Reflowable EPUB versus fixed-page PDF
EPUB is a small website in a zip file. The reader chooses the font, the size and the margins, and the text rewraps to fit — which is why a novel is far more comfortable to read as EPUB on a phone than as PDF.
PDF fixes the page. That is exactly what you want for a technical manual full of diagrams or a book you intend to print, and exactly what you do not want on a six-inch screen.
DRM and Kindle
Books bought with digital rights management cannot be converted by any tool, here or elsewhere — the file is encrypted to your account. Amazon retired MOBI in 2022, so modern Kindles take EPUB directly via send-to-Kindle; MOBI conversion is only useful for older hardware.
Supported ebook converter formats
- EPUB
- MOBI
Frequently asked questions
Can I convert a Kindle book I bought?
- No. Purchased Kindle books are DRM-protected and cannot be converted. DRM-free EPUB and MOBI files convert normally.
Which format should I send to a modern Kindle?
- EPUB. Amazon accepts it directly through send-to-Kindle and converts it internally.
Will images and chapters survive the conversion?
- Chapters and images carry across; complex fixed layouts, comics and heavily designed pages are the ones that reflow badly.