What Is Blinkist?

If you don’t know what to read next or what audiobook to buy, you have a few ways to identify the best title. You can ask for recommendations from friends, check out popular book categories, or do some deeper research.

Book summaries are easy to go through and provide the information you need before picking your next read. With a book summary service like Blinkist, you might save lots of time searching for new titles on Audible, Speechify, or your local library.

Blinkist explained

Blinkist is one of the top book summary services available online. The platform aims to help people gain insight into non-fiction books and not feel overwhelmed by complex topics. In addition, this service can also give its users ideas on what books to read next.

Here’s how it works.

The Blinkist team reads a wide range of books and shortcasts or podcasts. Then, the team outlines the books in 15-minute summaries presenting key ideas or blinks.

People who want book takeaways and key insights can access a library of over 5,500 titles. Naturally, the Blinkist app comes with free and premium subscription tiers. Freemium subscribers can read a new summary every day, called the daily summary.

Premium Blinkist subscribers receive unlimited access to thousands of written and audio summaries.

Users can browse over 20 categories to find summaries of books in their fields of interest. And between the search function and minimalist app design, finding what you want is easy.

Although Blinkist doesn’t have a complex app, it does many great things for users. For example, it allows reading and listening to summaries simultaneously. This can be amazing for people with accessibility issues, reading disorders like dyslexia, etc.

Furthermore, Blinkist makes it easy to share summaries with others via social media. And for those who rely heavily on summaries to find popular books and understand them, Blinkist provides highlighting.

Another interesting functionality is the synchronization feature with Kindle and Evernote. Users can sync highlights with Evernote notebooks or send them to their Amazon Kindle devices.

Lastly, the Blinkist team encourages user suggestions. The wishlist feature allows app users to vote on book titles the Blinkist team should prioritize.

Pros and cons of Blinkist (and other book summary apps)

Blinkist may sound like a dream come true to non-fiction book and audiobook lovers. It offers a more complete way of identifying great titles and understanding complex topics or storylines. However, not everything about it is first-rate.

Blinkist pros

• Free users can read new blinks daily

• Extensive Blinkist library

• The app syncs with Evernote and Kindle

• Book summaries are available in written and audio versions

• Straightforward and beginner-friendly UI on the mobile app

• Reading book summaries offline is possible

• The Blinkist cost comes with a 50% discount for the annual plan

• Compatible with iPhones and Android devices

• My Blinkist personal user summary collection

Blinkist cons

• Some key insights can give away too much

• Only premium users can search and access multiple blinks

• The team won’t always summarize the best books

But weighing the pros and cons of Blinkist isn’t an ideal way of determining if book summaries are for you. Here’s what you get by going through summaries before picking up a new title in a hardcopy or audiobook format.

Book summaries let people go over key insights and skip less relevant or filler information. In addition, they make learning about new topics quicker and easier. And if someone can summarize a new book on a topic of interest, it can be easier to remember even after going through the book yourself.

Granted, this sounds fantastic in theory. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t a few potential downsides to reading book summaries instead of going through an entire book.

Summaries and key insights can make stories less entertaining. That’s true even of bestsellers if the quick digest is on point. Furthermore, a lack of context can trick people into misinterpreting insights and facts.

Then there’s the personal achievement factor. If you use Blinkist, you won’t gain insights, spontaneous ideas, or epiphanies yourself. In that respect, summaries can make some books feel less rewarding.

That said, picky readers can use book summaries to decide what books to buy or rent.

Find the most appealing titles with Speechify

If you want an even better way to find entertaining titles, thrilling stories, and insightful non-fiction works, Speechify is an excellent alternative. Speechify is an audiobook service with tens of thousands of fiction and non-fiction audiobooks.

It contains everything from kids’ books to classics, to bestsellers. What’s more, access to professionally produced audiobooks on iOS, Android, and most other devices can be invaluable to knowledge seekers and reading enthusiasts.

Listening to a book can let you multitask while commuting, increase productivity, or consume content not accessible to someone with reading disorders. Experience more immersive storytelling by signing up for Speechify and redeeming your first free audiobook.

FAQ

Are books free on Blinkist?

Blinkist offers one daily pick or free book summary to all app users. However, only Blinkist premium subscribers can access all summaries available in the library. In addition, the app lets users download the complete library for offline reading.

Is Blinkist better than reading?

Using Blinkist isn’t better than reading, despite being faster. Reading summaries can provide many key insights without having to go through hundreds of pages and filler information. But summaries can lose substance, context, and the author’s flair, making them less entertaining than books and audiobooks. For those reasons, it comes down to personal preference.

Is Blinkist a good way to learn?

Blinkist can be a good way to learn if readers are interested in insights and factoids. Nevertheless, a book summary is only as reliable as the person making it. That’s why some can be oversimplified or misinterpreted and won’t necessarily serve the reader better than the whole book.

What kind of books does Blinkist have?

Blinkist focuses primarily on non-fiction titles. It has books on everything, from science to economics, spirituality, entrepreneurship, to personal development, communication skills, and so much more.

What is Blinkist’s slogan?

The Blinkist slogan is “A smarter you in 15 minutes.”