High commissions swallow your income
Big global stores can take a large cut of every sale — roughly 30% or more — so a KES 850 book returns far less than it should.
Digital bookstore for Kenya & East Africa
Sell your books online in Kenya.Keep more of your money.
SOKOKITABU is the digital bookstore where African authors publish, readers pay with M-Pesa, and writers keep 70% of every sale — with instant downloads and no foreign bank account required.
- Built for African authors
- M-Pesa payments
- Instant downloads
- No foreign account needed
FictionMS
PoetryRR
ChildrenBT
M-Pesa payment confirmed
70%to authors
The problem
Amazon and Kindle were not built for African authors
Global bookstores are powerful — but for Kenyan and East African writers, the terms, the payments, and the paperwork often work against you.
Checkout that ignores M-Pesa
Most global platforms were not built for M-Pesa. Your readers want to pay with the phone in their pocket, not a card they do not own.
A foreign bank account is required
Waiting on foreign bank details, dollar conversions, and tax paperwork locks out talented writers who simply do not have those accounts.
Slow, unclear payouts
Months-long payout cycles and confusing dashboards make it hard to know what you have earned, or when you will actually be paid.
SOKOKITABU flips the model: local payments, fair revenue, and a bookstore that speaks your language.
How it works
Selling and buying in three simple steps
Whether you are an author publishing your first title or a reader hunting your next good book, it takes minutes.
For authors
- 01
Create your author account
Sign up free and add your author details and M-Pesa payout number.
- 02
Upload your manuscript and set a price
Add your PDF or EPUB, a cover, a short blurb, and your price in Kenyan shillings.
- 03
Get approved and start earning
We review your book, publish it to the store, and pay you 70% of every sale.
For readers
- 01
Find a book you love
Browse by genre, read the blurb, and see the price in KES — no hidden currency games.
- 02
Pay with M-Pesa
Enter your phone number and approve the STK Push prompt. No card, no account details for strangers.
- 03
Read in seconds
Your secure download unlocks the moment payment lands. Your copy is yours to read.
Why SOKOKITABU
Everything a modern African bookstore should be
Built from the ground up for how writers and readers in Kenya actually work, pay, and read.
70% revenue share
Authors keep 70% of net revenue after VAT — one of the fairest deals in publishing.
Native M-Pesa payments
Readers pay in seconds with the phone in their pocket. No cards required.
Instant digital delivery
Books unlock the moment payment clears. No shipping, no waiting.
No foreign account required
Publish and get paid locally. Your M-Pesa number is all you need.
Secure, non-transferable copies
Every purchase is licensed and device-bound to protect your work.
Local support and review
Every book is reviewed by a human, and our team speaks your language.
Featured books
Stories our readers are loving
A taste of what is available today. Every purchase is instant and paid with M-Pesa.
- Fiction
- Non-Fiction
- Children
- Poetry
- Memoir
- Essays
- Romance
BT
Children
The Baobab Tree
by Moses Kibet
A curious child and an ancient tree that remembers everything.
KES 350
MS
Fiction
The Mango Season
by Amina Wekesa
A warm Nairobi novel about family, food, and starting over.
KES 850
LN
Memoir
Letters from Nairobi
by David Ochieng
Honest letters on life, work, and belonging in a changing city.
KES 650
SS
Romance
Saltwater & Soil
by Wanjiku Kariuki
A love story between the coast and the highlands, full of longing.
KES 750
MJ
Essays
A Map of Small Joys
by Nia Adisa
Essays on friendship, food, and wonder in ordinary Kenyan days.
KES 550
RR
Poetry
Rain on Red Earth
by Zawadi Kamau
Poems rooted in place, language, and the small weather of a life.
KES 480
Author stories
Trusted by Kenyan authors
Writers who moved their books to a bookstore that pays fairly and locally.
I published on other platforms and barely saw the money. On SOKOKITABU my readers pay with M-Pesa in seconds and I keep 70%. It finally feels fair.
No dollar accounts, no waiting weeks for a payout. I upload my manuscript and I can see every sale as it happens.
Global stores felt closed to me. Here, readers pay with the phone in their pocket and the download is instant.
Ready to sell your book or find your next read?
Join SOKOKITABU today — publish in minutes, get paid through M-Pesa, and keep 70% of every sale.