Free audiobook budget tool · by KATVOIX Media

Plan your audiobook budget before you hit record.

A free tool for authors and narrators. Drop in your script, pick a narration tier, and see what a finished audiobook really costs — next to KATVOIX Media's own rates and open production dates.

Free
No sign-up
PDF word counter
Private, not stored
Live rates
& availability
Katherine Dollison, founder of KATVOIX Media
Katherine Dollison
Founder, KATVOIX Media · linktr.ee/dollison_k
01 · Script

How much do we love your manuscript? Let us count the words

Upload a PDF or Word (.docx) script and we'll extract the word count for you, or type it in by hand.

Upload your script

Up to 25 MB. Your file is processed privately and not stored.

Drop a PDF or Word file here or click to browse
Convert to finished hours

A "finished hour" is one hour of edited, listenable audio in the final book.

9,300
← Slow lyrical fictionFast non-fiction →

Denser, more lyrical prose records slower (fewer words per finished hour). Brisk non-fiction records faster (more words per finished hour).

Real-world benchmark · KATVOIX produced
Fiction novel · intermediate narrator
57,073
words
5h 30m
finished runtime
~10,400
words / finished hr

25 chapters with about 1.5 seconds of room tone at the start and end of each, roughly 75 seconds in all. Faster than the 9,300 standard, so the same book runs shorter and costs less per word.

Estimated finished audio
0.0 hrs
02 · Narrator

Pick a narration tier

Per-finished-hour (PFH) ranges follow ACX, APA, and SAG-AFTRA norms.

03 · Deal terms

Choose your rights structure & extras

How you pay the narrator and what else you fold into the budget.

04 · Budget

Your audiobook estimate

A directional number based on industry averages — actual quotes vary by narrator, project complexity, and turnaround.

Words
0
Finished hours
0.0
PFH rate
$163
Narration · Intermediate (Full Buyout (PFH))$0
Estimated total
$0
05 · Compare · KATVOIX Media

What would KATVOIX charge to produce this book?

Side-by-side starting rates for the same project, produced in house by KATVOIX Media. A final quote follows a review of your manuscript.

Narration

Performance and recording, delivered ready to publish.

from$200PFH
Per finished hour · add a script for your total
  • Professional audiobook narration
  • Editing and mastering included
  • Built for indie authors
  • Delivery-ready chapter files
Most popular
Narration + Immersive Engineering

Cinematic audio with designed effects and instrumentals.

from$270PFH
Per finished hour · add a script for your total
  • Everything in Narration
  • Timecoded cue sheets included
  • SFX and designed effects
  • Instrumentals woven into the mix
Full Production + Media Rollout

Launch the audiobook like a publisher would.

$5,000+
Starting price
  • Everything in Narration + Immersive Engineering
  • Full casting (voice matching & talent coordination)
  • Cover-to-platform distribution (ACX, Findaway, Spotify)
  • Trailer, retail sample, and social audiograms
  • Coordinated launch calendar & press kit
Producing, not narrating
Sound Engineering & Mastering only

Your narrator records, KATVOIX engineers. For authors, narrators and production companies who already have a voice and need the book edited, mastered and delivery-ready.

  • QC with a CRX file for the narrator
  • Editing, de-breath and de-noise
  • Mastering to ACX specs
  • Pickup list and final delivery files
from$52.50PFH
Single or dual narrator · 1.5 hrs × $35/hr
Duet: $105 PFH (3 hrs × $35/hr)
Add immersive engineering or cue sheets ↓
Pay-as-you-go packages
Spread any project into 2, 4 or 6 interest-free payments.
First-time clients: small deposit
Returning clients: no deposit
06 · Already recording?

Price KATVOIX post-production

For narrators and production companies who record themselves. Post-production is billed from $35 per hour, using KATVOIX benchmarks for hours per finished hour.

ServiceHrs/FH5-hr book
Short-form projects · under 3 hours of runtime: commercials, animation, trailersn/afrom $175/hr
Your post-production estimate
Example: a 5-hour book · add a script above for your own numbers
Studio hours7.5 hrs
Engineering days2
Pickup list in3 business days
Post-production × $35$262.50
Cue sheets—
Total from$262.50

Final files within 2 business days of receiving pickups.

Cue sheets for your production team

Timecoded music and SFX cue sheets your team can produce from, verified against your SRT. Included in Immersive Engineering when KATVOIX produces in house.

$25 / chapter or $300 per 25 chapters
Interactive & digital

Interactive 2D mini-games for books and brands, built with your audiobook narration, instrumentals and SFX.

from $500 / game or $1,500 for a bundle of 3
Pair it with a trailer for launch week.

How estimates work. Post-production is billed hourly; the hours shown are KATVOIX averages per finished hour, so a 5-hour single-narrator book takes about 7.5 hours (7.5 × $35). Runtime is projected from word count before quoting.

07 · Production availability

When can KATVOIX take your book?

Open sound engineering and post-production capacity, November 2026 to March 2027. Openings change as projects book, so availability is confirmed in writing when you request a slot.

Updated October 27, 2026

November 2026

Limited
~26 finished hours open
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Unavailable Nov 26 to 29

December 2026

Fully booked
Waitlist only
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Unavailable Dec 20 to 31

January 2027

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Reserved for projects valued at $1,000 or more (returning clients exempt)

February 2027

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Unavailable Feb 20 to 26

March 2027

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Open scheduling all month

How to read this
  • Open Booking now
  • Limited A few slots left
  • Fully booked Waitlist only
  • Unavailable dates
  • Booked dates

Finished hours are hours of completed audio, based on single-narrator post-production (about 1.5 studio hours per finished hour). Duet and immersive projects use more of the month.

KATVOIX capacity
~20 finished hours / week
single-narrator post-production
~10 finished hours / week
duet post-production
3 business days
typical pickup list for a 5-hour book

Based on KATVOIX tracked production time, August to October 2026.

To request a slot, send
  • – Title, author and series details
  • – Word count or estimated finished hours
  • – Type: single, dual, duet or immersive
  • – Date the raw audio will reach me
  • – Final delivery deadline
  • – Publisher or production company and terms

How booking works. Slots are confirmed in writing. First-time clients hold a slot with a small deposit; returning clients book with no deposit.

08 · Timeline

Standard production pipeline

What to expect at each phase, based on the KATVOIX Media production checklist.

01
Pre-production
5–10 business days
  • Manuscript review
  • Pronunciation guide
  • Character mapping
  • Timeline & milestones
02
Recording
1–2 hrs studio time per finished hour
  • Soundcheck & room tone
  • Clean takes
  • Pickups same session
  • Daily backups
03
Post-production
1.5–3 hrs per finished hour
  • QC & CRX notes
  • De-breath / de-noise
  • EQ & compression
  • ACX leveling
04
Mastering & QC
Included in post
  • ACX RMS/peak/noise floor
  • Continuous playback
  • Final master export
05
Distribution
3–7 business days
  • Retail sample
  • Metadata + cover
  • Upload to ACX/Findaway
  • Author approval
Glossary

The terms every author should know

A plain-English reference for the contracts, rates, and acronyms that come up in audiobook production.