How to read free books on an Amazon Kindle
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How to read free books on an Amazon Kindle
Aside from my smartphone, the one gadget I'll never travel without is my Amazon Kindle. I love how I can quickly and easily download books, magazines, and other written and audio content almost instantaneously, and store thousands of books for enjoyment on the go. While I abhor piracy and am all about supporting creators, I was also pleased to discover that there are many ways of getting and reading free (or almost free) content on my Kindle. I'll show you how you can access this content for yourself on your Kindle device!
It's easy to supplement your paid content with free material to read on your Kindle, and fill up that immense Kindle storage with just about anything you can imagine! Note that these tips work for any Kindle e-reader, Fire tablet, or other Android or iOS device with the Amazon Kindle app.
The most popular way to borrow books for free from your local library is through a service called Overdrive. This app is available on virtually every device, and you can also use it to get free content onto your Kindle e-reader. Here's how.
Search the library's website for the book you are interested in. Many libraries will have a Kindle Books section in the main webpage navigation.
You will be taken to Amazon.com, where you should sign in to your Amazon account if you haven't already.
Click on the Get Library Book button. You will then be able to download the book to your Kindle device or app wirelessly.
If you prefer to borrow from an app, there is an Overdrive app as well as the Libby app, which you can use to follow a similar process as outlined above. Unfortunately, you can't send some Libby books to your Kindle and will have to read them through the Libby app on mobile instead.
If you have friends who also have an Amazon Kindle, or who have purchased e-books from Amazon in the past, they can share books with you (one at a time), and vice versa. Once you've politely asked them to borrow their e-book, here's what they need to do.
The recipient of the loaned title will have seven days to accept the book, or else it will be "returned" to the owner. The owner will not be able to read the book while it is on loan.
Note that not all Kindle e-books will be eligible for the loan program. Be sure to look for the "Loan this title" link.
If you've set up a family profile with your Amazon Prime account, you can share apps, games, videos, books, and other content with family members. That means that if your partner purchased a Kindle book that you are interested in, you don't have to repurchase it to read on your device. Just share it!
We have a thorough step-by-step guide on how Amazon family sharing works, so I won't rehash the steps here. Just know that once you set up your Amazon Household, you'll be able to borrow at will!
Goodreads is a social network centered around a shared love of reading, and it's no surprise that Amazon acquired it in 2013. From the website, app, or their Kindle, users can post updates on what they're reading, write and share reviews, and mark books for later reading. A little-known fact is that you can also find free e-books on the site if you know where to look.
There are many other websites and apps that offer free, downloadable e-books that you may want to look into, such as Project Gutenberg and Manybooks. Each website has books in multiple formats as well.
One of the many benefits of an Amazon Prime membership is all the free content you have access to, from videos to music, and yes, even ebooks. Here's how to find this content and add it to your Kindle for later reading.
If you are not currently an Amazon Prime member, you can try it out for free to see if it's right for you (but I suspect if you have a Kindle, you're in the target audience already). You can also search for titles directly from your Kindle from the Store tab, under Prime Reading.
In addition to the programs mentioned above, there are literally tens of thousands of free Kindle e-books available for download. Sometimes they're public domain content, sometimes they're through author giveaways, and sometimes they are part of the programs mentioned above. Regardless, all you have to do is type in "free Kindle books" the Amazon.com search bar, and you'll see what we mean!
Last but not least (expensive) is the popular Kindle Unlimited subscription service. For only $10/month, you can "borrow" as many books, magazines, and audiobooks from the available list (over 100,000). Amazon offers a two-month free trial, so it's worth giving it a shot to see if you like it.
While it's true that you can read Kindle books from the Kindle app on many smart devices, our favorite experience is still on the classic e-reader itself.
If you're an avid reader, then the Kindle Paperwhite is the device to get. It's waterproof, has backlighting, multiple storage options, and comes in several fun colors.
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