The survey, which tracked regular readers who had read at least one book in the previous month and at least four books in the previous year, found that the traditional act of purchasing a new book has become a minority habit.

When looking specifically at text formats (print books and ebooks combined), a mere 25% of all books read in the previous month were acquired new or via a paid subscription. If you isolate standalone purchases, that number drops even further:

• 19% of books read were bought as new print or ebook copies.

• 6% were accessed through paid subscription models (like Kindle Unlimited).

• 10% were purchased used—a market that yields zero royalties for creators.

• 64% were entirely free to the reader, sourced from libraries (29%), personal collections (19%), or free borrowing from other sources, including piracy (16%).

When text and audio formats are combined, nearly two-thirds (64%) of all surveyed readers did not buy a single new book or audiobook in the prior month.

Public libraries are an essential cultural cornerstone, but the study highlights a profound substitution effect that is directly impacting author livelihoods.

Interestingly, the shift away from buying isn't being driven by readers who are strapped for cash. The study found that active library members are actually more likely to be college-educated, employed full-time, and earning over $75,000 a year.

While these active library users read 16% more books than non-members, they buy 42% fewer new books.

The financial blow isn't just hitting niche or indie writers. The Codex Group tested a list of 35 major 'brand-name' authors—including household names like Stephen King, Colleen Hoover, and James Patterson. The results showed that high name recognition actually accelerates the borrowing trend:

• Fans of these major authors were 35% more likely to borrow their last book from a library.

• They were 28% less likely to purchase the book new.

Because libraries stock and promote these massive titles aggressively, bestselling authors are seeing their highest-earning channel (new book sales) systematically replaced by borrowing.

While these recent numbers highlight a new low point, the economic decline of the writing profession is part of a longer, structural crisis. The Authors Guild's most recent income survey (2023) found that the median income for a full-time author from their books sits at just $10,000 a year (or $20,000 when factoring in all writing-related work), representing a staggering 42% decline in author earnings since 2009.

However, looking back at historical data from the Authors Guild's 2018 Author Income Survey—the largest survey of U.S. professional writers ever conducted, with over 5,000 respondents—provides important earlier context.

• The same 42% decline, measured differently: The 2018 survey found that the median income of all surveyed authors (full- and part-time, all writing-related work) fell 42% from $10,500 in 2009 to $6,080 in 2017. This is measured against the same baseline year, and of roughly the same magnitude, as the 2023 figure above—it is not a separate, additional collapse stacked on top of it. The two surveys simply track different groups (all authors versus full-time authors) against 2009, so the two declines should not be added together.

• The devastation of pure book income: In that same era, income derived purely from book sales fell even harder—dropping 21% between 2013 and 2017 (from $3,900 to $3,100) and over 50% from 2009's median book earnings of $6,250. Full-time traditionally published authors did considerably better, with a median book income of $12,400 in 2017—roughly four times the all-author median.

• The rise of 'zero earners': Alarmingly, roughly 25% of all published authors surveyed earned exactly $0 in book-related income in 2017 (alongside 18% of full-time authors). This drastic statistic was heavily driven by a steep decline in ongoing royalties for older, backlist books and a shrinking ability to secure decent advances for new ones. If these zero earners are factored into the averages, the mean book earnings for that year dragged down to a heartbreaking $490.

• A shift to supplemental work: Even back in 2017, full-time book authors only managed a median income of $20,300 after scrambling for supplemental writing-related income, such as speaking engagements, teaching, or book reviewing. In fact, only 21% of full-time authors could rely 100% on book income alone.

• The plight of literary fiction: Literary fiction writers experienced the single biggest collapse in book-related income, plummeting 27% between 2013 and 2017.

While self-published authors did see their book-related income almost double during that mid-2010s window, their overall median income levels still remained 50% to 58% lower than traditionally published authors at the time. Furthermore, top-tier traditionally published authors in the highest decile earned a median of $305,000, while top-decile self-published authors earned 50% less ($154,000).