399$ 10.00$ 0.43
BookBubAfrican American Interest340,000$ 225.00$ 0.66

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianAfrican-American / multicultural23,399$ 10.00$ 0.43
BookBubAfrican American Interest340,000$ 325.00$ 0.96

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubChildren's620,000$ 80.00$ 0.13
Fussy LibrarianChildren/middle grade51,400$ 10.00$ 0.19
BookGorillaAll Children's Lit – 4-8 Children45,500$ 40.00$ 0.88
BookGorillaAll Children's Lit – 9-12 Pre-Teen45,500$ 40.00$ 0.88
FreebooksyChildren31,900$ 40.00$ 1.25
BooksendsChildren's Books16,500$ 25.00$ 1.52
EReaderIQChildren's Books20,000$ 50.00$ 2.50

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianChildren/middle grade51,400$ 10.00$ 0.19
BookBubChildren's620,000$ 160.00$ 0.26
Bargain BooksyChildren44,800$ 25.00$ 0.56
BooksendsChildren's Books16,500$ 10.00$ 0.61
BookGorillaAll Children's Lit – 4-8 Children45,500$ 40.00$ 0.88
BookGorillaAll Children's Lit – 9-12 Pre-Teen45,500$ 40.00$ 0.88
EReaderIQChildren's Books20,000$ 20.00$ 1.00

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianChildren/middle grade51,400$ 10.00$ 0.19
BookBubChildren's620,000$ 270.00$ 0.44
Bargain BooksyChildren44,800$ 25.00$ 0.56
BooksendsChildren's Books16,500$ 15.00$ 0.91
EReaderIQChildren's Books20,000$ 30.00$ 1.50
BookGorillaAll Children's Lit – 4-8 Children45,500$ 75.00$ 1.65
BookGorillaAll Children's Lit – 9-12 Pre-Teen45,500$ 75.00$ 1.65

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianChildren/middle grade51,400$ 10.00$ 0.19
Bargain BooksyChildren44,800$ 25.00$ 0.56
BookBubChildren's620,000$ 400.00$ 0.65
BooksendsChildren's Books16,500$ 20.00$ 1.21
BookGorillaAll Children's Lit – 4-8 Children45,500$ 75.00$ 1.65
BookGorillaAll Children's Lit – 9-12 Pre-Teen45,500$ 75.00$ 1.65
EReaderIQChildren's Books20,000$ 40.00$ 2.00

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubTeen and Young Adult1,500,000$ 115.00$ 0.08
Fussy LibrarianYoung adult108,889$ 16.00$ 0.15
BookGorillaAll Teen Lit49,000$ 40.00$ 0.82
FreebooksyYoung Adult63,700$ 75.00$ 1.18
BooksendsTeen/YA21,500$ 50.00$ 2.33
EReaderIQTeen/YA22,000$ 75.00$ 3.41

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubTeen and Young Adult1,500,000$ 230.00$ 0.15
Fussy LibrarianYoung adult108,889$ 16.00$ 0.15
Bargain BooksyYoung Adult65,400$ 25.00$ 0.38
BookGorillaAll Teen Lit49,000$ 40.00$ 0.82
BooksendsTeen/YA21,500$ 20.00$ 0.93
EReaderIQTeen/YA22,000$ 30.00$ 1.36

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianYoung adult108,889$ 16.00$ 0.15
BookBubTeen and Young Adult1,500,000$ 395.00$ 0.26
Bargain BooksyYoung Adult65,400$ 25.00$ 0.38
BooksendsTeen/YA21,500$ 30.00$ 1.40
BookGorillaAll Teen Lit49,000$ 75.00$ 1.53
EReaderIQTeen/YA22,000$ 45.00$ 2.05

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianYoung adult108,889$ 16.00$ 0.15
BookBubTeen and Young Adult1,500,000$ 575.00$ 0.38
Bargain BooksyYoung Adult65,400$ 25.00$ 0.38
BookGorillaAll Teen Lit49,000$ 75.00$ 1.53
BooksendsTeen/YA21,500$ 40.00$ 1.86
EReaderIQTeen/YA22,000$ 60.00$ 2.73

BookBub's Teen and Young Adult category provides the best bargain for promoting free ebooks.

Humor

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubHumor500,000$ 90.00$ 0.18
Fussy LibrarianHumor56,028$ 12.00$ 0.21
BookGorillaHumor91,000$ 40.00$ 0.44

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHumor56,028$ 12.00$ 0.21
BookBubHumor500,000$ 180.00$ 0.36
BookGorillaHumor91,000$ 40.00$ 0.44

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHumor56,028$ 12.00$ 0.21
BookBubHumor500,000$ 310.00$ 0.62
BookGorillaHumor91,000$ 75.00$ 0.82

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHumor56,028$ 12.00$ 0.21
BookGorillaHumor91,000$ 75.00$ 0.82
BookBubHumor500,000$ 450.00$ 0.90

Religious and Spiritual

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianReligious fiction57,299$ 10.00$ 0.17
BookBubReligious and Inspirational1,290,000$ 280.00$ 0.22
Fussy LibrarianInspirational/devotional23,378$ 10.00$ 0.43
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To – Spiritual56,000$ 40.00$ 0.71
BookGorillaAll Religious Fiction52,500$ 50.00$ 0.95
FreebooksyReligion / Spirituality57,200$ 75.00$ 1.31
BooksendsChristian/Religious Fiction11,500$ 25.00$ 2.17
EReaderIQChristian/Religious Fiction21,000$ 50.00$ 2.38

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianReligious fiction57,299$ 10.00$ 0.17
BookBubReligious and Inspirational1,290,000$ 560.00$ 0.43
Bargain BooksyReligion / Spirituality58,400$ 25.00$ 0.43
Fussy LibrarianInspirational/devotional23,378$ 10.00$ 0.43
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To – Spiritual56,000$ 40.00$ 0.71
BookGorillaAll Religious Fiction52,500$ 50.00$ 0.95
BooksendsChristian/Religious Fiction11,500$ 15.00$ 1.30
EReaderIQChristian/Religious Fiction21,000$ 25.00$ 1.19

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianReligious fiction57,299$ 10.00$ 0.17
Bargain BooksyReligion / Spirituality58,400$ 25.00$ 0.43
Fussy LibrarianInspirational/devotional23,378$ 10.00$ 0.43
BookBubReligious and Inspirational1,290,000$ 980.00$ 0.76
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To – Spiritual56,000$ 75.00$ 1.34
BookGorillaAll Religious Fiction52,500$ 75.00$ 1.43
EReaderIQChristian/Religious Fiction21,000$ 35.00$ 1.67
BooksendsChristian/Religious Fiction11,500$ 20.00$ 1.74

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianReligious fiction57,299$ 10.00$ 0.17
Bargain BooksyReligion / Spirituality58,400$ 25.00$ 0.43
Fussy LibrarianInspirational/devotional23,378$ 10.00$ 0.43
BookBubReligious and Inspirational1,290,000$ 1400.00$ 1.09
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To – Spiritual56,000$ 75.00$ 1.34
BookGorillaAll Religious Fiction52,500$ 75.00$ 1.43
EReaderIQChristian/Religious Fiction21,000$ 50.00$ 2.38
BooksendsChristian/Religious Fiction11,500$ 30.00$ 2.61

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubChristian Fiction920,000$ 210.00$ 0.23
BookGorillaAll Religious Fiction – Christian52,500$ 50.00$ 0.95
BooksendsChristian/Religious Fiction11,500$ 25.00$ 2.17
EReaderIQChristian/Religious Fiction21,000$ 50.00$ 2.38

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubChristian Fiction920,000$ 420.00$ 0.46
BookGorillaAll Religious Fiction – Christian52,500$ 50.00$ 0.95
EReaderIQChristian/Religious Fiction21,000$ 25.00$ 1.19
BooksendsChristian/Religious Fiction11,500$ 15.00$ 1.30

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubChristian Fiction920,000$ 740.00$ 0.80
BookGorillaAll Religious Fiction – Christian52,500$ 75.00$ 1.43
EReaderIQChristian/Religious Fiction21,000$ 35.00$ 1.67
BooksendsChristian/Religious Fiction11,500$ 20.00$ 1.74

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubChristian Fiction920,000$ 1050.00$ 1.14
BookGorillaAll Religious Fiction – Christian52,500$ 75.00$ 1.43
EReaderIQChristian/Religious Fiction21,000$ 50.00$ 2.38
BooksendsChristian/Religious Fiction11,500$ 30.00$ 2.61

Nonfiction

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubGeneral Nonfiction1,550,000$ 265.00$ 0.17
Fussy LibrarianGeneral nonfiction22,512$ 10.00$ 0.44
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57
FreebooksyGeneral Nonfiction78,100$ 75.00$ 0.96
Robin ReadsNonfiction34,000$ 40.00$ 1.18
EReaderIQNonfiction52,000$ 100.00$ 1.92
BooksendsNonfiction30,500$ 75.00$ 2.46

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksyGeneral Nonfiction78,400$ 25.00$ 0.32
BookBubGeneral Nonfiction1,550,000$ 530.00$ 0.34
Fussy LibrarianGeneral nonfiction22,512$ 10.00$ 0.44
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57
Robin ReadsNonfiction34,000$ 40.00$ 1.18
BooksendsNonfiction30,500$ 40.00$ 1.31
EReaderIQNonfiction52,000$ 70.00$ 1.35

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksyGeneral Nonfiction78,400$ 25.00$ 0.32
Fussy LibrarianGeneral nonfiction22,512$ 10.00$ 0.44
BookBubGeneral Nonfiction1,550,000$ 915.00$ 0.59
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07
BooksendsNonfiction30,500$ 60.00$ 1.97
EReaderIQNonfiction52,000$ 105.00$ 2.02

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksyGeneral Nonfiction78,400$ 25.00$ 0.32
Fussy LibrarianGeneral nonfiction22,512$ 10.00$ 0.44
BookBubGeneral Nonfiction1,550,000$ 1325.00$ 0.85
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07
BooksendsNonfiction30,500$ 80.00$ 2.62
EReaderIQNonfiction52,000$ 140.00$ 2.69

Bargain Booksy takes the prize for General Nonfiction at prices of $0.99 and above.

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubCooking1,630,000$ 370.00$ 0.23
Fussy LibrarianCooking and food25,689$ 10.00$ 0.39
BookGorillaAll Cookbooks, Food & Wine – Quick & Easy Cooking91,000$ 40.00$ 0.44
FreebooksyCookbooks and Nutrition77,100$ 75.00$ 0.97

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksyCookbooks and Nutrition77,800$ 25.00$ 0.32
Fussy LibrarianCooking and food25,689$ 10.00$ 0.39
BookGorillaAll Cookbooks, Food & Wine – Quick & Easy Cooking91,000$ 40.00$ 0.44
BookBubCooking1,630,000$ 740.00$ 0.45

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksyCookbooks and Nutrition77,800$ 25.00$ 0.32
Fussy LibrarianCooking and food25,689$ 10.00$ 0.39
BookBubCooking1,630,000$ 1290.00$ 0.79
BookGorillaAll Cookbooks, Food & Wine – Quick & Easy Cooking91,000$ 75.00$ 0.82

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksyCookbooks and Nutrition77,800$ 25.00$ 0.32
Fussy LibrarianCooking and food25,689$ 10.00$ 0.39
BookGorillaAll Cookbooks, Food & Wine – Quick & Easy Cooking91,000$ 75.00$ 0.82
BookBubCooking1,630,000$ 1850.00$ 1.13

Bargain Booksy takes the prize again for paid books in Cooking, edging out Fussy Librarian.

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHealth and diet23,421$ 10.00$ 0.43
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To – Health, Fitness & Dieting70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHealth and diet23,421$ 10.00$ 0.43
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To – Health, Fitness & Dieting70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHealth and diet23,421$ 10.00$ 0.43
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To – Health, Fitness & Dieting70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHealth and diet23,421$ 10.00$ 0.43
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To – Health, Fitness & Dieting70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Travel77,000$ 40.00$ 0.52
FreebooksyTravel61,100$ 40.00$ 0.65

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksyTravel61,131$ 25.00$ 0.41
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Travel77,000$ 40.00$ 0.52

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksyTravel61,131$ 25.00$ 0.41
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Travel77,000$ 75.00$ 0.97

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksyTravel61,131$ 25.00$ 0.41
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Travel77,000$ 75.00$ 0.97

Travel is another of Bargain Booksy's strengths.

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubAdvice and How-To1,420,000$ 315.00$ 0.22
Fussy LibrarianHow-to23,907$ 10.00$ 0.42
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To56,000$ 40.00$ 0.71
FreebooksySelf Help and How To76,100$ 60.00$ 0.79

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksySelf Help and How To77,300$ 25.00$ 0.32
Fussy LibrarianHow-to23,907$ 10.00$ 0.42
BookBubAdvice and How-To1,420,000$ 630.00$ 0.44
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To56,000$ 40.00$ 0.71

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksySelf Help and How To77,300$ 25.00$ 0.32
Fussy LibrarianHow-to23,907$ 10.00$ 0.42
BookBubAdvice and How-To1,420,000$ 1085.00$ 0.76
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To56,000$ 75.00$ 1.34

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Bargain BooksySelf Help and How To77,300$ 25.00$ 0.32
Fussy LibrarianHow-to23,907$ 10.00$ 0.42
BookBubAdvice and How-To1,420,000$ 1575.00$ 1.11
BookGorillaAll Advice and How-To56,000$ 75.00$ 1.34

Once again, Bargain Booksy shows its dominance in nonfiction categories, while Freebooksy falls far short of its paid sibling's performance.

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubBusiness440,000$ 125.00$ 0.28
Fussy LibrarianBusiness21,017$ 10.00$ 0.48
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Business & Investing70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianBusiness21,017$ 10.00$ 0.48
BookBubBusiness440,000$ 250.00$ 0.57
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Business & Investing70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianBusiness21,017$ 10.00$ 0.48
BookBubBusiness440,000$ 425.00$ 0.97
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Business & Investing70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianBusiness21,017$ 10.00$ 0.48
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Business & Investing70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07
BookBubBusiness440,000$ 625.00$ 1.42

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubParenting370,000$ 90.00$ 0.24
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Parenting & Relationships70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubParenting370,000$ 180.00$ 0.49
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Parenting & Relationships70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubParenting370,000$ 300.00$ 0.81
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Parenting & Relationships70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Parenting & Relationships70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07
BookBubParenting370,000$ 450.00$ 1.22

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianScience22,193$ 10.00$ 0.45
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Science77,000$ 40.00$ 0.52

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianScience22,193$ 10.00$ 0.45
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Science77,000$ 40.00$ 0.52

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianScience22,193$ 10.00$ 0.45
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Science77,000$ 75.00$ 0.97

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianScience22,193$ 10.00$ 0.45
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Science77,000$ 75.00$ 0.97

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianTech21,265$ 10.00$ 0.47
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Computers & Technology77,000$ 40.00$ 0.52

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianTech21,265$ 10.00$ 0.47
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Computers & Technology77,000$ 40.00$ 0.52

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianTech21,265$ 10.00$ 0.47
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Computers & Technology77,000$ 75.00$ 0.97

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianTech21,265$ 10.00$ 0.47
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – Computers & Technology77,000$ 75.00$ 0.97

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianSports20,056$ 10.00$ 0.50
BookGorillaAll Sports & Outdoors14,000$ 40.00$ 2.86

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianSports20,056$ 10.00$ 0.50
BookGorillaAll Sports & Outdoors14,000$ 40.00$ 2.86

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianSports20,056$ 10.00$ 0.50
BookGorillaAll Sports & Outdoors14,000$ 75.00$ 5.36

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianSports20,056$ 10.00$ 0.50
BookGorillaAll Sports & Outdoors14,000$ 75.00$ 5.36

Fussy Librarian is the clear winner in this category, as Book Gorilla weighs in at 5 to 10 times the cost of Fussy Librarian's CPM.

Free Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubHistory1,620,000$ 265.00$ 0.16
Fussy LibrarianHistory24,721$ 10.00$ 0.40
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – History70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57

$0.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
BookBubHistory1,620,000$ 530.00$ 0.33
Fussy LibrarianHistory24,721$ 10.00$ 0.40
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – History70,000$ 40.00$ 0.57

$1.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHistory24,721$ 10.00$ 0.40
BookBubHistory1,620,000$ 915.00$ 0.56
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – History70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07

$2.99 Books

ServiceCategoryReachCostCPM
Fussy LibrarianHistory24,721$ 10.00$ 0.40
BookBubHistory1,620,000$ 1325.00$ 0.82
BookGorillaAll Nonfiction – History70,000$ 75.00$ 1.07


Conclusion

For free books, BookBub remains the gold standard for ebook discovery services. Its gargantuan membership places it in a weight class of its own, and it is arguably the most popular of the services in our roster. That popularity also makes it one of the most difficult service to enter; high demand and increasing interest from traditional publishers leads to heavy competition for relatively few slots. But if the steep price tag is within your means and you can secure a spot in their schedule, BookBub offers a solid return on your investment.

For paid books (particular books priced at $2.99 and over), the clear champion is The Fussy Librarian. Fussy Librarian has a much smaller membership, but its correspondingly lower fees do not vary with the price of the book. With superior CPM for higher-priced books and the best CPM across nearly every fiction category, Fussy Librarian presents an outstanding value for a surprisingly low price.

Bargain Booksy ranks moderately well in fiction genres, particularly in the higher price brackets. However, Bargain Booksy really shines in nonfiction categories, where it sits at the top of most rankings. Freebooksy does not fare quite as well as its sister site, generally resting in the lower half of its genres. The popular categories of Mystery, Cozy Mystery, and Thrillers are a notable exception.

Book Gorilla performs erratically overall, offering moderate value in most categories, and bafflingly uncompetitive pricing in others. Book Gorilla is a good investment in categories like Mystery and Thriller, but compare pricing and consider alternative subgenres to obtain the best value.

Robin Reads represents fair-to-poor value in its categories, with the median cost per thousand impressions weighing in at over $1.00. Robin Reads' best category is Mystery, placing 4th out of the 6 companies represented in that genre.

BookSends / EReaderIQ are listed jointly here, as their shared membership and uniformly high price consistently place last in the rankings — sometimes with a CPM as much as 10 times higher than the closest competitor. Without exception, there are more cost-effective options for promoting your books.


Over To You

Which of these companies have you used to promote your books? What other ebook discovery services have you had success with? Let us know in the comments below.

Related Posts

Which ebook discovery services offer the best value for an #IndieAuthor? — @JohnDoppler Click To Tweet

Author: John Doppler

From the sunny California beaches where he washed ashore in 2008, John Doppler scrawls tales of science fiction, urban fantasy, and horror -- and investigates self-publishing services as the Alliance of Independent Authors's Watchdog. John relishes helping authors turn new opportunities into their bread and butter and offers terrific resources for indie authors at Words on Words. He shares his lifelong passion for all things weird and wonderful on The John Doppler Effect.

Share

This Post Has 47 Comments
  1. Hello,
    Great list, thank you for the collection!
    I personally think that majority of these services are email based, and their website is just for collecting readers’ emails. Only a few of them are offering unique content to real readers, or at least a quality landing page.

  2. I would like to invite all authors to try our service – Goodkindles.net

    In the past we promoted many books with great success, and we cooperate on a regular basis with some well-known authors, publishers and book promoters. Thank you!

  3. Useful guide, but inevitably hugely out of date now. (Not really a criticism as we could hardly expect it to be exactly the same two years on)
    Nevertheless, I will be making use of some of the information given.

  4. Robin Reads 120,000?… why does their facebook ad today July 9 2017 say “Join 60,000 readers who read FREE Best Sellers each day”. Are the numbers above including facebook likes and twitter followers?

  5. John, thank you for putting in the work to help authors learn more about the promotions sites we use. I find this information valuable and will be taking it into consideration when I schedule my next promotion. Again, thank you.

  6. Thank you sir, this is a well-prepared and helpful article, especially for struggling writers of independent press. I will share it my brother who is who is working on his first book, and give the link to others.

  7. Wow, John. I’m blown away from the work you put into this. Thank you so much! Learned a lot from this and also from replies. I will definitely share on my writer’s blog. Only thing I need is a definition of CPM. Thanks!
    Christine

    1. Cost per thousand (CPM) is a marketing term used to denote the price of 1,000 advertisement impressions on one webpage. If a website publisher charges $2.00 CPM, that means an advertiser must pay $2.00 for every 1,000 impressions of its ad. The “M” in CPM represents the Roman numeral for 1,000.

  8. Hi John, thanks for taking the time and effort to assemble your list. I think there might be a couple of things you would be interested to know or that you’re not properly considering when evaluating our site. First of all, BookSends and EreaderIQ do not have any reader overlap. Unlike most other sites, we regularly prune our lists so that we’re giving authors a strong representation of our *active* subscribership. After all, subscribers who never open emails are worthless to authors. The entire concept of eCPM is a poor metric for authors to use in this regard. What matters is how many people actually open an email and take action on books, not how many people signed up for a list, clicked Spam 6 months ago, and are still being presented to authors as viable targets of the mailings. If I had a list of just 100 readers who would buy one book every day at $2.99, charging $75 for that list might have a horrible eCPM but I’m pretty sure every author would feel it was worthwhile. At BookSends, we try to give authors a better idea of how many readers their book will actually be exposed to. Thanks!

    1. The ability for authors to use affiliate codes (in a way compliant with Amazon TOS as all clicks are routed through websites) also deserves much more attention. We see authors earn over $200 from just one inclusion of their affiliate code in an ad, and many see at least half the ad cost back from affiliate earnings, if not the entire thing. That’s why authors earn more from free promotions with us than any other site. We think outside the box when it comes to increasing returns for authors, and we’re glad so many appreciate that and keep coming back and back.

  9. John, This is so helpful and informative! My novel (women’s fiction) will be released next week through Kindle Press and I am headed over to the Fussy Librarian! Thank you for taking the time to compile all this info and share it so generously!

  10. Thank you, John Doppler. I loved the stats you provided. One item I’d refer to is BookSends allowing authors to use their affiliate codes on their books. And now on both free and priced units. But Amazon told me last week in an online chat that using affiliate codes on any book in a newsletter/email promo is against their TOS. As for all of the other data, I’ve always had an ROI on Bookbub promotions. I often have not seen the ROI I’d anticipated on the other seven. Now, because of your brilliant deductions, I know why. Sweet romance is not among many promoter’s top tier audience today–very good data to keep in mind when stacking promotions. I’m also curious why Michael Gallagher’s fkbt did not make your list for comparison.

    1. Thank you, Jackie!

      It is against Amazon’s terms to use an affiliate code directly in an email (or any form that’s not attributable to a website, such as shortlinks, QR codes, and printed material like bookmarks or flyers).

      However, it is legal to provide a link to a website, and from there, redirect the user to the Amazon page with an affiliate code. This is the technique BookBub now uses to get around the prohibition on emailed links.

      That rule has tripped up a number of email-based services this year.

      Regarding Free Kindle Book and Tips, Michael let me know that they don’t track stats for individual genres, so there wasn’t a basis for a fair comparison in this case.

  11. Thank you for a very useful post. My experience with Robin Reads has been more positive than yours. I sell enough books to break even and sometimes more. I can’t say the same for Bargain Booksy.

  12. John,

    This list is useful, but email one-off promotions are only one segment of book discovery. Perhaps the title of this piece might be “8 Email Ebook Discovery Services” instead, to be more accurate?

    BooksGoSocial.com, which I founded three years ago, provides its main reach through social media, Twitter & Facebook, to enable discovery over the long term, to over 709,193 followers.

    The idea that email is the only discovery option for authors is simply incorrect. There are other social media services as well as BooksGoSocial providing social media discovery services.

    Secondly, short term one-off book promotion spikes are useful and can have a tailing effect, but in our view a longer term daily increase in sales, moving an author from average sales of one book a day to average sales of ten books a day, for instance, will have a greater sustained impact on author earnings.

    Well presented, well priced books in popular genres can achieve email driven spikes in sales, and be supported with longer term social discovery services, reducing the need for authors to spend valuable time sustaining their social media presence.

    Sustained increased sales, through low priced, long term social book discovery, is a real alternative to the services you describe.

    We are, in fact, so confident of our ability to help authors, we offer a 60 day money back guarantee. If a book fails to sell at any of the email book discovery services you reviewed the author is unlikely to even get a reply if they ask for their money back.

    Herding authors towards one off promotions with no money back guarantee is a limited approach to ebook discovery.

    1. Thank you, Laurence!

      “8 Email-Based Genre-Specific Ebook Discovery Services Compared” was a bit too wordy for a title, but it certainly wasn’t my intention to imply that email was the only option — it’s just the focus of this particular analysis.

      Data for other channels such as apps, websites, social media, etc., is harder to come by, and makes for a trickier comparison, but that project is on my To Do list.

  13. Jeez, that’s amazing John. Thanks for this.

    Whenever you update I’d be curious to hear your take on KND Highlighter and BK Knights – which for a book promotion service operating out of FIverr, seems to be considered quite highly.

    1. Thanks, Mark! Neither of those services qualified for this comparison, but I’ve heard positive reviews from clients of both services. I plan to take a closer look at both.

      I’ll have to say that BK Knights’ Fiverr-based service is definitely one of the more unusual ones out there! It makes me curious why they haven’t made the transition to a business with a more solid web presence.

  14. Thanks so much for taking the time to gather the info, break it down into categories, and share all of it with writers. I could not ask for a better comparison. Now, to pick the one that is right for me!
    : )

  15. Many thanks for a great post, John – and good to see stats for children in here. I will try to break into BookBub again on the basis of this – especially now my books are on all platforms again. Very useful.

    One thing I’m not clear on in the early part is when you talk about the number of Amazon reviews needed. Does this mean across both UK and USA? For example, I have 43 reviews for The Secret Lake in the UK but only 15 in the USA. And (more problematically) 16 for Eeek! in the UK but only something like 4 in the USA. If sites like BookBub only take account of US reviews then raising the profile in the USA of a book that has had a good number of 5-Star reviews in the UK becomes problematic… I know you did specify one site that counts reviews across more than one Amazon store, but does that mean that by default where you don’t mention this that site is only looking at US reviews?

    Thanks again…

    Karen

    1. Great question, Karen! Most of the services default to counting US Amazon reviews, but if you mention that the majority of your reviews are in the UK, I’m sure they’ll take that into consideration.

  16. Brilliant Article John … so great to see that my niche (non fiction travel) get a mention and interested to see that Travel is one of Bargain Booksy’s strengths. Invaluable!

  17. This was very helpful, particularly in giving the comparisons for the specific genres and sub-genres. So often we are left to go by the anecdotal evidence of other authors which can be helpful. But unless our books are identical in market, its hard to judge whether or not that site will work for us since milage varies so much. 🙂

    Thanks again,

    M. Louisa

  18. Staggered that Ereader News Today didn’t rate a mention. Outside of BookBub it leaves anything else for dead both in cost and coverage. I’ve used both and the ENT cost per download is significantly less than BB’s. You get more downloads with BB but ENT is far better value.
    Still pinching myself that ENT didn’t rate a mention. Its email subscriber list would probably exceed the aggregate of all other sites mentioned above (excluding BB).

    1. Hi Peter,
      Unfortunately, ENT does not post their statistics, and they did not respond to requests before the article was published. Without that information we cannot make a fair comparison to the other services.

      If they provide that information (and I hope they do), I’ll be happy to include them in the next iteration of this article.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Latest advice, news, ratings, tools and trends.

Back To Top
×Close search
Search
Loading...