You will be able to download your DRM-free Kindle books directly in EPUB and PDF formats since starting January 20, 2026.
Updated January 26, 2026: Recently released and purchased kindle books may have this option available -- "Download available in additional formats".
Let me explain this more clearly. At the moment, there is no official way to download your purchased Amazon Kindle books for reading on non-Amazon devices. Even if you can download your kindle books, they will be in a Kindle-specific format (such as KFX or AZW) and protected by Amazon DRM.
Starting in January 2026, authors will have the option to allow readers who purchased their books from Amazon to download them as EPUB or PDF files, which can then be uploaded to other e-readers such as Kobo devices or the reMarkable tablet.
How it Works (Starting Jan 20, 2026)? Th following part will show you how to download epub or pdf from Amazon website directly.
For Authors: How to enable DRM-free option for your books?
In Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), authors can choose not to apply Digital Rights Management (DRM) to their books.
To check or change DRM settings for your books by following steps below.
1 Log into your KDP Bookshelf.
Next to the book you want to update, click the ellipsis button ("…") Choose "Edit eBook Content".
2 Enable DRM-free option for kindle books.
In the Manuscript section, find the Digital Rights Management (DRM) selection. Choose whether or not to apply DRM to your book. Select Save and Continue to save your changes.
- To apply DRM: Select "Yes", apply Digital Rights Management. The customers will download kindle formats, like azw or KFX.
- To make your book available for download as EPUB or PDF by verified purchasers (DRM-free): Select "No", do not apply Digital Rights Management and allow customers who buy this book to download it as a PDF or EPUB file .Check the confirmation box: "I understand that by not applying DRM, customers who buy and have already bought this book will be able to download it as a PDF or EPUB file"
For Kindle eBook Customers/Purchasers: How to download kindle books as pdf, epub from Amazon website?
If a book is DRM-free and the author enabled downloads, verified buyers can find EPUB/PDF download links on their Amazon account page. The downloaded ebooks will be in epub or pdf format which is the most common-used ebook format.
First of all, make sure your kindle books are purchased, not obtained from Kindle unlimited or Amazon prime benefits. Please note only the purchased kindle book will be able to downloaded as pdf, or epub.
1 Navaigate to "Manage Your Content and Devices" page.
Then click "Books" under "Content" tab to show all your kindle library.
2 Download Kindle books as zip format.
Note: Not all ebooks have this option available as most of authors or publishers will never enable DRM-FREE option. If your books have epub or pdf download option, you'll see "Download available in additional formats" next to the book cover.
To download kindle books, click "More Actions">>"Download Epub/PDF". You will download your kindle books in zip format.
It may surprise you that you can’t download EPUB or PDF files directly from the Amazon website. So is that all you can get? What should you do if you want an EPUB file instead of a ZIP?
3 Convert Kindle books to EPUB or PDF format.
It’s actually very simple. Just change the file extension from .zip to .epub.
After that, you’ll have the Kindle book in EPUB format. And you can read your kindle epub with your favoriate reading app. The screenshot below shows that the kindle epub is well displayed in the Thorium Reader.
What about the previous purchased ebooks(published before Jan. 20, 2026)
What if my kindle books are drm-protected? Can I convert DRM-protected kindle books to pdf or epub format?
Most purchased Kindle books are DRM-protected (AZW3/KFX formats), preventing easy conversion or direct EPUB/PDF downloads. Can I convert all kindle books to pdf format? With DRM removal tools--Epubor Ultimate, you can convert your Kindle books to pdf or epub format easily.
What the author should do to make published kindle books drm-free?
Even if you previously marked your book published prior to December 9, 2025 as DRM-free, Amazon won't offer epubs and pdfs unless you manually go in to each book NOW and check a new box. Yes, this means you must explicitly confirm this choice and enable it..
Note: DRM settings must be updated individually for each book. Bulk updates are not available at this time. Changes take 24-72 hours to go live for readers after publishing.
FAQs on Downloading Kindle books as PDF or Epub from Amazon in 2026
1. What exactly is changing on January 20, 2026?
Amazon will allow verified purchasers to download EPUB and PDF files of Kindle ebooks — but only if the book is published without DRM. This comes from an official Amazon update for Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP).
- Only DRM-free books will be eligible.
- Downloads are available from the Manage Your Content and Devices section on Amazon.
- This does not remove DRM from books that currently have it — authors decide.
2. Does this affect all Kindle books I’ve purchased?
No — it only applies to DRM-free titles. Most mainstream Kindle Store books still have DRM, and those won’t be downloadable as EPUB or PDF. It's not a universal Amazon feature for all Kindle books but depends on the author's DRM choice. Why would I say this? Because many of Amazon books are published by publishers, not the self-published authors. You never know what's the publishers choice of their books. Books from major publishers will be excluded from this option. So don't expect to download all your Kindle library as EPUBs or pdfs overnight.
3. What about older books I already bought?
Readers will only see EPUB/PDF downloads for older DRM-free books if the author/publisher goes into KDP and enables that option. Older DRM-free books aren’t automatically downloadable unless the author opts in.
4. What qualifies someone to download the file?
Only verified purchasers (people who’ve actually bought the book) can download EPUB or PDF files. Borrowed books via Kindle Unlimited or other subscription models(Amazon prime) still don’t qualify, even if they’re DRM-free.
5. Will downloads stay even if the author later applies DRM?
If you download an EPUB or PDF while a book is set to be DRM-free, you keep that copy even if the author later enables DRM.
6. How will we know which titles are available as epubs or pdf?
We are not sure about this at this moment. Once there is any updates on this issue, I will upate it here.
Wrap up
Soon, you will be able to download some of your kindle books as pdf or epub with no drm. Remember not all kindle books have this option. So if you need to back up your whole kindle libary, it is better to crack kindle drm and then convert them to pdf or epub format.
Iris Yan is a passionate member of the Epubor team, dedicated to enhancing your ebook reading experience. She shares insightful tips, tricks, and practical advice to help you get the most out of your digital library. Join her on the journey to reading excellence today!
