Guides · Getting started
Set up SoundLeaf for your family with Audiobookshelf
Give each family member their own Audiobookshelf user, send the address and username, then share one iPad or lock down a child's. Pro has Family Sharing.
Give each person in your family their own Audiobookshelf user, then send them the server address and their username. Each person signs in to SoundLeaf with their own user and keeps their own place in every book. A shared iPad can hold everyone’s account, and a child’s iPad can be locked to SoundLeaf.
Step 1: make a user for each person
In the Audiobookshelf web page, an admin adds users in Settings > Users > Add User. Make one for every listener, kids included.
One user per person matters because listening progress belongs to a user. Two people sharing one user keep moving each other’s place. Audiobookshelf can’t share progress between two users either, so pick one user per person and stick with it.
For a child, you can limit what their user sees: only some libraries, only books with a tag you choose, or nothing marked Explicit. The steps are in Audiobookshelf users and permissions.
Step 2: what to send each person
Send one message with:
- The server address, exactly as it works from their phone. For someone at home, that can be the home address. For someone in another house, it has to be an address that works over the internet, or through a VPN that lets their phone reach your home network. See what to type as the server address.
- Their username and the password you set.
- A link to SoundLeaf on the App Store.
SoundLeaf signs in with a username and password, or with OpenID (your server’s single sign-on button) if your server has it set up. It has no API key login. SoundLeaf’s NFC tags and QR codes control listening, like starting a book or setting a sleep timer. They don’t sign anyone in.
Step 3: install and sign in
On their iPhone or iPad:
- Install SoundLeaf from the App Store.
- Open it and type the server address.
- Sign in with their username and password.
- Pick their library.
The getting started guide walks through the first run in more detail.
How do we share one iPad?
Add every person’s account to the same iPad, then switch between them.
- Sign in with the first person’s user.
- Tap the round library button at the top right and choose Add server or account > Add an account on your server.
- Sign in with the next person’s user. Repeat for each person.
To switch, tap the library button and pick a library under that person’s name. Each person keeps their own progress, stats and downloads. Settings like default speed and skip lengths are shared by everyone on the iPad.
More in multiple accounts.
How can a child start a book with a scan?
SoundLeaf can put a book on a QR code, or on an NFC tag (a small sticker an iPhone reads when you hold it close). Open the book, tap … > NFC & QR, and set Account to Whoever scans. Each person then listens with their own account and progress.
NFC tags need a supported iPhone. On an iPad, use the QR code. On a shared iPad or iPhone, the scan plays on the account that’s open, so switch to the child’s account first. My account makes a code that only works on a device signed in to your account. See NFC tags and QR codes.
How do I lock down a child’s iPad?
Two Apple features help. They’re set up outside SoundLeaf: Guided Access on the child’s iPad, Screen Time from your own iPhone or iPad.
- Guided Access keeps the iPad in one app until you enter a passcode (or use Face ID or Touch ID). Turn it on in Settings > Accessibility > Guided Access. Then open SoundLeaf, triple-click the top button (or the Home button), choose Guided Access if asked, and tap Start. Apple’s guide: Use Guided Access on iPhone or iPad.
- Screen Time lets you choose which apps a child can use and for how long, from your own phone with Family Sharing. Apple’s guide: Use Screen Time to manage your child’s iPhone or iPad.
Then limit what their Audiobookshelf user can see, so a kid scrolling the library only finds their own books. On an iPad that belongs to the child, sign in with only their account. Any other account saved on the iPad can be picked from the library button.
Does Pro work with Family Sharing?
Yes. Pro is a one-time purchase, and it can be shared through Apple’s Family Sharing, with up to six people including you. Each family member gets Pro on their own Apple account without buying it again. Purchase Sharing has to be on in your Family Sharing settings.
Supporter subscriptions, Permanent Supporter and tips are not shared. They stay with the Apple account that bought them.
Everything you need to listen, including downloads, is free for everyone. See Pro and Supporter for what each one adds.