When you begin an audiobook project on ACX, you will choose between three different production types. This article will explain the pros and cons of each production type to help you decide which is best for your project.

Note: Starting May 26, 2026, under Audible’s new royalty model, newly claimed titles, new users, and existing titles enrolled in the new royalty model will earn a 50% royalty rate for exclusive distribution and a 30% royalty rate for non-exclusive distribution of titles. If your title is not enrolled in the new royalty model, it will continue to earn a 40% royalty rate for exclusive distribution and a 25% royalty rate for non-exclusive distribution until year-end, at which time the legacy model will be discontinued and all creators will need to enroll their titles on our new model for continued distribution. 

In this article:

• How do I get paid on ACX based on production type?
• What is a Pay-for-Production (P4P) deal?
• What is a Royalty Share deal?
• What is a Royalty Share Plus (RSP) deal?
• How are ACX royalties calculated?
• What is the allocation (AL) factor?
• What is “Member Value”? How is it determined? 

How do I get paid on ACX based on production type?

As a producer

Producers get paid once an audiobook is completed, uploaded to ACX, and the rights holder approves the audiobook production. The payment method depends on the title's production type:

Pay-for-Production (P4P) Deal: Once the audiobook is approved by the rights holder, the rights holder will pay you the full production fee directly. The payment amount is based on the per-finished-hour rate agreed upon at the start of the production. You'll then need to log into ACX and indicate that you've been paid, which will send the book to quality assurance, and if approved, will be released for distribution.

Royalty Share Deal: Instead of an upfront fee, you'll split royalties for all audiobook sales with the rights holder. Royalty payments are paid out monthly from Audible based on audiobook sales. You'll receive royalties for 7 years and you are not entitled to receive royalties beyond 7 years.

Royalty Share Plus (RSP) Deal: This arrangement combines a reduced upfront per-finished-hour payment from the rights holder, with the Royalty Share model detailed above (royalties are split with the rights holder and paid monthly). After receiving the upfront payment, you'll mark in ACX.com that you've been paid, and once the title is live you'll start earning royalties. 

Note: For royalty-based deals or bounties, your payments will come directly from Audible in the local currency of your region (USD, GBP, EUR, CAD). If the royalties owed to you for any accounting period are less than $50, Audible will have the right to withhold making a payment and carry such payment forward to the next reporting period. 

As a rights holder

Pay-for-Production deal: You make a one-time per-finished-hour payment to your audiobook producer upon the delivery of the finished audiobook. You can select exclusive distribution and receive 40% (legacy royalty rate) or 50% (new royalty rate) from sales of your audiobook on Audible, Amazon, and Apple Books. You can also opt for non-exclusive royalty payments to retain the right to distribute elsewhere, and earn 25% (legacy royalty rate) or 30% (new royalty rate) from sales on Audible, Amazon, and Apple Books.

Royalty Share deal: Make no upfront payment for the production of your audiobook, and instead split your audiobook's royalties with the producer. Through exclusive distribution, you will receive 40% (legacy royalty rate) or 50% (new royalty rate) from sales of your audiobook on Audible, Amazon, and Apple Books. Your producer will receive payment in the form of an equal share, resulting in 20% (legacy royalty rate) or 25% (new royalty rate) royalties for the producer and 20% (legacy royalty rate) or 25% (new royalty rate) for you during the term of the Book Posting Agreement applicable to your Royalty Share title.

Royalty Share Plus deal: This combines a reduced upfront per-finished-hour payment to your producer, with the Royalty Share model detailed above (your royalties are split with your producer).

DIY: Upload your own finished audio files and receive 40% (legacy royalty rate) or 50% (new royalty rate). Or, opt for non-exclusive distribution and receive 25% (legacy royalty rate) or 30% (new royalty rate) royalties on all your audiobook sales on Audible, Amazon, and Apple Books, and retain the right to distribute your audiobook elsewhere. As DIY, you deliver finished audio files to us, and we'll handle distribution and payment.

Note: All rights holders will be paid monthly via electronic payment from Audible in the US to your bank. Your payments will come directly from Audible in the local currency of your region (USD, GBP, EUR, CAD). 

What is a Pay-for-Production deal?

A Pay-for-Production deal is a one-time flat fee based on the length of the finished audiobook. The producer and rights holder settle on a per-finished-hour rate at the start of the production, and payment process is determined by the producer's acceptance with, or without, AFTRA H&R Contributions. Keep in mind it takes most producers 5-7 hours to produce one finished hour of audio.

Producer’s non-acceptance of AFTRA H&R: If the producer does not accept "with AFTRA H&R", the rights holder pays the producer directly. Both parties must discuss the exact method (check, PayPal, etc.). The payment method to use should be discussed soon after the offer is accepted.

Producer’s acceptance of AFTRA H&R: If the producer accepts the offer "with AFTRA H&R", the rights holder must send payment to a designated paymaster. For pay for production projects, the rights holder will send the full amount. The paymaster will send payment to the producer and handle all other union-related payment needs.

Once the producer approves the final production, they can send one check payable to our preferred paymaster, Eljin Productions, Inc., equal to total production fee (the final running time x accepted rate). To ensure payment is attributed to the correct project, please include a completed copy of this form.

To learn more about the paymaster visit the SAG-AFTRA Health & Retirement Contributions  article.

What is a Royalty Share deal?

With a Royalty Share deal, producers forgo upfront payment in exchange for splitting the audiobook's net royalties with the rights holder.

To enter a Royalty Share deal, a rights holder must select “exclusive distribution”. Exclusive distribution means the audiobook will be made available across all services, including Audible, Amazon and Apple Books.

To learn more about exclusive distribution, please read more about the terms of the ACX Book Posting Agreement.

What is a Royalty Share Plus (RSP) deal?

The Royalty Share Plus deal combines the benefits of the Pay-for-Production and Royalty Share deals. The producer receives a reduced up-front payment for producing the audiobook, in addition to splitting the net royalties of the audiobook sales with the rights holder. Royalty Share Plus deals are eligible for AFTRA Health & Retirement Contributions if the offered rate is at least $100 per-finished-hour.  

Through the Royalty Share Plus deal,

• Rights holders receive 20% (legacy royalty rate) or 25% (new royalty rate) royalties from sales of your audiobook on Audible, Apple Books, and Amazon. 
• Producers are paid a smaller upfront fee directly by the rights holder at the completion of the project, plus 20% (legacy royalty rate) or 25% (new royalty rate) royalties from the sales once the audiobook is available.
• The producer and rights holder are both eligible for additional earnings through our Bounty Referral program.

In order to enter a Royalty Share Plus deal, a rights holder must select “exclusive distribution.” Exclusive distribution means the audiobook will be made available across all services, including Audible, Amazon and Apple Books. 

Note: Producers can contact the rights holder directly through the ACX message center to make payment arrangements for the up-front payment. Once payment of the up-front fee is received, you can go to the title profile on ACX.com for the project to indicate you’ve been paid. This will complete the process for your production of the audiobook and release the audio files to the quality assurance team for their review.

Producer’s non-acceptance of AFTRA H&R: If the producer does not accept "with AFTRA H&R", the rights holder pays the producer directly. Both parties must discuss the exact method (check, PayPal, etc.). The payment method to use should be discussed soon after the offer is accepted.

Producer’s acceptance of AFTRA H&R: To qualify for AFTRA H&R, the offered rate must be at least $100 per-finished-hour for Royalty Share Plus deals. If the producer accepts the offer "with AFTRA H&R", the rights holder must send payment to a designated paymaster. For Pay-for-Production projects, the rights holder will send the full amount. The paymaster will send payment to the producer and handle all other union-related payment needs.

Once the producer approves the final production, they can send one check payable to our preferred paymaster, Eljin Productions, Inc., equal to total production fee (the final running time x accepted rate). To ensure payment is attributed to the correct project, please include a completed copy of this form.

To learn more about the paymaster visit the SAG-AFTRA Health & Retirement Contributions article.

For more information, read the full Royalty Payment Terms and Procedures.

How are ACX royalties calculated?

Your royalty statements from ACX reflect sales of your Audiobooks in three different categories: AL, ALOP, and ALC.

AudibleListener (AL) units is the number of non-cash redemptions of your audiobook (such as a membership credit or monthly selection). 
AudibleListener over plan (ALOP) units are the number of cash purchases of your audiobook made by an Audible member. 
A la carte (ALC) units are the number of cash purchases of your audiobook made by a customer who is not an Audible member. 

Under the legacy royalty model, the royalties you earn are calculated using net receipts for the three categories of sales above. The royalty percentage you earn on net receipts is your royalty rate, and it is set forth in the contract you entered with ACX for the distribution of each specific Audiobook. Royalties for AL sales (Membership Sales) are based on both your contractual royalty rate and the "AudibleListener Allocation Factor" (also known as the "Allocation Factor"), which weights payments based on an Audiobook's list price. Under the new royalty model, royalties for AL sales (Membership Sales) are calculated by “Member Value”, which represents the value of a member’s listening behavior, multiplied by your contractual royalty rate. For more your specific royalties terms and conditions, please consult your applicable ACX contracts.

What is the allocation (AL) factor?

Audible members can buy an audiobook for a fixed price for as long as they remain members. The calculation of royalties for member sales weights payments based on an audiobook's list price. Audible takes the list price and multiplies it by the royalty rate and then by something called the Allocation Factor, which is the quotient of actual total member revenue divided by the aggregate regular price for member-selected titles in a given accounting period. 

So, for example, the sale of a book to a member with a regular price of $30 and a royalty rate of 40%, multiplied by the Allocation Factor, would yield about $6.00. The Allocation Factor allows us to share the revenue generated by members in a fair manner: for a given royalty rate, a book with a $30 regular price earns twice the royalty as a book with a regular $15 price. 

What is “Member Value”? How is it determined? 

Member Value is what’s net new in the updated royalty model. It represents the value of a member’s listening behavior. 

To determine Member Value, we first look at which plan a member is subscribed to in a given marketplace (e.g. Premium, Plus, Standard or monthly AYCL plan) and capture that monthly membership revenue minus taxes and fees. This amount is Member Value at the most basic level. We then look to see if the member used an additional credit on a title above their plan allowance, in which case the amount of Member Value will be increased. The total Member Value is then divided up and divided proportionally among each title the member engaged with, based on the a la carte price of those titles. This step ensures a fair share of Member Value is divided among each title before multiplying by your contractual royalty rate to get to royalties due. 

Once enrolled, you can reference your monthly earnings statements to view membership plan values or any adjustments to Member Value over a monthly period.