Question 1

Do I need a Reader Membership to buy books or courses on Leanpub?

Accepted Answer

No! You can always buy Leanpub books or courses with money, without having a Reader Membership.

Question 2

What is a Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

A Reader Membership is a paid subscription that gives you access to about 2,000 Free With Membership books, plus book credits you can use to purchase Leanpub books. Membership is optional: you can read and buy books on Leanpub without subscribing.

Question 3

What about course credits?

Accepted Answer

Course credits are available through Learner Memberships. A Learner Membership includes both book credits and course credits. If you want course credits, please see our Learner Memberships page. Reader Memberships focus on books only.

Question 4

Does Leanpub have a free Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

No. Every Leanpub user can read and buy books, but a Reader Membership is always a paid subscription that provides additional reading benefits. If you have not paid for a Reader Membership, you simply do not have one.

Question 5

What are the benefits of the different levels of Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

All Reader Memberships give you access to about 2000 books that are Free With Membership. Our Mini, Light, and Standard Reader Memberships all come with book credits, with higher levels including more credits per month. All Reader Memberships allow you to purchase additional book credits. Our Legacy Reader Membership (no longer offered for sale) does not include credits, only access to the Free With Membership books.

Question 6

Can I buy book credits without a Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

No. You need a Reader Membership to buy book credits. You can always buy Leanpub books with money without having a Reader Membership. Any Reader Membership — including the currently offered Mini, Light, and Standard plans, as well as the no-longer-offered Legacy Reader Membership — lets you purchase additional book credits.

Question 7

Are reader and author memberships different?

Accepted Answer

Every Leanpub user can have multiple memberships: a Reader Membership, a Learner Membership, and an Author Membership. This FAQ explains the Reader Memberships. A Reader Membership affects your features as a Leanpub reader (books), a Learner Membership gives you book and course credits, and an Author Membership affects your features as a Leanpub author.

Question 8

Why would I subscribe to a Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

A Reader Membership gives you access to about 2000 books which are Free With Membership, along with book credits you can use to buy Leanpub books. Your membership also helps support Leanpub authors through our Royalty Pool, and it gives you the convenience of buying books instantly with credits. Different Reader Membership levels include different amounts of book credits.

Question 9

What books are free with a Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

There are about 2000 books which are Free With Membership. You can search them by going to the Store in the top menu, choosing the Books submenu, and changing the filter from Bestsellers Last Week to Free With Membership.

Question 10

Are there any books which are free without a Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

Yes! You can search them by going to the Store in the top menu, choosing the Books submenu, and changing the filter from Bestsellers Last Week to Free For Everyone. Any reader, including those without a Reader Membership, can read these books for free.

Question 11

How does my paid Reader Membership support Leanpub authors?

Accepted Answer

Most of the cost of the paid Reader Memberships goes toward paying for the book credits that you get. Leanpub authors earn excellent royalties from those credit purchases, as you'll see below. We also pay into a Royalty Pool to support the authors of the books you get which are Free With Membership.

Question 12

Why get a Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

A Reader Membership gives you book credits, typically at a discount to their a la carte price. These credits can be used toward buying any book on Leanpub. It's easier to pay with credits than with money: just click a button! You also get free access to about 2000 books which are Free With Membership. Your paid Reader Membership helps support Leanpub authors through the Royalty Pool. Finally, your paid Reader Membership helps us build a better Leanpub for our authors and our readers!

Question 13

What are book credits?

Accepted Answer

One or more book credits can be used to purchase ANY Leanpub book. Every Leanpub book has a price in credits listed on its store page. When you use credits to purchase a book, you do not pay anything extra. (You pay any taxes on credits when buying the credits themselves.) Most Leanpub books cost just 1 book credit.

Question 14

How can I get book credits?

Accepted Answer

You get book credits when your Reader Membership subscription renews, either monthly or annually. You can also buy additional book credits at any time from the Buy Credits page.

Question 15

Why buy extra book credits?

Accepted Answer

We have different levels of paid Reader Memberships that come with different numbers of book credits. However, if you need extra credits, you can buy them easily on the Buy Credits page. This way, you can get the credits you need without changing your membership level, and have the convenience of shopping with credits instead of money.

Question 16

Can I use my royalties to buy book credits?

Accepted Answer

Yes, as long as you have a Reader Membership! Just add the credits to the shopping cart on the Buy Credits page, and at checkout choose to pay with your Leanpub royalties, credit card or PayPal.

Question 17

Can I use my royalties to pay for a Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

No. Since all Reader Memberships we currently sell include credits, we no longer offer a Lifetime option for any of these Reader Memberships. So, because of this, you cannot use royalties. Making royalty purchases work for subscription payments would be too complex to justify doing.

Question 18

What is a Legacy Reader Membership? What happened to the old Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

We used to sell just one type of Reader Membership. We are now calling this the Legacy Reader Membership. The Legacy Reader Membership used to cost $4.99 per month, $19 per year, or $99 lifetime. The Legacy Reader Membership provided free access to about 2000 books which are Free With Membership, and did not come with any credits for premium books. The Legacy Reader Membership is no longer available for sale.

Question 19

I have a Legacy Reader Membership. What happens to it?

Accepted Answer

If you currently have a Legacy Reader Membership, nothing changes. Your price does not increase, and the membership benefits do not change. This is true if you have a Monthly, Annual or Lifetime Legacy Reader Membership. Your membership continues to give you free access to about 2000 books which are Free With Membership.

Question 20

If I upgrade to one of the other Reader Memberships, what happens to my Legacy Reader Membership?

Accepted Answer

If you upgrade from a Monthly or Annual Legacy Reader Membership, you cannot downgrade back to the Legacy Reader Membership. If you upgrade from a Lifetime Legacy Reader Membership, you will automatically downgrade back to the Lifetime Legacy Reader Membership if your upgraded Reader Membership expires or if you cancel it.

Question 21

How are the credit prices of books calculated?

Accepted Answer

Credit pricing is based on each book's maximum discounted price. Divide by $25 and round up. So, a $19 book costs 1 credit, and a $39 book costs 2 credits. Most books cost just 1 credit. Authors can opt out of credit pricing if they choose.

Question 22

How do my Leanpub credit card, PayPal or royalty purchases support Leanpub authors?

Accepted Answer

For credit card, PayPal or royalty purchases, we pay 80% royalties on books priced at $7.99 and up. Below $7.99, we pay 80% minus 50 cents. So, Leanpub authors earn $3.50 from a $5 sale, $8 from a $10 sale, $16 from a $20 sale, and $24 from a $30 sale. Leanpub was founded by authors, and exists to serve our authors.

Question 23

How do taxes like VAT work for book credits?

Accepted Answer

Book credits are taxed like Leanpub ebooks. For our EU and UK customers, this means that if your country has a discounted rate for ebooks, then the book credits will have this same discounted rate. This is correct because a book credit can only be used to purchase a Leanpub ebook, so it is a single-purpose voucher whose VAT rate can be calculated at the time of purchase. For example, in the UK, ebooks are taxed at 0% VAT.

Question 24

Do I still support authors when I use book credits?

Accepted Answer

Yes! When you use book credits to purchase a book, the author still earns great royalties. Typically the author earns the same amount of royalties as a minimum nonzero price purchase with a credit card or PayPal. So, you continue to provide excellent support to Leanpub authors when you use book credits to make a purchase.

Question 25

How do author royalties work for purchases using book credits?

Accepted Answer

The short answer is that the author typically earns the same royalties they would earn on a minimum nonzero price purchase. The longer answer is that the royalty rate is determined by comparing the credit cash price to the minimum nonzero price, as explained in the questions below.

Question 26

What is the credit cash price?

Accepted Answer

The credit cash price is the cash equivalent of the credit price. To calculate it, the credit price is multiplied by $25 per book credit, regardless of the actual purchase cost. For example, if a book has a 2 book credit price, the credit cash price is $50 (2 x $25). The credit cash price is then compared to the minimum nonzero price to determine author royalties.

Question 27

What is the minimum nonzero price?

Accepted Answer

The minimum nonzero price is set by the author, and is the minimum non-free price that a reader can pay for a book. Leanpub books can also be available for free, either Free With Membership or Free For Everyone. However, even in these cases, there is also a minimum non-free price which the author sets. The minimum nonzero price affects how author royalties work for purchases using credits.

Question 28

What are the author royalties for purchases where the credit cash price is lower than the minimum nonzero price?

Accepted Answer

If the credit cash price is lower than the minimum nonzero price, the author earns 80% royalties on the credit cash price. So, the author earns $20 per book credit used (80% of $25). For example, if a book has a $29 minimum nonzero price and a 1 book credit price, the author earns $20 when a reader purchases with 1 book credit. This is the ideal scenario: the reader gets a slight discount, and the author still earns excellent royalties!

Question 29

What are the author royalties for purchases where the credit cash price is greater than or equal to the minimum nonzero price?

Accepted Answer

If the credit cash price is greater than or equal to the minimum nonzero price, the purchase is treated as a minimum nonzero price purchase. For example, if a book has a $19 minimum nonzero price and a 1 book credit price, the author earns $15.20 (80% of $19). Or, if a book has a $39 minimum nonzero price and a 2 book credit price, the author earns $31.20 (80% of $39). In all cases, the author earns the same royalties as on a minimum nonzero price purchase.

Question 30

I have more questions, what should I do?

Accepted Answer

Click on the Help menu above to go to our amazing Help Center. We put way more thought and effort into it than you would typically expect. Check it out, and if you can't find the answer, email us at hello@leanpub.com!

A Reader Membership gets you hundreds of free books, and credits to use to buy the rest ... often at a huge discount!

Mini Reader

Light Reader

Standard Reader

Save money, support authors and support Leanpub with your Reader Membership.

Frequently Asked Questions about Reader Memberships and Credits

Do I need a Reader Membership to buy books or courses on Leanpub?

A Reader Membership gets you hundreds of free books, and credits to use to buy the rest ... often at a huge discount!

Mini Reader

Light Reader

Standard Reader

Save money, support authors and support Leanpub with your Reader Membership.

Hundreds of Free Books

Save Money

Credits for Paid Books and Courses

Support Authors and Leanpub

Hundreds of Free Books

Save Money

Credits for Paid Books and Courses

Support Authors and Leanpub

Frequently Asked Questions about Reader Memberships and Credits

Do I need a Reader Membership to buy books or courses on Leanpub?