Top 10 List

Best Audiobooks for Loneliness (2026): 10 Picks

Ten audiobooks for loneliness, from Vivek Murthy's Together to novels like Eleanor Oliphant, with every runtime and narrator checked against Audible.

Books 10
Updated November 2026
Total Length ~91 hours
Loneliness
Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World audiobook cover Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make and Keep Friends audiobook cover Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection audiobook cover The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness audiobook cover
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Curated by Readiolist
PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 10, 2026

Loneliness is not the same as being alone, and the best books on it start there. Some explain what it is and why it hurts: Together by former US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, Loneliness by the scientist who pioneered its study, and The Good Life, built on a Harvard study that has followed people for more than 80 years. Some help you do something about it: Platonic is about making and keeping friends as an adult, and Supercommunicators about the conversations that actually connect people.

And some simply keep you company. Two novels close the list, Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine and A Man Called Ove, both about lonely people slowly letting others in. An audiobook will not replace a friend, but a voice in the room, a story that recognises how you feel, can make the evenings easier while you work on the rest. Six of the ten are read by their authors.

At a glance

#AudiobookLengthRead by
1Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely WorldVivek H. Murthy10h 53mVivek H. Murthy (author)
2Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make and Keep FriendsMarisa G. Franco10h 57mMarisa G. Franco (author)
3Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social ConnectionJohn T. Cacioppo and William Patrick10h 32mDick Hill
4The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of HappinessRobert Waldinger and Marc Schulz11h 9mRobert Waldinger, Marc Schulz (author)
5Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand AloneBrené Brown4h 12mBrené Brown (author)
6How to Be Alone: If You Want to, and Even If You Don'tLane Moore6h 3mLane Moore (author)
7The Lonely City: Adventures in the Art of Being AloneOlivia Laing9h 37mTilda Swinton
8Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of ConnectionCharles Duhigg7h 28mCharles Duhigg (author)
9Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely FineGail Honeyman11h 2mCathleen McCarron
10A Man Called OveFredrik Backman9h 13mJ. K. Simmons

Short on time? Start with Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone, the shortest listen here at 4h 12m.

Lengths and narrators are from Audible's US catalog.

1
Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World by Vivek H. Murthy audiobook cover

Together: The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World

Vivek H. Murthy 10h 53m
Read by Vivek H. Murthy · the author

Vivek Murthy, who served as US Surgeon General, began this book after hearing about loneliness everywhere he travelled. He treats it as a health issue as serious as any other, explains why so many people feel it, and spends the second half on what helps: small, regular contact, service to others, and making space for the people already in your life. Murthy reads it himself, warmly and without lecturing.

ResearchPublic HealthConnection
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2
Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make and Keep Friends by Marisa G. Franco audiobook cover

Platonic: How the Science of Attachment Can Help You Make and Keep Friends

Marisa G. Franco 10h 57m
Read by Marisa G. Franco · the author

Psychologist Marisa Franco argues that adult friendship does not happen by itself the way it did at school; it needs initiative. Her most useful point is research showing that people tend to underestimate how much others like them, which is why so many of us wait to be invited. The book uses attachment theory to explain why some of us find friendship harder, and is full of practical advice. Franco reads it herself.

FriendshipAttachmentPractical
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3
Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection by John T. Cacioppo and William Patrick audiobook cover

Loneliness: Human Nature and the Need for Social Connection

John T. Cacioppo and William Patrick 10h 32m
Read by Dick Hill

John Cacioppo was the neuroscientist who did more than anyone to establish loneliness as a subject of serious research. His central idea is that loneliness works like hunger: a signal that we need something, in this case connection. It also explains why chronic loneliness can make people more wary of others, which keeps it going. The most scientific book here. Read by Dick Hill.

ScienceNeuroscienceClassic
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4
The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness by Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz audiobook cover

The Good Life: Lessons from the World's Longest Scientific Study of Happiness

Robert Waldinger and Marc Schulz 11h 9m
Read by Robert Waldinger, Marc Schulz · the author

The directors of the Harvard Study of Adult Development, which has followed its participants and their families for more than 80 years, report its clearest finding: the quality of our relationships predicts health and happiness better than almost anything else. It is hopeful rather than alarming, with practical chapters on keeping friendships and family ties alive. Both authors read it.

ResearchRelationshipsHappiness
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5
Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone by Brené Brown audiobook cover

Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone

Brené Brown 4h 12m
Read by Brené Brown · the author

Brené Brown's book about the kind of loneliness that comes from not fitting in. Her argument is that true belonging does not require changing who you are, and that it starts with being willing to stand alone sometimes. It is the shortest book on this list and Brown reads it herself.

BelongingShort ListenCourage
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6
How to Be Alone: If You Want to, and Even If You Don't by Lane Moore audiobook cover

How to Be Alone: If You Want to, and Even If You Don't

Lane Moore 6h 3m
Read by Lane Moore · the author

Comedian and writer Lane Moore grew up without a family she could rely on, and this memoir is about learning to build a life without that safety net. It is funny and painful in equal measure, and especially good for listeners whose loneliness has deep roots. Moore reads it herself.

MemoirHumorFamily
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7
The Lonely City: Adventures in the Art of Being Alone by Olivia Laing audiobook cover

The Lonely City: Adventures in the Art of Being Alone

Olivia Laing 9h 37m
Read by Tilda Swinton

Olivia Laing moved to New York and found herself profoundly alone, and turned to artists who knew the feeling, including Edward Hopper and Andy Warhol. Part memoir, part art criticism, it is the most literary book on this list and treats loneliness as something to understand rather than escape. This 10th-anniversary recording is read by Tilda Swinton, with a new afterword read by Laing herself.

EssayArtCity Life
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8
Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection by Charles Duhigg audiobook cover

Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection

Charles Duhigg 7h 28m
Read by Charles Duhigg · the author

Charles Duhigg, author of The Power of Habit, looks at why some conversations bring people closer and others don't. His key idea is that every conversation is really one of three kinds, practical, emotional or social, and that connection fails when the two people are having different ones. Useful if you have people around you but still feel unheard. Duhigg reads it himself.

ConversationConnectionPractical
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9
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman audiobook cover

Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine

Gail Honeyman 11h 2m
Read by Cathleen McCarron

Eleanor lives alone in Glasgow, follows the same routine every week, and insists she is fine. A small act of kindness from a coworker begins to change that. The novel is funny, then gradually darker as her past comes into view, and ultimately hopeful. Cathleen McCarron's Scottish narration is widely praised.

NovelFictionHope
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10
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman audiobook cover

A Man Called Ove

Fredrik Backman 9h 13m
Read by J. K. Simmons

Ove is a grumpy widower who has given up on everyone, until new neighbours move in next door and refuse to leave him alone. A warm, funny, sad novel about how connection can find even people who have stopped looking for it. This recording is read by J.K. Simmons.

NovelFictionGrief
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Frequently Asked
What is the best audiobook about loneliness? +
Together by Vivek Murthy, the former US Surgeon General who made loneliness a public health issue. It runs 10 hours 53 minutes on Audible and Murthy reads it himself. For something practical, Platonic by psychologist Marisa Franco is about how to make friends as an adult.
What is a short audiobook about loneliness? +
Braving the Wilderness by Brené Brown runs 4 hours 12 minutes and is read by the author. It is about belonging, and about feeling like you don't fit in.
Are there novels about loneliness on audio? +
Yes. Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman and A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman are both about isolated people who slowly let others into their lives. A Man Called Ove is read by J.K. Simmons.
Is loneliness bad for your health? +
Research summarised by Vivek Murthy and John Cacioppo, both on this list, links long-term loneliness to poorer physical and mental health. If loneliness is weighing on your mood or sleep, it is worth talking to a doctor or someone you trust.