Audiobook Narrators: Rates, Pay and How to Become One

The short answer

Narrators are paid per finished hour (PFH) of audio. ACX’s benchmark is about $200 PFH for narration and another $200 for post-production, and an ACX offer needs at least $250 PFH to qualify for SAG-AFTRA health and retirement contributions.^1,3 Each finished hour takes about 6.2 hours of work: 2 recording, 3 editing and 1.2 checking.⁴

ACX benchmark, narration: ≈ $200 PFH
Retail-ready audio: $300–400 PFH
SAG-AFTRA H&R on ACX: $250+ PFH
Work per finished hour: ≈ 6.2 h

How narrators are paid

Audiobook narration is paid per finished hour: for every hour of the final audiobook, not per hour in the studio.⁸ On ACX there are three ways to be paid:⁵

Pay for Production: a one-time fee per finished hour, paid by the rights holder when you deliver.
Royalty Share: no fee; a quarter of each sale’s royalty (under Audible’s new model) for seven years.
Royalty Share Plus: a smaller fee per finished hour plus the same royalty share.

ACX says rates vary with experience, recording and editing time, script preparation, post-production, equipment costs and how complex the book is.² See ACX royalty share explained for how the royalty deals work.

What rates look like

ACX’s own benchmark, published in 2013 and still on its blog: “roughly $200 PFH for narration and another $200 PFH for the post production work (editing, QC, mixing and mastering)”, so a rate of $300 to $400 PFH for retail-ready audio makes sense once you count the work involved.¹ The only current official floor we found is ACX’s threshold for SAG-AFTRA contributions: at least $250 PFH for Pay for Production, or $100 PFH for Royalty Share Plus.³ SAG-AFTRA doesn’t publish a single audiobook rate sheet; its publisher agreements set their own minimums.⁹

What a rate means per hour of work

A finished hour is not an hour of work. ACX estimates a new narrator spends about 2 hours recording, 3 editing and 1.2 checking each finished hour, 6.2 hours in all.⁴ If you do all of it yourself, divide the rate by 6.2 to see what you earn per working hour.

US dollars per working hour

Rate per finished hour
ACX’s SAG-AFTRA threshold ($250)

Pay per working hour at common PFH rates, when the narrator records, edits and checks the book.Rate ÷ 6.2 hours of work per finished hour (ACX’s estimate). Before equipment, software and tax. Hover a bar for a 10-hour book.

Faster editing, or hiring an editor, changes the picture: a narrator who records 2 hours per finished hour and pays someone else to edit spends far less of their own time per finished hour.

Narrator Cost CalculatorTurn a word count or finished length into the cost of narration at any rate, with the production time. Free · runs in your browser · nothing uploadedWork out a cost

SAG-AFTRA and union work

Contributions on ACX are taken out of the rate: 12.281% of the base rate goes to the AFTRA Health and Retirement Fund (equal to 14% of the net). On $100, $12.28 goes to the fund and $87.72 to you, before tax and the paymaster’s fee. On a 25% royalty share, 3.07% goes to the fund and 21.93% to you.³
Non-members can accept qualifying ACX projects under SAG-AFTRA terms.³
Joining: audiobook narration is principal work, so being paid for one union audiobook makes you eligible; non-union work doesn’t count.¹⁰
Deliverables: for union publisher work, “it is standard for audiobook employers to expect ‘punch and roll’ WAV files”, and a fully mastered book should be paid extra.⁹
Finding work: SAG-AFTRA can give members a list of companies with union agreements, and points to AudioFile Magazine and the Audio Publishers Association; it notes narrators largely work from home studios.¹¹

How to become an audiobook narrator

ACX is the most direct way in: it is open to individuals and companies in the US, UK, Canada and Ireland with a local address, taxpayer ID and bank account.⁶ Its steps are: create a profile, upload samples, choose how you’d like to be paid, audition, review offers and start recording.⁶

Build a quiet place to record
ACX says you need “a dedicated space to record, master, and edit your audio”. Measure the noise floor before you buy anything else.
Get the gear
A cardioid microphone (condenser in a quiet space, dynamic in a less ideal one), an audio interface, closed-back wired headphones and an editor that supports punch-and-roll.
Record samples
Record short, finished excerpts that show your range, from public-domain books if you have no audiobook credits yet. ACX suggests 5 to 10.
Create your ACX profile
Choose the Narrator or Studio role, upload samples tagged with accent and vocal style, and say how you want to be paid.
Audition
Find titles that fit your voice, record the audition script, upload it with a note about your rate and availability.
Deliver to spec
Produce every chapter to ACX’s audio requirements, and allow for up to two rounds of revisions from the rights holder.

Samples: at least one sample tagged with accent and vocal information makes your profile findable; ACX recommends 5 to 10, and suggests public-domain books if you have no audiobook work yet.⁷
Equipment: ACX recommends a cardioid microphone and says a laptop microphone or gaming headset “just won’t cut it”.¹⁴ See recording at home.
Delivery: on ACX, “you’re responsible for delivering ready-to-sell audio”; new narrators can partner with an engineer. Rights holders can ask for up to two rounds of revisions.⁴
Other marketplaces: Author’s Republic runs a self-service narrator marketplace.¹³

Narration RecorderRecord in your browser with punch-and-roll and live ACX meters, to practise or to make your first samples. Free · runs in your browser · nothing uploadedStart recording

Two narrators: dual and duet

Dual narration “pairs two narrators who trade off by chapter or point of view”; duet narration has both voicing their characters throughout, often alternating in dialogue. ACX contracts support one rights holder and one producer, so the second narrator is usually hired by the first or contracted outside ACX.¹²

Everything else, answered.

How much do audiobook narrators charge?

Narrators charge per finished hour (PFH) of audio. ACX’s long-standing benchmark is about $200 PFH for narration plus about $200 PFH for editing, mixing and mastering, so $300 to $400 PFH for retail-ready audio. To qualify for SAG-AFTRA health and retirement contributions on ACX, an offer must be at least $250 PFH.

What does “per finished hour” mean?

Payment for each hour of the final audiobook, not for time spent in the booth. SAG-AFTRA notes that many narrators estimate about two hours of recording for each finished hour.

How much do audiobook narrators make?

It depends on the rate and the work. If one narrator records, edits and checks the book, ACX’s estimate of 6.2 hours of work per finished hour means $250 PFH works out at about $40 an hour of work, before equipment and tax.

How long does it take to narrate an audiobook?

ACX estimates about 2 hours of recording, 3 hours of editing and 1.2 hours of quality checking per finished hour, 6.2 hours in all. A 10-hour book is about 62 hours of work.

Do I need to be in SAG-AFTRA to narrate audiobooks?

No. Union and non-union narrators can accept ACX offers under SAG-AFTRA terms when the rate qualifies, and to join the union through audiobooks you need to be paid for one union audiobook.

How do SAG-AFTRA contributions work on ACX?

They are taken out of the rate, not added to it: 12.281% of the base rate goes to the AFTRA Health and Retirement Fund, equal to the 14% contribution rate on the net amount. On a $100 PFH payment, $12.28 goes to the fund.

Who can narrate on ACX?

Individuals and companies resident in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Ireland with a local mailing address, taxpayer ID and bank account.

Do narrators have to master the audio?

On ACX, the producer delivers ready-to-sell audio, so yes, or they partner with an engineer. For union publisher work SAG-AFTRA says it is not standard to ask narrators for a fully mastered product without extra pay; punch-and-roll WAV files are the norm.

What is dual and duet narration?

Dual narration pairs two narrators who trade off by chapter or point of view; duet narration has both performing their characters’ dialogue throughout. ACX contracts support one rights holder and one producer, so the second narrator is usually paid by the first or under a separate contract.

Is royalty share good for narrators?

Only if the book sells. You work for a quarter of each sale for seven years instead of a fee. Royalty Share Plus, which adds a smaller fee, shares the risk. See our royalty share guide.