It’s easier than you think to read an online book for free on any topic you can imagine, from Elizabethan classics to modern indie fiction.
Many readers love the feel of a printed book because they can hold it, feel the paper, turn the pages, and highlight their favorite parts for later. Moreover, they do not irritate the eyes.
Not only are e-books cheaper, readable and downloadable, but they can also be easily shared with others, which is difficult for most people to do with physical copies. They also offer flexible fonts to make it easier to read on your smartphone, tablet, computer, or e-book reader.
If you’re a book lover and want to quench your reading addiction without breaking your wallet, here are four of the best free book reading sites.
Also, if you have kids, be sure to watch our YouTube video where we mention some great websites for downloading free children’s books.
BookBub
BookBub is a free online service that helps you find new discounted and free eBooks from critically acclaimed indie authors to leading publishers for a limited time.
After registering via email, connect the book settings and the device you want to read on. BookBub will filter available content based on your choices and devices, and send carefully curated recommendations and suggestions to your inbox every day.
However, you cannot download free e-books from the site. It just introduces you to books you like that are available on other platforms like Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, Amazon Kindle store, Apple Books and others. This way, you spend less time searching by looking at reviews from people you trust.
Click on the title and you will see a photo of the book cover, synopsis and the date when it will no longer be free. It also includes more titles from the same author, suggestions for titles from similar categories, direct links to download pages, and social media post buttons.
Books are available on Android devices, Kindle, Nook, and iPad among many others.
Pros
- Variety of categories.
- Email notifications for new titles or discounts.
- Offers children’s books.
- Social media post buttons.
Cons
- Free titles are mostly available for a limited time.
- Annoying pop-up ads
- No mobile app.
- Fewer headings for younger children.
- Links lead to Amazon and other platforms.
Project Gutenberg
Project Gutenberg is one of the oldest and largest sources of e-books on the Internet, with over 60,000 downloads of books in a variety of formats.
Most of the books are in English, but you can get titles in other languages ??like French, Dutch, Portuguese and others from 15 subsections including book series, history, picture books and literature . If you know what you want, you can enter the author’s name, title, subject, or language in the search bar to quickly find it. You can also browse the Top 100 to see what others are downloading as well as the number of downloads for the book.
You can read online in your browser, or download eBooks for free to your computer or smartphone, and they will be saved in ePub format, as plain text or Kindle files in your cloud storage. If you want to save space, you can download with or without images.
There is no registration or subscription fees here, plus if you’re a fan of audiobooks, Gutenberg offers them for free too.
Pros
- Free downloadable books
- Shows the number of downloads.
- Offers links to free audiobooks
- Large collection not in English.
- List in alphabetical order.
Cons
- No mobile app.
Open the library
The Open Library is a site that’s easy to navigate, download and rent, with over a million free eBooks, making it a great place to read books from the internet.
You can search for a specific book by keyword, topic, place, time, author, or genre using the search bar. It also allows you to search user-generated lists, such as Must Have or Old Favorites, but be sure to select the Show eBooks only checkbox to get results for free eBooks.
It offers 15 book categories including classic literature, biographies, fantasy and recipe books, all of which are available in PDF, ePub, MOBI, plain text, and other popular formats. However, not all books can be downloaded at all times, some require you to be on a waiting list.
You will need to register for a free account and then download all the free ebooks you want.
Pros
- Huge collection of books.
- Variety of formats for different devices
- Variety of categories and genres
- Organized by keywords, topic or user-defined list
- Advanced function search
- Can track books on loan.
Cons
- No mobile app.
- Some books require waiting lists.
- Ability to read no more than five books at the same time.
- Scans books from physical copies.
ManyBooks
ManyBooks is another good site where you can read a book for free. The site, founded in 2004, has expanded its selection and now offers over 50,000 downloadable e-books, some at a discounted price.
Most of the early eBooks come from the Project Gutenberg archives, so you’ll get a rich mix of old classics and a rapidly growing list of modern books. Its categories include cooking, art, drama, business, computers, war, health, music, psychology, espionage and a few others.
You can browse free books by title, author, or any of 35 language options and download them as an AZW file for Kindle, ePub for your Nook, or other file formats. An advanced search option is provided so you can find exactly what you want.
To use ManyBooks, register with your email address and indicate your preferences to receive great priced eBooks in your inbox. You can also check their social media pages for updates.
Pros
- Large collection of free e-books.
- Good categorization to make it easier to find.
- User ratings and reviews available.
Cons
- Combines free and premium books.
- No mobile app.
- The layout is cluttered.
- Some areas are not updated regularly.
- Includes ads.
There is no need to fork out if you can read thousands of great books without paying a cent. You can easily find a title or two that you like, or create a personal library if you like and instantly read or download free ebooks.
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