BookFunnel Alternatives for Delivering and Selling Ebooks

BookFunnel solves a specific problem well: getting an ebook file from an author to a reader, and helping the reader open it. Authors use it for reader magnets that grow a mailing list, advance review copies, group promotions and delivering direct sales. It isn't the only way to do those jobs. This guide covers what BookFunnel does and costs, the main alternatives, and how to choose, with prices checked at each company's own pricing page.

What BookFunnel does and costs

Checked October 2026 at BookFunnel's pricing page. First-Time Author rose from $20 to $30 a year.

The key detail for list-building: mailing-list integrations start on Mid-List Author. If your main use is a reader magnet that adds subscribers to your email service automatically, the entry plan may not be enough.

The alternatives at a glance

StoryOrigin

StoryOrigin is the closest like-for-like alternative. Its free Basic plan includes unlimited file delivery, email-marketing integrations, reader tech support, universal retail links, a Facebook pixel and Amazon affiliate tags. The Standard plan, at $10 a month or $100 a year, adds group promos, newsletter swaps, collecting reader email addresses, beta-reader feedback, audiobook promo codes, reviewer vetting and direct-sales ebooks.

StoryOrigin's newsletter swaps, where authors in the same genre recommend each other's books to their lists, are a big draw. If swaps are central to how you grow, it's worth a close look.

Storefronts that deliver files

If your main need is selling ebooks direct, a storefront may be all you need. Payhip, for example, delivers the file automatically after purchase and its help center explains how to set a product to $0 and connect your email service, so a free download can work as a reader magnet that adds subscribers to your list. Its free plan charges 5% per sale plus PayPal or Stripe processing; Plus is $29 a month with 2%, and Pro is $99 a month with no transaction fee. What you give up compared with a dedicated delivery tool is the specialised reader support and the author promo ecosystem. See Payhip alternatives.

Delivering through your email service

Most email services can send an automatic welcome email with a download link. It's free if you already pay for the email service, and simple to set up. The downsides: readers who struggle to load an EPUB onto their device have nobody to help them but you, and a public link can be shared. For a small list and a tech-comfortable readership, it can be enough to start.

Why reader support matters

The unglamorous part of delivering ebooks is support. Some readers don't know how to get an EPUB onto a Kindle, an iPad or a phone app. Every one of those questions lands in your inbox unless your delivery tool handles it. BookFunnel is well known for handling this for authors, and StoryOrigin also lists reader tech support. If you give away a lot of books, that support can be worth more than the subscription.

What each option costs over a year

Subscription prices are easy to compare in isolation, but what matters is the cost for the way you actually work. An author with one reader magnet and a list of a few hundred subscribers might pay nothing on StoryOrigin Basic, $30 a year on BookFunnel's entry plan, or nothing extra through their email service. An author running monthly group promotions and newsletter swaps with automatic list sign-ups is looking at about $100 a year on StoryOrigin Standard or $200 a year on BookFunnel Mid-List.

Add up the tools you'd be replacing, too. If a delivery tool saves you from a separate landing-page service or hours of reader support each month, its price looks different. And if you're paying for features you never use, such as audiobook delivery or extra pen names, a smaller plan or a different tool may save money without losing anything you need.

Keeping control of your files

Any time you give readers a downloadable file, some copies will be shared. Most authors accept a little sharing as the cost of reaching readers, especially for free reader magnets. For paid books, you can reduce sharing by delivering through tools that track downloads, or by selling through a store where books are read in an app rather than downloaded. See protecting your ebooks from piracy for a realistic look at the options.

Where BooksOasis fits, honestly

BooksOasis isn't a delivery tool, and it doesn't replace BookFunnel for reader magnets or review copies. It's a bookstore. Readers browse genres, series, new releases and books on sale from many independent authors, buy your book, and read it in Oasis Reader on any device, without downloading a file. For authors:

• 100% of the ebook price on every sale, with no per-sale cut.
• No file to lose control of: ebooks open in Oasis Reader rather than as downloadable files.
• Ebook, paperback and hardcover on one listing, with print on demand.
• Flat plans from $29.99 a year for 10 books.

A common setup is a delivery tool for your reader magnet and review copies, plus a bookstore where readers who hear about you can buy your books without any file wrangling.

How to choose

Reader magnets: what actually works

Whichever tool you choose, the reader magnet itself matters more than the software. The best magnets are closely tied to your books: a prequel novella, a bonus epilogue, a short story set in your world, or for non-fiction, a practical checklist or workbook that complements the book. Readers who sign up for a magnet like that are likely to enjoy your paid books. Generic giveaways attract subscribers who never open another email.

Put the magnet offer in your back matter, on your website and in your social profiles. Then welcome new subscribers with a short sequence of emails that introduces your books, so the magnet leads somewhere.

Review copies without the hassle

Sending advance review copies is another common use for delivery tools. The advantage of a dedicated tool is control: you can limit how many copies go out, see who downloaded them, and on some tools, check reviewers' history. If you send only a handful of copies to readers you know, emailing a file may be enough. For larger review teams, a tool saves time and keeps track for you.

Switching from BookFunnel

1. List what you use: magnets, integrations, promos, direct sales, review copies.
2. Check the new tool covers them on the plan you're considering.
3. Recreate landing pages and reconnect your email service.
4. Update every link: back matter, website, social profiles and newsletter templates.
5. Keep the old plan briefly so any links you missed still work while you catch them.

Three authors, three setups

A debut fantasy author started with StoryOrigin's free plan for a prequel novella, then moved to Standard once newsletter swaps became the main way the list grew.

A romance author running frequent group promos stayed on BookFunnel Mid-List for its reader support, and lists every book on a bookstore for readers who prefer to buy rather than download.

A non-fiction author uses Payhip to give away a free checklist that adds readers to the mailing list, and sells the book itself through stores.

Sources

Checked October 2026: BookFunnel pricing; BookFunnel: new plans; StoryOrigin pricing; Payhip pricing; Payhip: use Payhip as a lead magnet.

In short

BookFunnel is excellent at delivering files and supporting readers, from $30 a year. StoryOrigin covers much of the same ground with a free plan and a $10-a-month Standard plan, storefronts deliver files as part of a sale, and your email service can handle a simple magnet. For turning browsing readers into buyers, add a bookstore alongside whichever delivery tool you choose.

Curious how readers find books? Browse our reading guides on the BooksOasis store.