Should You Upgrade Your Kirkus Reviews?
If you’ve typed “Kirkus Reviews upgrade” into a search bar, you’re likely a self-published author weighing whether a professional review is a smart investment or a costly gamble. Here’s the straightforward version: Kirkus offers two tiers for indie authors — the standard Indie review and the Kirkus Reviews Upgrade (formerly the Kirkus Editorial review). The upgrade costs significantly more, but it guarantees a review and bundles in marketing extras. Before you hand over your credit card, here’s what you need to know.
The Two Tiers: Standard Review vs. Paid Upgrade
Kirkus’s Indie program lets self-published authors submit books for review consideration. The standard review runs around $149 (prices shift, so verify the current rate) and comes with no guarantee — Kirkus reviews roughly 30–40% of submitted indie titles. If your book gets selected, you receive a review that may be positive, negative, or mixed. You cannot control the outcome.
The Kirkus Reviews Upgrade costs significantly more — historically around $399 for the review itself, with additional fees for expedited turnaround. What does the upgrade actually buy you?
- A guaranteed review — your book will be reviewed, no lottery involved
- First look at the review — you see it before it’s published anywhere
- A marketing package — typically a professionally designed quote graphic, social media promotion, and inclusion in Kirkus’s online database
- Expedited review time — usually 4–6 weeks instead of the standard 8–12 weeks
The core difference: with the upgrade, you’re paying for certainty and speed. With the standard review, you’re gambling $149 on a chance.
What the Upgrade Gets You Beyond the Review
The marketing extras are where the upgrade’s value gets murky. Here’s what’s typically included:
- A “Kirkus Review” badge for your website and book listings
- A quote graphic — a polished image with an excerpt from your review, designed for social media sharing
- Featured placement in Kirkus’s “Indie Spotlight” or similar promotional slots
- Consideration for Kirkus’s Best Indie Books of the Year list
The badge and quote graphic are genuinely useful for book marketing. A positive Kirkus review — even a mildly positive one — carries weight with libraries, bookstores, and readers who recognize the brand. The catch is that you don’t know whether the review will be positive until you’ve already paid.
If you’re a debut author with no existing review base, the badge alone can make your Amazon listing and website look more established. But if you already have a solid collection of reader reviews and blog coverage, the Kirkus badge adds marginal value — and you should weigh whether $400+ is worth a logo that may or may not accompany a favorable review. The practical takeaway: the upgrade’s marketing extras only help if the review itself is quotable. You’re not just buying a badge; you’re buying a gamble on what words appear next to it.
The Real Question: Is a Negative Review Worth $400?
This is the crux of the decision. With the upgrade, you’re not buying a positive review — you’re buying a guaranteed review. Kirkus is known for blunt, sometimes harsh critiques. A negative Kirkus review can actually hurt your book’s chances with retailers and readers who trust the brand.
Here’s a practical decision rule: If you have a polished, professionally edited book that you genuinely believe is strong, the upgrade is a calculated risk with a decent payoff. A positive Kirkus review is one of the few third-party validations that can move the needle for indie authors. If your book has known weaknesses — clunky prose, plot holes, amateur cover design — the upgrade is likely to produce a review you’ll want to hide, and you’ll have spent $400 to learn what beta readers could have told you for free.
One alternative worth considering: submit for the standard $149 review first. If your book gets selected and the review is positive, you’ve saved money. If it’s negative, you’re out less. The downside is the waiting game — the standard review can take months, and you may not get selected at all.
Before you commit, go to Kirkus’s Indie author submission page and check the current pricing and turnaround options. Prices have shifted over the years, and the upgrade package has changed names and inclusions. Look specifically at what the current marketing bundle includes — if the quote graphic or social promotion has been dropped from the package, the value equation changes. Also check whether audiobook submissions are currently listed as an accepted format; Kirkus has expanded and contracted this offering over time, and you don’t want to assume it’s available.
How the Review Process Works
When you purchase the upgrade, you’ll submit your manuscript through Kirkus’s Indie author portal. You’ll choose your format (print, ebook, or both), your genre, and your turnaround time. The standard upgrade timeline is about 4–6 weeks; expedited options cost more.
Kirkus assigns your book to a reviewer with genre expertise. You don’t get to choose the reviewer, and you don’t get to see the review before it’s finalized. Once the review is written, you’ll receive it via email. If you’ve purchased the upgrade, you’ll have the option to publish the review on Kirkus’s site — but here’s the catch: if you choose not to publish it, you still can’t use it for marketing purposes. The review exists, but you can’t quote from it or display the badge if you don’t publish it.
That’s a critical distinction. Some authors assume the upgrade means they can suppress a bad review and keep the marketing materials. Not true. The review is yours to see, but the marketing extras are tied to publishing it.
The failure mode to watch for: authors who submit expecting to cherry-pick the good parts. If the review comes back mixed — praising your premise but criticizing your pacing — you face an uncomfortable choice. Publish it and the negative comments are public forever. Suppress it and you’ve lost your entire investment with nothing to show. This is the real risk of the upgrade, and it’s worth sitting with before you pay. A mixed review is arguably worse than a clearly positive or clearly negative one, because it tempts you to publish something that undermines your book’s credibility.
Is the Upgrade Worth It for Audiobook Authors?
Kirkus has historically focused on print and ebook reviews, but they’ve expanded to include audiobook reviews in recent years. If you’re an audiobook-first author or have produced an audiobook edition, the upgrade can be particularly valuable — a Kirkus review that specifically praises the narration is a powerful marketing asset in a crowded audiobook market.
That said, the review process for audiobooks has some quirks. Kirkus reviewers listen to the audiobook and evaluate both the content and the performance. A strong narrator can elevate a mediocre book in the reviewer’s eyes; a weak narrator can sink a good one. If you’re considering the upgrade for an audiobook, make sure your narration is genuinely strong before you spend the money.
The trade-off to understand: audiobook reviews from Kirkus are still relatively rare compared to print reviews, which means a positive one stands out more — but it also means the reviewer may be less experienced with audio-specific critique. You might get a review that focuses almost entirely on the story and barely mentions the narration, which diminishes the value of submitting an audiobook specifically. If your primary goal is validation of the audio performance, consider whether a dedicated audiobook review source might serve you better.
For listeners, Kirkus reviews can be a useful filter when choosing audiobooks — they’re often more critical than listener reviews on Audible, which tend to skew positive. If you’re trying to decide between two audiobooks in the same genre, a Kirkus review can give you a more balanced perspective on pacing, character development, and narrative arc.
Try Audible Free for 30 Days — Start your free trial on Amazon and get two free audiobooks.
What Authors Say: The Mixed Track Record
Anecdotal evidence from author forums and self-publishing communities paints a mixed picture. Some authors report that a positive Kirkus review — even a lukewarm one — helped them secure library distribution, bookstore placement, or coverage in local media. Others report that the review was so negative it was unusable, and they regret spending the money.
One pattern emerges consistently: the authors who benefit most from the upgrade are those who’ve already invested heavily in editing, cover design, and professional formatting. Kirkus reviewers are harsh on amateur production values. A book that looks self-published will be reviewed accordingly.
The authors who regret the upgrade tend to be those who used it as a substitute for professional editing or who submitted early drafts. If your book isn’t ready for a national reviewer’s scrutiny, no amount of marketing extras will save it.
A realistic limitation to keep in mind: Kirkus reviewers are generalists with genre knowledge, not necessarily superfans of your specific niche. A cozy mystery author might get a reviewer who primarily reads literary fiction, resulting in a review that misses the genre’s conventions. This isn’t a flaw in the service — it’s the nature of assigning a single reviewer — but it means the review may not resonate with your target readers even when it’s positive. If your book is deeply genre-specific, consider whether a genre-focused review service might produce a more useful review.
Alternatives to Consider Before You Upgrade
The Kirkus upgrade isn’t the only option. Here are a few alternatives worth weighing:
- BookLife Reviews (Publishers Weekly’s indie arm) — similar model, slightly lower price point, with a “BookLife Prize” contest component
- Foreword Reviews — indie-focused review service with a print magazine component
- BlueInk Review — founded by former Kirkus editors, focused exclusively on self-published books
- Library Journal and School Library Journal — more niche, but valuable if you’re targeting libraries
Each of these has its own quirks. BookLife, for example, offers a free basic review with a paid expedited option. BlueInk is cheaper than Kirkus but has less brand recognition. The trade-off is always the same: brand recognition versus cost.
To verify fit before you pay, check whether the review service publishes samples of negative reviews. Kirkus and BlueInk both publish a mix of positive and negative reviews on their sites. Read three or four negative reviews in your genre. If the critiques seem fair and constructive, the service is likely to give you a useful review regardless of the outcome. If the negative reviews read as mean-spirited or dismissive, you’re taking a bigger reputational risk by submitting. This five-minute research step can save you from a $400 mistake.
Making the Call: When the Upgrade Makes Sense
The Kirkus Reviews Upgrade is a calculated bet. You’re paying for a guaranteed review from a brand that carries weight, but you’re also paying for the risk that the review will be negative. If your book is polished, professionally edited, and genuinely competitive with traditionally published titles, the upgrade can be a smart marketing investment. If your book isn’t there yet, spend the money on editing first.
For audiobook authors, the upgrade adds an extra layer of value — a review that praises the narration can be a differentiator in a crowded market. But the same rules apply: make sure the narration is strong before you submit.
One final note: if you’re on the fence, start with the standard review. You’ll save money if you get selected, and you’ll learn whether Kirkus reviewers respond to your work before you commit to the upgrade for your next book.
Is the Kirkus Reviews Upgrade worth it? Yes, if you have a book that’s ready for national scrutiny and you can absorb the cost of a potentially negative review. No, if you’re hoping the review will compensate for weaknesses in the manuscript itself. The review is a mirror, not a filter — and it will show you exactly what’s there.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use a Kirkus review if it’s negative?
You can publish a negative review on Kirkus’s site, but you’re not obligated to. However, if you choose not to publish it, you also can’t use the marketing materials or quote from the review. The review exists, but the promotional extras are tied to publishing it.
How long does the Kirkus upgrade review take?
The standard upgrade timeline is 4–6 weeks. Expedited options are available for an additional fee if you need the review sooner.
Does Kirkus review audiobooks?
Yes, Kirkus has expanded to include audiobook reviews. Reviewers evaluate both the content and the narration performance, so a strong narrator can positively influence the review.
Is the standard Kirkus review worth trying first?
If you’re cost-conscious, yes. The standard review costs less and gives you a chance to see how Kirkus reviewers respond to your work. The downside is that selection isn’t guaranteed, and the timeline is longer.
Can I choose my Kirkus reviewer?
No. Kirkus assigns your book to a reviewer with genre expertise, and you don’t get input on who that will be.
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