Are you a fan of novels and adventure stories? Are you looking for an app to read ebooks on your smartphone or iPhone? In this article, we've selected the best apps for reading books for free, apps compatible with Android, iOS and Windows devices, with which you can download digital books and read them online and offline. Some apps also offer advanced features, such as changing the formatting of texts, highlighting certain passages or sharing quotes with friends. Here are the best ones.
1. Google Play Books (Android/iOS)
One of the best reading apps is Google Play Books, the Mountain View company's official application compatible with Android and iOS devices. By downloading it within your device, the app allows you to access a large catalog of books, finding both free digital editions and volumes that require paid downloads. Downloaded content is placed within the Library section, after which you can also enjoy the resources offline, just by having an activated Google account or a Gmail email address.
2. Amazon Kindle (Android/iOS/Windows)
Another app for reading free books is Amazon Kindle, Amazon's official service compatible with all Kindle devices for reading eBooks. To access the resource you need to create an account, however no payment is required. Once you download the app you just need to enter the Shop section, set the free filter and you can locate all the books available in the virtual library, which do not charge any download fees. You can also benefit from a one-month free trial for the Amazon Unlimited service, to also download paid content for the first 30 days, and then decide whether or not to activate the subscription.
3. Wattpad (Android/iOS/Windows)
Those who want to read books for free on smartphones, iPhones and Windows Phones can use the Wattpad app. This is an application with a simple and intuitive interface, which makes available mainly ebooks by young writers still unknown, with works by both Italian and foreign professionals. After installing the app you can download digital books, or upload your own novel and share it with the Wattpad community, to make yourself known to users. In fact, it's not just an app, but a real group of reading enthusiasts.
4. GuteBooks (Android)
Gutebooks is definitely one of the best apps for reading free books on Android, in fact the app is specifically for devices equipped with Google's operating system. In this case you can find mostly great classics, traditional novels that have made publishing history. The app offers titles that are no longer covered by copyright, so you can download the books for free, saving them on your smartphone to read them offline. Navigation is quite simple, thanks to detailed menus and filters that help in the search, plus you can create a section of your favorite books.
5. My Books (iOS) - English
To read free books on iPhone, one of the best apps is undoubtedly My Books, an application compatible with iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch running iOS 11.2 or higher. The app is only available in English, so it's a great solution for those who know the Anglo-Saxon language, or for those who want to practice reading books in English. Among the options you can underline certain passages, you can zoom in on the text, and the app is integrated with Dropbox. The catalog is extensive, the download is free, plus for a fee of €4.49 you can unlock access to over 5,000 audiobooks.
6. Kobo (Android/iOS/Windows)
A great alternative to classic reading apps is Kobo, which is compatible with devices running Android, iOS and Windows operating systems. The graphical interface is minimalist and offers a rather fluid navigation, with a library among the largest ever with thousands of titles within the online store. Again, free and paid ebooks are available, so just select the right option from the search modes to locate only the resources you want. The app also offers a built-in reader, so you can read content online or offline.
7. ReadEra (Android)
Between the best ebook readers for Android smartphones is ReadEra, an app that is highly rated by users, demonstrating the high appreciation of virtual book fans. The app is capable of opening digital books in a variety of formats, including DOC, PDF, EPUB, TXT, RTF and MOBI, plus it offers various features such as bookmark options, reading location configuration, file copying and the ability to organize documents into custom folders. Inside you can download lots of free ebooks, especially in English, you can open resources from zipped archives, change margins and even text fonts.
8. Audible (Android/iOS/Windows)
Audible is Amazon's official service, with which you can subscribe and access a vast virtual library of online resources, including ebooks, audiobooks, podcasts and other multimedia content. The application is compatible with any mobile device, both Android and iOS but also Windows, with a free trial period of 30 days, after which the price of the service is 9.99 euros per month. The paid subscription allows you to take advantage of lots of new publications, in addition to the titles in the store, plus you can download books and audiobooks to read them offline.
9. Apple Books (iOS)
A free app for reading books on iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch is Apple Books, which can be downloaded at no cost from the official Apple Store. The app is available in several languages, including Italian, English, French and German, requires iOS version 10.0 or later, is quite lightweight and ensures a rather smooth navigation. The program supports both ebooks and audiobooks, which can be elected and listened to online or offline, plus you can set reading goals, to try to reach the set goals and maintain a good pace, according to your personal needs.
10. Librera (Android)
To read free books on Android in PDF you can download Librera, an easy-to-use application with fast navigation and low usage of smartphone resources. The program allows you to access an online library, to search for titles, download them and organize ebooks by creating custom compartments. The reader allows you to edit the background, change the font of the characters, set the night mode and convert PDF files. Moreover, Librera also supports ebooks in EPUB, RTF, MOBI, AZW, CBR, HTML and many more formats, proving to be compatible with any digital book.
11. Bookmate (Android/iOS/Windows) - English
One of the best apps for reading books in English for free is Bookmate, compatible with Android smartphones and tablets, iPhone and iPad iOS but also with Windows Phone. By registering and activating an account you can access a catalog of more than 50,000 digital books, taking advantage of many additional features. For example, you can share stories with your friends, send quotes and impressions about the content you've read, customize the graphic appearance of the ebooks, download resources and create shelves to divide the books into special sections. This is a useful option for practicing and improving your English.
12. eBook Search (Android/iOS/Windows)
With eBook Search you can't read ebooks online, but you can download free books to save them on your device. To do so, just do a search, setting the filter to display only free books, after which you can find content by genre, author or title. Once you've found the right book, all you have to do is download it, choosing the format from those available for that specific resource. To read the ebook, you need to use one of the reading apps listed, or a specific ebook reader.
13. eBoox (Android)
eBoox is a digital reader for Android tablets and smartphones, a free and ad-free ebook reading app. The program is compatible with various formats, including EPUB, MOBI and FB2, allows you to load pages instantly, configure night mode for reading in low light, plus the new interface is quite intuitive and pleasant. In particular, the brightness adjustment is a much-appreciated feature, because it avoids overly tiring your eyes when reading in the evening or at night. The app is lightweight and easy to use, and is compatible with devices running Android 4.0 or later.
14. English books with Italian translation (Android)
If you want to learn English, you can download this free app, with which you can read books in the Anglo-Saxon language without paying anything. Inside there are English language ebooks in EPUB and FB2 format, with built-in dictionaries to translate all the words you don't know the meaning of. In this way, in fact, while you are reading you can highlight a portion of text, activating the translation option to help you understand the book. All ebooks are divided according to difficulty level, so you can start with the easier texts and then gradually move on to the more complex ones.