Blinkist’s seven-day free trial sounds straightforward, but there are a few details that can affect how you actually experience it. Its trial information also isn’t completely consistent across its website, making it worth checking the specific offer and terms you’re presented with before signing up.
This guide explains what’s included in Blinkist’s free trial, where you can use it, what to consider when testing a book-summary service, and why you might want to consider an alternative book summary app.
Always verify the latest trial information directly on the official Blinkist website, as details may change.
Table of Contents
What Do You Get With the Blinkist Free Trial?
If you’re eligible for Blinkist’s free trial, you get access to all Premium features for seven days. (It’s worth noting that Blinkist doesn’t clarify what makes someone eligible for a free trial, which is one of the reasons why Blinkist’s free trial offer can be confusing.)
That includes:
- 9,000+ book and podcast summaries covering fiction and nonfiction
- 15-minute text and audio summaries that you can read or listen to
- 27 categories covering topics such as personal growth, science, history, and business
- Blinkist Guides, which offer deeper dives into content topics
- Shorts, Blinkist’s shorter-form content
- Kindle integration, which lets you send reads to your Kindle
- Offline access for reading and listening without an internet connection
- Personalized daily recommendations
- Premium Sharing, which lets you share your Premium subscription with a friend or family member at no additional cost
The trial doesn’t give you access to Blinkist’s entire feature set: Blinkist AI is a feature of the Pro plan, while the Platinum plan adds features such as Live Sessions and Infographics.
Discover the differences between Blinkist Pro and Premium in my comparison article.
If you decide not to continue your trial, Blinkist says you can cancel up to 24 hours before the trial ends and still use all Premium features until the seven-day trial period expires. That means that you’ll be charged if you delay cancelation until the trial ends (or even just before).
Can You Use the Blinkist Free Trial on Desktop?
One page for Blinkist’s free trial information states that trial access is available only through its mobile apps. This makes it seem like the trial is available to experience only on mobile, even if you sign up on desktop.
Some other Blinkist pages, however, use broader language about using a trial on desktop. It’s worth checking the specific offer and terms you’re presented with, since Blinkist’s trial information isn’t consistent across its site.
Blinkist’s Free Trial vs. Shortform’s Free Trial
More days don’t necessarily mean a better trial. What matters most is how much freedom you have to evaluate the service. Shortform gives you complete freedom with its free trial.
| Blinkist | Shortform | |
| Free trial length | Seven days | Five days |
| Desktop access | Unclear | Yes |
| Mobile access | Yes | Yes |
| Plan choice | Premium annual | Monthly and annual |
Blinkist gives you two additional days, but Shortform gives you a more complete trial experience that isn’t riddled with confusion. With Shortform, it’s clear you can use your trial on desktop or mobile and choose whether to start with a monthly or annual subscription. Plus, you get access to everything Shortform has to offer; you don’t have to worry about running into locked features.
Here’s what you can explore during those five days:
- 10,000+ book guides covering nonfiction titles across 30+ categories
- 1,000+ exclusive articles and topic guides on important ideas and current topics
- Podcast guides covering popular episodes
- In-depth analysis and commentary that goes beyond a basic summary
- Interactive exercises that help you test your understanding and apply ideas
- Audio narrations for every guide, including offline listening through the mobile app
- PDF downloads of guides for offline reading
- Highlights and notes to save and revisit important ideas
- Community discussions where you can discuss guides with other readers
Blinkist is built around concise summaries of books and podcasts, while Shortform provides more in-depth guides, analysis, exercises, audio, and PDFs. That means Shortform’s five-day trial gives you an opportunity to evaluate a broader set of learning tools, rather than simply seeing whether you like condensed summaries.
Ultimately, the best free trial is the one that helps you make a confident decision. Compared to Blinkist, Shortform’s free trial is quite easy to start. Five days with Shortform also allows you to experience the full product before you pay for a subscription, so you can decide based on what you’re actually getting—not what might become available after you subscribe.
Conclusion
A Blinkist free trial can give you a useful introduction to the service. Consider how you prefer to read, where you want to use the service, and how much you want to explore before committing to a subscription, and what you ultimately want out of a book summary service. If Blinkist’s trial doesn’t match those preferences, Shortform is worth considering as an alternative.
FAQ
Does Blinkist have a free trial?
Yes. Blinkist offers a free trial for eligible users. The trial is only for the Premium annual plan.
How long is Blinkist’s free trial?
Blinkist’s free trial is for seven days.
How do I start Blinkist’s free trial?
Blinkist has conflicting information on how to start a free trial, so you might need to reach out to Blinkist support.
Do I have to provide my payment information during Blinkist’s free trial?
Yes, but Blinkist says that you’re not charged until the end of the trial.
Is the Blinkist free trial available on desktop?
This is unclear. Blinkist’s dedicated free-trial page says trial access is available only through its mobile apps, but other pages make it seem like you can use it on a web browser.
What happens when the Blinkist free trial ends?
If you don’t cancel before the trial ends, your subscription transitions to the paid plan (see more about Blinkist’s pricing plans here) you agreed to when you started the trial. Blinkist subscriptions automatically renew according to their applicable terms.
Can I cancel the Blinkist free trial and keep using it?
Yes. Blinkist says you can cancel up to 24 hours before the trial ends and still retain Premium access until the seven-day trial period expires.
Is Shortform’s free trial better than Blinkist’s?
Shortform’s free trial is shorter at five days, but it gives you access to the full platform on both desktop and mobile, with the choice of a monthly or annual subscription. That can make it a better option if you want to thoroughly evaluate a book-learning service before subscribing.
