What is ACX, and how does it work for authors?

What is ACX? ACX, the Audiobook Creation Exchange, is Audible's self-publishing service for audiobooks. You claim your book, narrate it yourself or hire a narrator through ACX, and Audible distributes the finished audiobook to Audible, Amazon and Apple Books and pays you a royalty on each sale. Audible holds the distribution rights for seven years.

ACX matters to you if Audible is where your readers buy, because it is the service Audible runs for independent rights holders. Below: who can use ACX, how a title goes from manuscript to sale, what its three deals cost and pay, and where AI narration stands.

Who can use ACX?

ACX is open to rights holders who live in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada or Ireland, according to ACX's "What is ACX" page as of October 2026.

To sign up you need:

• A mailing address, a valid local tax ID and bank details in one of those four countries.
• The audio rights to the book.
• The book on sale in the Amazon Kindle Store.

ACX lists no other countries.

How do you make an audiobook on ACX?

Making an audiobook on ACX takes five steps: create a profile, claim your title, choose who narrates, produce the audio, and pass ACX's quality check.

1. Create a profile and add your payment details.
2. Claim your title from the Kindle Store and write the audiobook's description.
3. Choose a narrator. You can record it yourself or post the title for auditions and pick a producer. On ACX, a producer is the narrator or studio that records, edits and masters the audio.
4. Produce the audio to ACX's technical standard, one chapter per file.
5. Submit for review. ACX's quality team checks the files, and a title that misses the standard may be rejected or have its release delayed.

The standard is specific. ACX's audio submission requirements, dated April 15, 2026, ask for opening and closing credits, a retail sample of five minutes or less, files no longer than 120 minutes, volume between -23 dB and -18 dB RMS, peaks below -3 dB and 192 kbps or higher constant bit rate MP3 files.

What do ACX's three deals cost and pay?

ACX offers three production deals, Pay for Production, Royalty Share and Royalty Share Plus, and they differ in who pays upfront and whether you must stay exclusive.

PFH, short for per finished hour, is the rate a narrator charges for each hour of finished audio. Pay for Production is an ACX deal in which you pay the narrator a one-time fee at that rate. Royalty Share is an ACX deal in which the narrator takes no upfront fee and splits your royalty instead. Royalty Share Plus is an ACX deal in which the narrator takes a reduced upfront fee plus half your royalty. The figures come from ACX's royalty rules under its new model, as of October 2026.

Pay for Production and narrating it yourself cost money or time upfront and leave exclusivity to you, while Royalty Share and Royalty Share Plus cut the upfront cost in exchange for exclusivity and half the royalty:

Exclusive distribution means Audible sells your audiobook through Audible, Amazon and Apple Books only, according to ACX's distribution options page. Non-exclusive lets you sell it elsewhere too, at the lower rate. Either way, Audible has the right to distribute the audiobook for seven years.

From May 26, 2026, the new model applies to newly claimed titles, new users and existing titles that enroll. Titles still on the legacy model earn 40% exclusive and 25% non-exclusive, and 20% each under Royalty Share, until that model is discontinued at the end of 2026. To see what a narrator costs for a full novel, our guide on how to create an audiobook works through the numbers.

Is ACX part of Amazon?

ACX is part of the Amazon family through Audible, which runs it. The ACX site is copyrighted to Audible, Inc., and ACX and Audiobook Creation Exchange are listed as trademarks of Amazon.

That also answers the common question of whether ACX is legitimate. ACX is Audible's own service for rights holders and narrators, not a third-party marketplace.

Can you use AI narration on ACX?

ACX does not accept AI narration that Audible has not authorized. Its submission requirements say your audiobook must be narrated by a human unless otherwise authorized, and that unauthorized text-to-speech, AI or automated recordings are prohibited.

The same page says Audible is working to accept text-to-speech content from other publishers and creators, with timing to follow. Amazon's own virtual voice program is separate and does not go through ACX; we cover what it gives up in Audible virtual voice: what authors give up. Stores that do accept AI narration today are listed in where you can publish an AI-narrated audiobook.

The bottom line

ACX is how independent authors in the US, UK, Canada and Ireland put a human-narrated audiobook on Audible, Amazon and Apple Books, with a royalty of 25% to 50% under the new model as of October 2026, depending on the deal. If ACX's human-narration rule rules it out for your plans, AudioForge is a production tool that turns a manuscript into a multi-voice audiobook, with a distinct voice for every character, for the stores that accept AI narration. Either way, your next step is the same: read ACX's submission requirements before you commit to a narrator or a deal.