BookBub Free Reads Review (2026): Indie Author Results with 13,000+ Downloads Across Platforms

Rusty Star was the book being promoted.

It must have been around a decade ago when I first heard of BookBub. As an independent author, the service is virtually a slam dunk for getting fresh downloads and purchases. The first time I contemplated applying was with The Fox and the Girl series. I just finished writing the last two books, and with a completed series and virtually no traction, the idea of being selected and potentially reaching thousands of new readers was undoubtedly tempting.

Then reality set in. There was an application process and vetting, with whatever whim they decided to follow on a given day. Sure, they will say otherwise, but it’s odd how some books with few to no ratings get selected, while others with well over a hundred get no love either. Either way, it doesn’t matter. Authors know that if you can get a featured deal “Bub,” it will mean a bump in sales, regardless.

I can’t tell you how many times I applied only to be rejected. Let me think for a moment … maybe nine is the current number. That sounds about right. The first one was in 2018.  

When I wasn’t selected for this opportunity, to fork over a boatload of money to gain access to more readers, I found myself using Fussy Librarian. Over the years, this has been a reliable service, where I know I’ll get some eyes. Some genres do better than others, but I would say it’s worth the price point, even though it’s not the thousands of downloads that BookBub can bring.

To that end, I recently applied to BookBub for a featured deal and wasn’t selected. Not a big surprise at all, but what was surprising was that I was offered a slot to participate in their relatively new service, Free Reads. Full disclosure: I couldn’t find much about this (it only started in fall 2025), and what were the typical results for people who put their free books in this newsletter. 

Hence, this week’s blog shares some numbers so other writers aren’t entirely in the dark. Then again, my personal findings are interesting regardless, because without knowing the exact readership numbers to BookBub’s Free Reads newsletters and the genres they put as preferences, it’s a bit grey. I also can’t tell you how much of a bump was given by the readership versus just being at the top of the charts, and between getting movement on the Amazon and Apple algorithms.

Let’s dig into the actual numbers and interpret them accordingly. 

The price point for this promotion, to put Rusty Star in the Free Reads newsletter, was $500.00. In comparison, I paid $79.00 for Fussy Librarian. 

The Fussy Librarian promotion was in early March. All told, on Amazon, if I did the numbers right, I got 1069 downloads. On Google Books, 96, and between Apple/Barnes & Noble, because I can’t differentiate them right now, there were 483 books.

That promotion brought in 1648 downloads. From what I have observed, my ratings on Amazon went from 18 to 28, and Goodreads was in the low 20s. 

I applied to BookBub with 28 ratings and possibly one or two on Apple. 

Let’s look at the week leading up to the Free Reads promotion. In some act of cosmic humor, and maybe also to prove to me that I don’t need to pay to move any of my books, three days before the scheduled promotion, there were around 55 downloads each on Apple and Barnes & Noble. There might have been 5 on Google Books. More interestingly, 1928 downloads from Amazon. We’ll call that the Stephen Anniversary treat.

In effect, that was more than my Fussy promotion, and it was entirely just algorithm-driven. Even the rankings on Amazon were good enough to break the top 100 overall. 

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The numbers the day before the Free Reads promotion. At the peak, Rusty Star was #6 Free in the Kindle Store.

The Free Reads newsletter was emailed out later that week, and things really took off. 

Amazon - 11,081 downloads over the course of my promotion. 

In a remarkable newsworthy moment, there were approximately 2200 downloads through Apple/Barnes & Noble, with roughly 1600 to Apple and 600 to Barnes & Noble. Just for fun, Google Books jumped in and contributed 703. 

All told, from April 17 to April 28, 13,984 downloads across all platforms. If I wanted to sneak in the bump earlier in the week, 15,921 downloads for half the month. 

What does this mean exactly? Well, it means I potentially gained thousands of readers this month. Ratings on Amazon have gone from 28 to 41. Now there’s no way to tell how many of those were from my mid-April bump or from the promotion. Goodreads is now at 54. Double Cross, the follow-up book, has garnered 12 sales. 

On Apple, oh how I love Apple readers, we have gone from 2 ratings to 40. Given its significantly lower downloads, that number is revealing. It means that Apple readers are more serious about their books, while the Amazon ones might just store them for a rainy day. Double Cross purchases are currently at 9. 
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And because we shouldn't leave anyone out, the ratings for Barnes and Noble are abysmal. There are zero, yes, zero ratings, despite 600 downloads. Or I simply can’t figure out where to find them. Then again, Google Books, I believe, is at five.

It’s still early in the process, but after two weeks of running the promotion, those are the numbers. I don’t know if I would do it again for the price point. Sure, I’m now showing up on more people’s recommended lists, and I can brag about being number one on several Amazon genre lists, but aside from that, I have to sit and wait to see if I make my money back. 

As an independent author, while fun to share my stories, between editing costs, book cover design, and promotions, I have yet to break even on any project. That’s the reality of my writing journey. But I love what I create and will keep finding ways to get more eyes on my catalog. 

I’ll update with more numbers at the end of May, but that’s it for today.

Later,
JFK

Update May 15 - While the Apple reviews have slowed, Amazon has taken off. Maybe it just took readers longer to get to the book. Current numbers as of this morning are Apple at 43 ratings, Amazon at 60, and Goodreads at 67.  For perspective, Apple had only a tenth as many downloads as Amazon. 

Double Cross sales over the same time are an even three on Apple and three on Amazon. 

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