Akoue does not download books: it puts in order the ones you already have. A folder of MP3s, an archive, files from a cloud or a messenger become a book with an author, chapters and a cover.
Import goes through the “Add books” screen. Wherever the files come from, the app walks nested folders, splits them into books, works out the chapter order, reads the tags and finds a cover. A folder picked in Files or sent through Share gets a question about how to bring it in; the app’s own import folder is taken by moving, and separate files are copied.
Import is free and has no limit on the number of books. On iOS 26 and later it can carry on even with the app in the background, and an import interrupted midway offers to continue at the next launch.
01/08
Add a folder or files from Files
The most direct way: point the app at a folder in iCloud Drive, On My iPhone or an external drive.
In the Library tap “+” in the top right corner and choose “Add a folder of files”.
Tap “Choose in Files” and pick a folder or separate files: audio, zip archives and texts — epub, fb2, pdf, rtf, doc, docx, txt, md.
If you picked several audio files, or one together with other files, the app asks “Is this one book or several?”. “One book” puts the selection into one folder and handles it as a book folder, with the audio in name order and the files, or the chapters recorded in them, as chapters; “Separate books” starts a book per file. Several .m4b files are always separate books, without asking.
Wait for “Import finished”. An empty library offers the same with its “Add books” button.
Files in iCloud Drive that are not on the phone yet are downloaded by the import itself: under the “Downloading from iCloud” stage you see “Downloaded M of N”. A book is never created from only part of its chapters. In an audiobook folder, a release description — txt, nfo, md, rtf, doc, docx under any name — isn’t imported; with “Move” it may go together with the book’s folder, and cancelling won’t bring it back. An epub, fb2 or pdf in such a folder becomes the audiobook’s text when the folder yields one book without the “one book or a collection” question; otherwise it becomes a separate book.
02/08
Copy, move or leave in place
When a single folder is picked in Files or a folder is sent through Share, the app asks what to do with it. There is no default answer: you decide.
Pick a folder and the question appears: “Folder “…” — how to bring it in?”.
“Copy” — the originals stay in the folder and the app gets a copy. The gentlest option.
“Move” — the files leave the folder for the app; cancelling the import puts them back.
“Leave in place” — the book is a link with no copy: the app reads the files straight from your folder. Remove or move the folder and the book goes silent until the folder is back.
A linked book is never offloaded to iCloud and is left out of auto-cleanup: it takes no room in the app’s storage. If the system has moved its folder’s files out to the cloud, the book still plays — chapters are fetched as it goes.
03/08
The Akoue folder in Files, Share and AirDrop
The app has its own folder in Files, and in the Finder when connected by cable. Whatever lands there, the app notices on its own.
Put a book folder into Files → On My iPhone → Akoue. Or send a file to Akoue with Share from Telegram, Mail or AirDrop: it lands in the same folder and the import screen opens at once. A large file from another app takes a moment to copy: meanwhile the screen shows “Receiving files…” and “Take from the folder” is unavailable. If a file cannot be received, the screen shows “File not received” and the reason; send it again.
On the Now and Library tabs a banner appears: “N books in the import folder” with the size.
While files are still copying, the banner waits: taking half-copied files would leave the book truncated.
Tap “Add”. Nothing moves by itself: taking the files is always your decision.
You can share a folder too: in Files, touch and hold the folder, tap Share and choose Akoue. It arrives whole, and the app asks whether to copy it, move it or leave it in place.
Of several selected files, iOS passes only one through Share, and the import screen says so. “Select all” opens Files, where you can mark them all at once: once you have chosen, the received copy leaves the import folder and the original stays where it is. If you sent just one file, close the hint with its cross: the file stays in the import folder.
The cross on the banner hides it until new files appear. The folder itself is empty again after import: the files move into the app’s storage.
04/08
Take from the folder and follow the progress
The import screen shows what lies in the app’s folder and the eight stages of parsing.
At the top of the screen is the list “N books in the app’s folder”: each folder’s name, file count and size.
Tap “Take from the folder”. Below is “Another source”, to pick something in Files instead.
The stages run in order: scanning the folder, downloading from iCloud if anything is still in the cloud, splitting into books, file order, metadata, checking author and title, saving to the library, search index. While saving to the catalog you see a file count and a percentage.
The “Cancel” button stops the import after the current stage, and an iCloud download at once: the books are removed from the library and the files return to the folder they came from. While copying from Files, cancelling takes effect after the current file: the copies are removed and the originals stay put.
On iOS 26 and later, import carries on in the background if the system allows the time, and the system shows its progress. Otherwise, as on earlier versions, it waits for you to come back. If the app was closed midway, the next launch offers a choice: “Continue import” or “Cancel import”.
05/08
Check the author and title before saving
When the folder name leaves doubt, the app asks instead of guessing silently.
A screen “Check the author and title” appears with the “Author”, “Title” and “Narrator” fields already filled with a guess.
Under a doubtful field it says why: for example “Doesn’t look like a person’s name” or “The title was guessed from the folder name”.
Fix what is needed and tap “Correct, next”. On the last book the button is “Correct, add”.
“Cancel import” here cancels the whole import: the files stay where they were and nothing entered the library.
The question is asked one book at a time and only where parsing is unsure. An author or narrator the library already knows removes the question for that field.
06/08
Read the report
At the end the “Import finished” screen lists what came together by itself and what is worth a look.
The line under the heading gives the number of books and files, and the number of questions if there is anything to decide.
“Needs a decision”: the app could not tell which book an edition belongs to, or is not sure whether this is one book or a collection. “Sort out” opens the “Where it belongs” sheet, and a folder in question has “One book or a collection?”.
“Done without asking”: an edition was attached to an existing book — or an e-book to the audiobook from the same folder, shown as “… · from the book’s folder” — or a possible duplicate was found. An attached edition can be detached.
“Notes”: cover not found, file order unreliable, format not supported or protected, suspicious title encoding.
The report is shown once and closed with “Close”. The books are already in the library; the notes do not affect them.
07/08
Repair broken text encoding
Titles from old torrents often arrive garbled: `Stanis³aw Lem` instead of “Stanisław Lem”. Fixed in one tap, with a preview.
In the report, next to the “Title encoding” note, tap the fix button. The same screen opens from the banner on the book card.
For each field, title, author, narrator and series, it shows readings with the encoding and a confidence, for example “Windows-1251 · confidence 91 %”. The original comes first.
Pick the right readings and tap “Apply”.
Confidence is a plausibility estimate; the choice is yours. The original spelling is not lost: under a corrected field, the book’s edit screen offers “Restore”.
08/08
A book without files
Finished a book in another app or read it on paper? Record it in the catalog so the series and the statistics are complete.
In the Library tap “+” and choose “Book without files”.
Fill in “Title”; the rest is optional: author, series and its number, universe, year, and under “More” the narrator, the original language and a note.
Under “Where it was read” pick what the book was: “Paper book”, “E-book”, “Audiobook” or “Other”. The record becomes the book’s external edition.
Under “Status” set finished, listening, set aside or not started, and the duration; for a started or set-aside book, roughly how far you got as well. Tap “Add”.
A film, series or stage play based on the book is added later from its card: “•••” → “Add external edition”. Files are brought in from the same place, with the “Add files” button.
What import does not do
It does not open Audible files (aax, aaxc): they are protected and show up in the report as “Format is protected”.
It does not convert ogg, wma or ape: such files are marked “Format not supported” and do not enter the book.
It does not go online for covers or descriptions: everything comes from your files and folders.
It does not support drag and drop on iPad or rar and 7z archives.