The UK publishing industry had a “record-breaking year” in 2022, with a total income of £6.9bn., a look at the state of the book market by trade body the Publishers Association , found that sales were up 4% from 2021In 2022, 669m physical books were sold in the UK, the highest overall level ever recorded.
In consumer books, print sales were up 2%, to £1.8bn, while digital sales were also up 2% to £423m and audio downloads saw an 8% increase to £164m. Fiction was up by 9% to £797m of sales, and children’s books were up by 1%. Non-fiction saw a decrease of 2%, but still accounted for £1bn. Dan Conway, chief executive of the Publishers Association, said the publishing industry had “shown strength in the face of what was a difficult year for many and has again proved the vital role it plays amongst the wider creative industries, as well as building the UK economy”.