Amazon’s Kindle line of devices are some of the most popular E Ink gadgets for reading eBooks, and for good reason. They’re relatively inexpensive, have good displays, offer long battery life, and make reading books from Amazon’s Kindle store super easy.
But what about books you didn’t buy from Amazon? Kindles can support books that use Amazon’s own MOBI or AZW file formats, as well as TXT, HTML, RTF, DOCX, and PDF files. But they don’t support EPUB out of the box, which is annoying since that’s the format most other eBook stores use.
The good news is that it’s surprisingly easy to convert a DRM-free EPUB file into something that you can read on a Kindle. All you need to do is change the file extension and then email it to your Kindle account. (Yes, I realize that technically this means you aren’t reading an EPUB on a Kindle, but if you’ve got an EPUB that you want to read on a Kindle, this is how you do it).
The easy way
First, let’s assume you’ve got a DRM-free book. Here are the steps for reading it on a Kindle:
- Navigate to the eBook in a file browser on your computer.
- Change the file extension from .epub to .png
- Email it your Kindle email address.
The harder (but more versatile) way
The method listed above is the easiest way to send an EPUB to your Kindle. But if you’re looking for another method… and one that also gives you a ton of other options for managing your eBook collection, Calibre is your friend.
This free program is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux and it provides a way to organize your eBook library, update cover art, sync books with your device, and much, much more.
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Over to you
So, try it, and let me know how it works in the comments below!
Wow!
This blog is great, I can’t believe this is my first time here. I had ditched my kindle months ago, because I had to read my epubs on Icecream (an ebook reader) on my PC. But now, I can finally stop using my laptop to read.
Your post was amazing, I’ll definitely be back!
Thank you!
Hi Em!
I’m glad you found the post and the blog useful.
If there is anything you want to know, please let me know.
Thanks for stopping my and for your kind words
Marios
Cool breakdown Marios! Honestly buddy; I had not heard the term “EPUB” since YEARS ago LOL, when I actually self-published an eBook on Smashwords. Still get some royalties through them as well. Thanks for the breakdown.
Ryan
Hey Ryan!
Glad you liked it. Some people still read EPUBs as well as PDFs – not everyone is on Amazon 😉 😀
I use the Kindle app for iPad to read PDFs and ePUB when necessary. I consider it my one-stop-shop.
Thanks for stopping by!
Marios
Thanks for stopping by
Hi Marios,
I just read your blog on how to read EPUB books with a kindle, Wow! This is amazing Cool breakdown Marios! Honestly dear I had not heard the term of “EPUB” before, I can’t believe this is my first time here. But now, I can finally stop using my laptop to read EPUB. Your post was amazing, I’ll definitely come back! Thank you!
Hey Tawhid,
Thanks for stopping by and I’m happy you found my posts and my site useful. I have moved my eBooks library to Amazon, just my using the tips and tricks I share in this post.
I would also appreciate it very much if you take a minute and fill out my First Annual Survey 2019.
Thanks!
Marios
I love my Kindle and after reading this article, I love it even more.
I thought I only could read books fra Amazon and pdf files on it so I will definitely try with other formats too and I might even give the suggested software a try too as I would like to organize my ebook library a bit better.
Hey Lars,
I have moved my library to Amazon, using the tips I mention in this post.
Glad I’ve helped!
Marios