Emily Stevens*, 21, was a sexual novice the first time she listened to audio erotica. 

Feeling late to intimacy compared to those around her, audio erotica provided a comfortable environment she could ease into and discover both her sexuality and relationship preferences. 

“Audio erotica was a safe space for me to navigate my desires and intimacy at my own pace and on my own terms”, she says. 

“It felt personal and more suited to me as a lot of the time audios involve the creator talking directly to you which makes the fantasy feel more real and enjoyable. It was easier to figure out what I liked because it felt like I was actually experiencing it.”

Emily certainly isn’t alone in her experience, the audio erotica scene has gained momentum in recent years seeing an influx of both creators and platforms such as OhCleo!

With over 7,000 monthly visits according to Crunchbase, the Swedish female-founded audio erotica company credits its growth to authentic creator recordings and conceptualized storylines aimed at immersing and building arousal. 

Celine Fierro, the CEO and founder of the upcoming platform, wanted to create a supportive community for women to experiment and use their imagination for pleasure through their content. 

“Our mission and vision is to give women all over the world a better sexual self-confidence, when you have that it’s easier for you to know what you prefer and then set boundaries for when you’re having sex”, she says. 

As a non-visual form of pornography, erotic audio can incorporate storytelling, complex plotlines, sound effects and different genres, such as fantasy and sci-fi, that engage listeners. 

“You go from the observer to a character in the story and I think that’s beautiful and is much more authentic. It’s a very safe space so it can create a deeper emotional connection as you can be part of it and indulge your own emotions as it is much more plot driven”, she adds. 

Additionally, whilst launching the third version of the platform, the OhCleo! team has integrated an ‘audio to text’ option for those wanting to read or who are unable to listen.  

Some of the website’s top categories range from dirty talk and sexting to BDSM, alongside providing LGBTQ+-focused content. 

For Emily, a now openly bisexual woman, audio erotica’s LGBTQ+ material allowed her to venture into and discover her sexuality.

“It was hard to understand my sexuality without having experienced anything. Certain audios, like ones made by women for women, gave me a glimpse of what it was like to be spoken to in a sexual way by a woman and I realised I liked that.”, she says. 

Emily also believes that audio erotica can help people who are questioning their sexuality but perhaps don’t have a safe environment or a comfortable person to try things out with in real life. 

The intimate audio space can also offer queer creators to produce authentic and representative content for listeners.

Faye Laurent, a queer writer and voice actor on the audio erotica platform Quinn, creates sapphic focused content including scenes such as fingering and oral sex. 

“I see audio erotica as a safe and ethical platform for sexual experimentation. This medium can be a crash course in sexuality and sensuality. I want listeners to feel safe diving into dynamics and situations they may be unfamiliar with or hesitant to try in real life,” she says. 

“Learning about yourself can be exciting but also terrifying! There are many situations where audio can provide a means to explore one’s queerness as it can be done by yourself with no external judgments.”

With 1,783 subscribers and over 216,146 plays on Quinn, Faye emphasises the importance of having queer content for the community, that isn’t always found in other types of erotica. 

“Here we are in 2025 with minimal sapphic representation in the mainstream media. Even in visual porn it can be difficult finding authentic content decentered from the male gaze. With audio there’s no pressure to perform for anyone else and it’s a really intimate way to love yourself,” Faye explains.

Having over 500,000 Google Play downloads, the Quinn platform hosts creators such as Faye but also collaborates with celebrities featuring appearances from Andrew Scott, Jamie Campbell-Bower and Grey’s Anatomy’s Jesse Williams. 

However, imagination, sensory focus and engaging plotlines are often key to what makes adult audio so enticing and has contributed to its surge in popularity both on platforms like Quinn and for individual creators.  

British Filth, the stage name of an audio erotica actor, first got into creating immersive content in 2007 and has since grown his fan base with story tropes such as best friends, confessions and more recently Male for Male scenes. 

“Audio can feel very personal and immersive, and speak to the listener on a much deeper level than visual porn. It’s less fuelled by lust and often feels organic which gives a sense of connection so lacking in most places today”, he explains. 

Despite his religious background that “frankly terrified” him from first making sexually explicit content, he now hopes that his work is a safe space where listeners can engage and listen “without shame and judgement.” 

Audio erotica’s storytelling and character familiarity can also provide safety and sexual comfort for some trauma survivors. 

Jennie Campbell*, 23, found audio erotica helped start her healing journey with sex and intimacy after experiencing an assault that left her anxious to consume traditional, visual porn. 

“My first time having sex was rape and coming away from that and then trying to be intimate with myself and recover wasnt possible with visual porn as its based in aggression, control and power, things that are stripped away from you when you are assaulted,” she says. 

“I remember I had to turn away from self-pleasure for a long time. I wasn’t intimate with myself for a good few years.”

The plots of audio erotica, her favourite being cowboy scenes, are often 30 minute scenarios

focused on the listener, environment and can even give time for them to respond back in the narrative.  

After Jennie would be intimate with herself, she would go straight to an aftercare audio that would say how much they loved her and how well she did and offered her comfort. 

“Those audios made me realize how much I craved intimacy and not just sex. What I really needed was someone to be gentle with me and it was so unexpectedly comforting”, she says.

“All of a sudden the warmth in my chest was back. I remember listening and my throat getting a little bit tight because I thought it was  so sweet and I’ve never had this.”

Many creators too have consciously incorporated this into their work as the industry has grown. 

Explaining the appeal that many women have to audio erotica, BritishFilth says: “casual misogyny and belittling hate speech are so embedded in our modern society they almost pass for an accepted normal, particular for those who are victims to it. My audios are a way I try to provide a degree of comfort and an orgasm or two, if I’ve done well!

Removing the visual sense can engage the listener’s imagination and “provide a safe mental space for the listener to enjoy their own body, at their own pace.”

The experience with erotic audio also taught Jennie her boundaries and gave her the confidence to voice her needs in future sexual relationships, something she lacked due to her upbringing in a southeastern culture. 

“Back in my home country, I went to a very strict Methodist school. Growing up I always thought that men could pleasure themselves but I didn’t know women could have orgasms for a long time”, she says. 

“Audio erotica could mean that for another young woman instead of being uninformed and uneducated on what aftercare is and what it means to be really loved by someone that you’re being intimate with, she understands that in a way that I once didn’t.”

With the format still gaining popularity, Jennie hopes that the community continues to grow and help others such as herself.

“I think that it’s really beautiful that it’s evolved in such a short time as I used to be called weird for liking it but I want to be immersed and imaginative.  I’m really glad that there’s now so many resources and creators willing to invite you into their space,” Jennie says. 

“I only landed on one safe space after many years and I don’t ever want to be ashamed about it. I will gladly tell anyone I love audio erotica. I can never stop praising it because of the things it’s done for me.”

*Names have been changed for anonymity purposes.