PublishDrive vs. BooksOasis: Two Flat-Fee Models Compared

PublishDrive and BooksOasis both break away from the usual percentage-of-every-sale model. PublishDrive is a distributor you pay by subscription: it sends your books to many stores and libraries, takes 0% commission, and passes on everything the stores pay. BooksOasis is a store you pay by yearly plan: it sells your books directly to its readers and pays you 100% of every ebook price, with paperbacks and hardcovers on the same listing.

The similarity in pricing hides a difference in role. PublishDrive gets your book into other stores; BooksOasis is a store. Many authors use both. This guide explains how each works, what each costs, and how they fit together, with PublishDrive's plans taken from its own help center.

Both start with clean files. LiberScript exports an EPUB and a print-ready PDF you can upload to PublishDrive, BooksOasis and any store you go direct with.

At a glance: PublishDrive vs. BooksOasis

How PublishDrive works

PublishDrive charges a subscription based on how many books you distribute. Its help center lists a free plan for one ebook, distributed to Apple Books, Barnes & Noble and Kobo, and paid plans from Starter (3 books, $16.99 a month or $13.99 a month billed annually) to Pro (48 books, $99.99 a month or $83.99 billed annually), with custom plans for publishers with 50 or more titles. All plans come with 0% commission.

Paid plans reach PublishDrive's wider network, which it describes as over 50 retailers and 240,000 libraries, covering ebook, print-on-demand and audiobook distribution. "0% commission" means you keep 100% of what each store pays, not 100% of the list price: a store paying 70% on a $4.99 ebook passes on about $3.49.

How BooksOasis works

BooksOasis is a store, not a distributor. You pay a yearly plan by number of books and list ebook, paperback and hardcover editions on one listing. Readers browse genre shelves, series pages, new releases, a Coming Soon shelf and books on sale, and read ebooks in the Oasis Reader app on any device. Every ebook sale pays you 100% of the price. Print pays the price minus the printing cost and a handling fee of 30% of that printing cost, and readers pay shipping.

What a $4.99 ebook earns

Illustrative, before taxes. Each store's own terms apply; both PublishDrive and BooksOasis have plan fees.

Comparing the costs

PublishDrive's Starter plan, billed annually, costs about $168 a year for three books. BooksOasis's Starter plan costs $29.99 a year for ten books. That's not a like-for-like comparison, because they buy different things: PublishDrive's fee buys distribution to many stores, while BooksOasis's fee buys a listing in one store that pays you in full. The useful question is what each fee earns you. PublishDrive pays off when your books sell steadily across many stores; BooksOasis pays off when you send readers to a store where every ebook sale reaches you in full.

Reach

PublishDrive's reach is its reason to exist: one upload, many stores and library platforms, including markets that are hard to reach alone. BooksOasis reaches its own readers only, but gives you features built for independent authors: series pages with reading order, pre-orders with a release date, promotional prices with start and end dates, a New release label for a book's first 30 days, and verified-purchase reviews.

Print and audio

PublishDrive distributes print-on-demand books and audiobooks into retail channels. BooksOasis sells paperbacks and hardcovers in its own store, printed on demand when a reader orders, in five common trim sizes, with an automatic print-readiness check and a cover template sized to your page count. It doesn't sell audiobooks, so audio stays with PublishDrive or another audio distributor.

Libraries

Library distribution is one of the strongest reasons to use a distributor. Library readers borrow rather than buy, but library platforms pay authors under their own terms, and a borrowed first book can lead a reader to buy the rest of a series. Reaching library platforms alone is difficult, and PublishDrive describes a network of around 240,000 libraries. BooksOasis doesn't reach libraries, so library readers are a clear job for a distributor in your plan.

Pricing across both

When a book is sold in many stores through PublishDrive and also on BooksOasis, keep one list price for each format everywhere, and run promotions for set dates. Some stores watch prices elsewhere and may match a lower one, which can reduce what you earn across the board. BooksOasis promotional prices come with start and end dates, so a sale ends on its own. Because a BooksOasis ebook sale pays the full price, you don't need a lower price there to earn more.

Keeping book details consistent

Every store needs the same core details: title, subtitle, description, categories, keywords, series name and number, and cover. PublishDrive sends one set of details to all its stores; on BooksOasis you enter them on your listing, with three to five genres and at least three search keywords. Keep a master document per book and paste from it, so readers see the same book wherever they find it.

Payments and reporting

With a distributor, sales from many stores arrive in one report and one payment, on the distributor's schedule after each store has paid. BooksOasis records every sale in an earnings ledger you can see at any time, and pays by bank transfer or PayPal. Record both in one simple spreadsheet each month, so you can see which channel earns most for each book.

Using both

1. Format once in LiberScript and export an EPUB and a print PDF.
2. Distribute through PublishDrive to the stores and libraries you want, choosing the plan for your number of books.
3. List directly on BooksOasis, which isn't a PublishDrive channel, with ebook, paperback and hardcover.
4. Keep prices consistent, and send your own readers to BooksOasis for the full price of each ebook sale.

Never send the same book to the same store through two routes. BooksOasis won't appear in PublishDrive's list, because you list there yourself.

Monthly or annual?

PublishDrive's annual billing costs less per month on every paid plan, which suits authors confident about their catalogue for the year. BooksOasis plans are yearly by default, with the price covering the whole year. If you're testing either service, start small and scale up as your catalogue and sales grow.

Three authors, three setups

A new author uses PublishDrive's free plan to reach Apple Books, Barnes & Noble and Kobo with a first ebook, and lists the book on BooksOasis with a paperback for newsletter readers.

A romance author with 15 books selling steadily chooses PublishDrive Plus for wide distribution with no commission, and keeps the whole series on BooksOasis with a series page and pre-orders.

A small press with a large backlist uses a custom PublishDrive plan for distribution and BooksOasis's 500-book plan as its own storefront.

When PublishDrive fits better

• You want your books in many stores and libraries from one upload.
• Your sales are high enough that a subscription beats a commission.
• You distribute audiobooks too.

When BooksOasis fits better

• You want 100% of every ebook sale, not 100% of a store's share.
• You want a low-cost plan covering many books.
• You want paperbacks and hardcovers on the same listing, with series pages and pre-orders.

Frequently asked questions

What does PublishDrive cost? Free for one ebook; paid plans from $16.99 a month (Starter, 3 books) to $99.99 a month (Pro, 48 books), cheaper billed annually. All with 0% commission.

What does BooksOasis cost? $29.99 a year for 10 books, $179 for 100 and $599 for 500, paying 100% of every ebook price.

Is BooksOasis one of PublishDrive's stores? No. You list on BooksOasis directly.

Can I use both? Yes. Neither requires exclusivity.

Does "0% commission" mean I get the full list price? No. It means PublishDrive passes on everything the store pays. The store still keeps its share.

Will LiberScript files work on both? Yes. LiberScript exports standard EPUB and print-ready PDF files.

More reading: PublishDrive alternatives on the BooksOasis publisher site, and our Draft2Digital vs. BooksOasis comparison.

The bottom line

PublishDrive and BooksOasis both charge flat fees, but for different jobs: PublishDrive distributes your books widely and passes on every cent the stores pay; BooksOasis is a store that pays you the whole ebook price. Use PublishDrive for reach, BooksOasis for the sales you steer yourself, and one LiberScript file for both.