Reading books when I have a few spare moments during my day is easy with the right ebook reader apps on my phone. I’ve tried apps from tech giants, like Apple Books, Google Play Books, and Amazon Kindle, but found them restrictive because they lock me into their ecosystem using DRMs and app-exclusive formats.
That’s why I stick to independent e-book reader apps that let me enjoy books in many different formats on my phone. Most of them are free and let me access books stored on my phone in EPUB, PDF, or MOBI formats. They also have a host of other useful features, like access to cloud storage and access to free ebook libraries. You don’t need a Kindle or Kobo device if you have these e-book reader apps.
ReadEra
A simple, user-friendly e-book reader
ReadEra is a user-friendly e-book reader app with free and paid versions available. The free version should be fine for most readers and supports all the usual eBook formats, like EPUB, MOBI, and AZW3. It can also display common document formats, like PDF, DOC, and DOCX. ReadEra offers multiple ways to categorize your books, and you can choose between Favorites, Authors, and more when searching for titles.
The app has a clean blue and white aesthetic with a dropdown menu on the left side containing all the options. Customization options are limited in the free version, and you’ll need to pay a $14.99 once-off fee to access features, like fonts, the dictionary, quotes, and text-to-speech. I had a decent reading experience with the free version. My ebooks opened instantly, and I simply swiped left and right to move forward and backwards.
Moon+
You get what you pay for
Moon+ Reader has a more modern interface that displays all the useful information and stats on the main homepage. You can see your recent reads and file locations as well as stats, like books read and number of reading hours this year. The app supports most formats and can display locally stored files or access cloud services, like DropBox.
I like that Moon+ includes a Net Library feature to access free book titles.
I like that Moon+ includes a Net Library feature to access free book titles. There’s a link to Wikipedia’s free online OPDS page, and Project Gutenberg, which has classic novels now in the public domain. Moon+ has decent customization features with dark and E-ink modes, and different backgrounds to choose from. The free version contains ads, and you can pay an $11.99 once-off fee for the Pro version, which removes them and adds advanced customization options and PDF compatibility.
PocketBook
Versatile and practical
PocketBook is known for its versatility and compatibility with most e-book formats, including Adobe DRM EPUB and MOBI files, and TXT, DOCX, and CBZ. The app has a clean and modern interface with shortcuts to commonly used features at the bottom of the home screen and an easy-on-the-eye grid layout in the main menu. You also have the freedom to access locally-stored files, or connect to cloud storage services, like DropBox or Google Drive.
Finding reading material is a breeze, with the built-in e-book store providing access to countless titles.
Finding reading material is a breeze, with the built-in e-book store providing access to countless titles in popular genres like thrillers, romance and more. The reading experience was amazing, and I appreciated the animation that mimics pages turning in a physical book whenever I swiped the screen. Pocketbook requires an account, but the app is free and doesn’t display ads. Registering gives you access to a cloud service and the ability to sync your books and pages read across your devices.
Librera
The best customization options
Librera is for people who like customization and fine-tuning their reading experience. Unlike the alternatives mentioned so far, it offers in-depth options to change the menu’s fonts, trim colors and accent colors. It also provides handy tick boxes to choose which e-book formats you’d like it to display.
You can also tailor the reading experience to your requirements. The app gives options to open every e-book in Scroll, Book, or Musician’s Modes. Scroll Mode offers vertical scrolling through pages. Book Mode has horizontal page changes. Musician’s Mode offers vertical scrolling with bookmark shortcuts, page separators, and tap-zones.
Access to cloud services and free book archives, like Project Gutenberg and the OPDS Internet Archive are user-configurable in the menu. I like the reading experience because the default screen keeps my phone’s back and home buttons on the display so I can easily navigate back or get out of the book. The free app is packed with features, but I think it’s worth paying the $5.99 once-off fee to avoid occasional adverts.
eBoox
A minimalist reading experience
Eboox is a no-frills e-reader app ideal for those wanting an uncluttered experience. There’s no in-depth customization settings or built-in stores, and it’s all about pure reading with the least amount of distraction. The app succeeds in its minimalist ambitions with a simple day and night mode, access to your books and not much else.
Eboox is completely free with no ads.
The plus side is that Eboox is completely free with no ads. Adding locally stored or cloud-based books was simple with the integrated explorer tool and only took about a minute. After that, I was ready to go and could swipe left or right to scroll through my e-book pages. I like that it has a built-in touch-based zoom setting to instantly increase or decrease the font size on a page.
