Reading nation Russia: books more expensive, online retailers more dominant

The Soviet Union was once considered a reader's paradise par excellence. Russia is also one of the world's greatest reading nations today. Books are inexpensive in the country, although the trend toward higher prices in recent years has caused some books to become slow sellers. Meanwhile, traditional bookstores are engaged in a bitter battle for customers with online marketplaces—and usually come out on the losing end in price wars.

Book prices in Russia have risen steadily in recent years. According to the Russian Booksellers Association (ASKR), the average book price has risen from 374 rubles (4.11 euros) in 2021 to 560 rubles (6.15 euros). From January to November 2025, buyers spent an average of 837 rubles (9.30 euros) on books and bookstore items, according to calculations by the analysis service provider Check Index of the Russian tax data operator OFD-Plattform. Expenditures thus rose by 9% compared to the previous year, while sales figures declined by 4%.

The industry already recorded significantly fewer buyers in 2024, as figures from market research company Businesstat show. Since 2020, book sales in Russia have fallen from an average of 385 million to 373 million in 2024. The only exception is the pandemic year 2021, which saw strong readership, with 414 million books sold.  

Largest publishers

According to the Russian Association of Book Printing Industry (GIPP), the volume of the Russian book market in 2024 totaled 135.2 billion rubles, equivalent to 1.48 billion euros, which represented an increase of 10.6% over the previous year. Oleg Novikov, president of the Eksmo-AST publishing group, expects further growth of 10% in 2025. This growth is due to the annual increase in book prices.

Eksmo is one of the largest publishers on the Russian book market. In 2024, the company generated revenues of 21.8 billion rubles, or 239.7 million euros, an increase of 16% over the previous year. In second place is the AST publishing house with 9.5 billion rubles, or 104.4 million euros (+10%). Both publishers belong to the Eksmo-AST publishing group. The top three is rounded off by the Rosman publishing house with 9 billion rubles, or around 99 million euros (+9). Behind them are Azbooka-Attikus with 5.7 billion rubles, approximately 62.7 million euros (+15%), and Alpina Publisher with 1.7 billion rubles, 18.7 million euros (+23%).

Chapter: Price dumping

Traditional bookstores see marketplaces that attract customers with price dumping as their biggest competitors. Many bookstores cannot keep up with the low pricing policies of Russian online giants Ozon and Wildberries. This is because the price difference is sometimes considerable. For example, a current bestseller is available in stores or the respective online publisher's shop for around 1,000 rubles, equivalent to 11 euros, but on online marketplaces, the coveted novel costs only 600 rubles, or 6.60 euros. This sometimes leads to absurd scenes, with potential customers leafing through a book in a store and then ordering it from an online giant the very next moment, industry representatives complain.

Market participants do not share the widespread view that audiobooks, traditional books, and e-books compete with each other. On the contrary, a successful audiobook can even boost sales of a traditional book. According to the Russian audiobook publisher Bimbo, 70% of audiobook consumers switch to books and e-books that they have not read since their school days.

Cheaper than the rest

Despite price increases, the Russian book market is impressive by international standards. In both Europe and the US, people spend significantly more money on reading material. On average, a European hardcover costs between €27 and €44, and a paperback between €16 and €27. In Russia, on the other hand, bookworms pay an average of 800 to 1,500 rubles, around 9 to 16.50 euros, for a hardcover and 500 to 800 rubles, 5.50 to 8.80 euros, for a paperback. Experts point to a special feature of European book markets. In countries such as Germany, France, Spain, and the Netherlands, book prices are set by law, and even online giants such as Amazon are not allowed to sell below these prices. This protects smaller and independent bookstores from aggressive price dumping by competitors.

Print run and paper are decisive

One of the biggest price drivers for the Russian book market is production costs. According to industry representatives, these depend on two factors: print run and paper prices. Printing accounts for 60% of production costs, with paper accounting for the remaining 40%. According to Sergei Rubis, head of fiction at AST Publishing, printing costs have risen by 70-80% over the past three to four years. Boris Kuznetsov, director of Rosman Publishing, estimates that printing costs will rise by 25-30% in 2024, with a further 10-12% increase last year.

The smaller the print run, the higher the cost per unit produced. A book's print run is profitable for the publisher if it at least covers the production costs. Today, 2,500 to 3,000 copies are considered optimal. The crux of the matter is that the book may not sell well. Konstantin Lun, production manager at Alpina Publisher, explains: "The first print run should be the minimum level of profitability. Publishing houses generate their main income from reprinting bestsellers." It is precisely in these cases that readers can hope for reduced book prices, because the publishing costs have already been covered at this point, adds Lun.

Bookworm ranking

According to the analysis platform World Population Review, most of the world's bookworms live in the US. Americans read an average of seven hours per week and get through 17 books per year. Second and third place go to India (6.55 hours per week, 16 books per year) and the UK (6.30 hours per week, 15 books per year). France and Italy rank fourth and fifth. The French read 5.50 hours per week and 14 books per year, while Italians spend 5.20 hours per week reading and manage 13 books per year. Russia occupies a solid sixth place in this ranking with around 4.30 hours of reading per week and eleven books per year. Germany comes in a distant 25th place – 2.40 hours per week and around six books per year. 

This article first appeared in the exclusive newsletter of the German-Russian Chamber of Foreign Trade.

This article first appeared in the exclusive newsletter of the German-Russian Chamber of Foreign Trade.