Nearly 50% of Ukrainian readers haven’t bought books in the last three months, while 34% have purchased only print books, according to a study by Gradus Research commissioned by the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine.
In particular, the study also showed that printed books remain the most common reading format. Specifically, 58% of respondents said they choose printed books, 44% choose e-books, 35% choose audiobooks, and 3% found it difficult to answer.
Respondents who prefer printed books were asked where they obtained them. Of these, 47% said they used books they already had at home, 43% said they bought new ones, 31% borrowed them from friends or acquaintances, 19% received them as gifts, 19% bought used copies, 17% borrowed them from a public library, 7% borrowed them from a school library, and 5% used a corporate library.
Among respondents who bought books, 40% said they did so at an online bookstore, 33% at a brick-and-mortar bookstore, 27% on a publisher’s website, 24% at a market or bazaar, 18% on a marketplace (e.g., Rozetka, Prom, Kasta, etc.), 17% at a book fair or festival, 14% at another brick-and-mortar store, 13% at a supermarket, and 4% each via Instagram or Telegram.
When broken down by age, the study shows that teenagers buy print books from online stores, while people aged 55 and older still prefer book markets.
The study revealed that nearly half of Ukrainian readers have not purchased any books in the last three months. Specifically, 38% said they had purchased print books (34%—exclusively print), 8% had purchased e-books, 5% had purchased audiobooks, 48% had not purchased any books, and 6% found it difficult to answer.
When asked how their spending on books for leisure had changed over the past year, 13% said it had increased, 39% said it had remained almost the same, 37% said it had decreased, and 12% found it difficult to answer.
When broken down by age, the survey indicates that young people are increasing their spending on books, while older readers are doing the opposite. Specifically, 29% of teenagers aged 14–17 and 21% of young adults aged 18–24 spent more on books than in the previous year.
The comprehensive study “Reading in Ukraine: Behavior, Motivation, and Engagement Tools” was conducted by Gradus Research with support from the “Believe in Yourself” Foundation. It included 41 in-depth interviews (March–May 2026) and a survey of 2,200 respondents aged 14 and older (August 17–25, 2026). The survey did not cover temporarily occupied territories or areas of active hostilities.
As previously reported, the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine initiated the national reading survey in the spring of 2026. The first insights from the qualitative study were presented on May 30 at the “Book Arsenal.”
The quantitative study, published on October 20, showed that 59% of Ukrainians had read or listened to books at least several times a month over the past year, 22% read several times a year or less, and 13% had not read a single book in the past 12 months.
book market, Gradus Research, MINISTRY OF CULTURE, printed books, READING
