Guides · 3 min read
Listen offline
Aethel is a web app, but you don't need a connection to listen. Save chapters on the device while you are online and they play anywhere, with the text highlighted as usual.
Updated 6 October 2026
Save chapters
- Open a book and tap Offline in the reader.
- Choose This chapter or Whole book. Aethel shows how much new narration is needed first.
- Keep the sheet open until the download finishes. If it stops, the next download continues where it left off.
Passages that haven't been narrated yet are narrated during the download and count towards your monthly narration time. Passages you have already heard are free.
Listen without a connection
Open Downloads from the library, or just open Aethel while offline: it takes you to your saved chapters. Playback includes the lock-screen controls, speed, a sleep timer and the highlighted text.
Export as MP3
A saved chapter can be exported as one MP3 file for your own listening, for example in a podcast app or on a running watch.
Storage and privacy
- Downloads stay on that device only and can be removed in Settings → Downloads.
- Signing out removes downloads from the device.
- Settings shows how much space downloads use.
Questions
Do downloads expire?
No. They stay until you remove them, sign out or the browser clears the site's storage.