SoundLeaf
Find answers to common questions about SoundLeaf and how to get the most out of your Audiobookshelf experience.
SoundLeaf is a premium iOS client for Audiobookshelf, designed to provide a native and elegant experience for audiobook listeners. It connects to your self-hosted Audiobookshelf server and offers a beautiful interface with powerful features specifically optimized for iOS devices.
Read more about SoundLeaf in our launch announcement on Reddit.
Audiobookshelf is an open-source self-hosted audiobook server. It allows you to host your own audiobook collection and stream it to various devices. Audiobookshelf manages your library metadata, tracks your listening progress, and provides various features for audiobook organization and playback.
Visit the Audiobookshelf GitHub repository or the official website to learn more.
Yes, SoundLeaf is designed as a client for Audiobookshelf. You'll need to have access to an Audiobookshelf server (either self-hosted or one that someone else hosts) to use SoundLeaf. The app connects to your server to access your audiobook library.
The premium upgrade is a one-time payment (USD 9.99) that unlocks:
SoundLeaf is a premium third-party client for Audiobookshelf, not the official app. The official Audiobookshelf iOS app is currently in beta testing through TestFlight, but the beta program is frequently full due to Apple's TestFlight limitations.
If you're looking for a fully-featured iOS client for Audiobookshelf that's available right now, SoundLeaf is ready to download on the App Store and offers a complete, polished experience for enjoying your Audiobookshelf library.
SoundLeaf includes a variety of features designed to enhance your audiobook experience:
Smart Downloads is a premium feature that automatically downloads audiobooks that you're actively listening to. If you listen to a book for about 10 minutes (configurable in settings), SoundLeaf will automatically download it to your device for offline access. This ensures that books you're interested in are available offline without having to manually download your entire library.
Yes, SoundLeaf supports downloading audiobooks for offline listening with the premium upgrade. You can download entire books or specific parts of your collection to your device, allowing you to listen even when you don't have an internet connection or want to save on data usage.
CarPlay support is currently in development and will be available in a future update. This is a highly requested feature that will allow you to safely access and control your audiobooks while driving.
Currently, to switch between different libraries (such as between an English and French library, or between audiobooks and podcasts), you need to sign out and sign back in with the desired library selected. A library switcher feature is planned for a future update to make this process more convenient.
Currently, SoundLeaf only supports audiobook libraries. Podcast support is planned for a future update. If you select a podcast library when signing in, you will receive an error message.
Support for ePub eBooks from your Audiobookshelf server is planned for a future update.
When you first launch SoundLeaf, you'll be prompted to enter your Audiobookshelf server details:
If you're using HTTP instead of HTTPS, make sure to include the full URL with http:// at the beginning.
Yes, SoundLeaf supports both HTTP and HTTPS servers. When entering your server URL, you need to explicitly include http:// at the beginning of your address if you're using HTTP rather than HTTPS. For example:
http://192.168.0.200:13378
If you don't include the protocol prefix, SoundLeaf will default to using HTTPS.
SoundLeaf requires iOS 17.6 or later. It's optimized for iPhone and also works on iPad with an adaptive layout.
Support for OpenID Connect (OIDC) authentication is planned for a future update. Currently, you need to use standard username/password authentication.
Support for Cloudflare tunnels via custom headers is planned for a future update.
This is a known issue that's being actively worked on. The scrolling performance, especially on the Home page, will be improved in an upcoming update.
Some users have reported seeing HTML tags (like <p>, <b>, etc.) displayed in the "About" section of book pages. This issue is being addressed and will be fixed in an upcoming update.
Some users have noticed that the "Continue" section doesn't always display books in the expected order (based on when an audiobook was last listened to). This behavior will be improved in an upcoming update.
When connecting to an HTTP server, you must explicitly include http:// at the beginning of your server URL. For example:
http://192.168.0.200:13378
If you don't include the protocol prefix, SoundLeaf will default to using HTTPS, which will fail to connect to an HTTP-only server.
Currently, there is no way to dismiss the mini player when it appears at the bottom of the screen. This feature will be added in an upcoming update, likely allowing you to swipe it away.
We're actively working on many new features and improvements:
The development roadmap is now being managed on GitHub. You can check the SoundLeaf GitHub repository for the latest information on upcoming features and issues being addressed.
Visit the SoundLeaf GitHub repository
You can also follow the discussion in our launch thread on Reddit.
We welcome your feedback and suggestions! There are several ways to contribute:
The best ways to support SoundLeaf development are: