Is it better to listen to podcasts or audiobooks for improving English?

There’s an ongoing debate about whether to choose audiobooks or podcasts.

Both have their advantages, but I personally prefer audiobooks, and I’ll tell you why.

The problem with podcasts is that because they’re natural conversations, they’re easier to understand, and you usually don’t pay enough attention.

You can grasp the main ideas by catching just a few concepts during the conversation. Additionally, the topics discussed on podcasts are often abstract and don’t create vivid images in your mind.

This is the same effect you get from audiobooks about self-help, personal improvement, or technical fields—it’s just a bunch of information.

However, audiobooks—specifically those that aren’t self-help or purely educational—are different.

There are audiobooks about romance, adventure, and many other genres that can generate images in your head because the narrator is describing scenes and dialogues.

They’re also more measured in pace, so you can catch and understand more words.

They’re also more challenging because if you don’t pay attention, you’ll probably get lost in the story.

So you see, there are many advantages when it comes to narrative audiobooks in English.

Just by listening one hour a day—while commuting to work or washing the dishes—you can improve your English significantly.