Amazon continues to be a leader in e-books thanks to its popular Kindle device and apps. However, due to Digital Rights Management (DRM), you can only open Kindle eBooks on Amazon Kindle hardware or on the official Kindle app for iPad, such as Kindle eBooks. Unfortunately, this limitation means that you can’t open these books anywhere else because they are saved in the AZW file format owned by Amazon. Fortunately, you can convert these files to PDF format so that they are readable in other places.
Whether or not you should convert your AZW files to PDF is open to debate. Yes, if you plan to use the file for yourself. However, due to copyright, do not plan on sharing these PDFs with others as it is not legal.
Downloading Kindle Books to Computer (Image Credit: Future)
download kindle books
You’ll need to download your Kindle Books to your computer as a first step. To convert Kindle books to PDF format, you need to have a physical Kindle device connected to your account. Unfortunately, if you’re only using the Kindle service through apps then you’re out of luck.
With the Kindle hardware connected to your Kindle account, log in to your account on the Amazon website. Click on ‘Accounts & Lists’ at the top right of the page. Under ‘Your Account’, select ‘Contents and Devices’. Next, select ‘Books’. From the pull-down, select ‘Download and transfer via USB’.
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If you don’t have a physical Kindle linked to your account, you’ll see the message, ‘You have selected content that is not compatible with any of your registered devices.’ Otherwise, click the radio dial next to your Kindle, then choose Download. Your book has been successfully downloaded to your computer.
Choosing a Plugin After Uploading (Image Credit: Future)
Converting to PDF Using Caliber
For book management on PC or Mac, you can’t do anything better than the open-source Caliber. It’s a great tool that makes it possible to open various file formats beyond AZW, including MOBI, HTML, and PRC. Best of all, its free. Download the Caliber app from the official website, then install it just like you would any other app. You’ll also need to download the latest version of Apprentice Elf’s DRM Removal Tool, which comes in .zip format.
After launching Caliber, select ‘Preferences’, then ‘Plugins’. Next, click on ‘Load plugin from file’. Next, open the DRM Removal Tool you just downloaded and follow Caliber’s additional instructions. Once complete, close Caliber, then restart the app on your PC or Mac.
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In Caliber, select ‘Preferences’, then Plugins. Double-click on the recently installed DRM Removal Tool. Select ‘eLink Kindle eBook’ from the available menu, then select ‘OK’. Add the serial number for your physical Kindle and follow the additional instructions in Caliber.
expansion of intelligence Will not done Convert Kindle files to PDF without entering a serial number.
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Next, it’s time to create your PDF. In Caliber, choose ‘Add Books’ from the menu, then open the Kindle Book you downloaded earlier. Highlight the book you just added, select ‘Convert Books’ from the menu. Select ‘PDF’ from the toggle output format on the top right. Click ‘OK’ in the bottom right to convert the book to PDF.
Finally, once the book is converted, right-click on ‘PDF’ next to Formats on the right side of the app. Next, select ‘Save PDF format to disc’ from the menu. Finally, save your converted book.
Epubor Ultimate (Image Credit: Future)
Convert to PDF Using Epubor Ultimate
You can also use Epub Ultimate to convert Kindle books to PDF. It follows a similar process, although it will cost you $30 to license the software for long-term use. First of all, download and install Apbor Ultimate just like any other app. Once it is installed, open the app.
For Mac users only
If you’re using the latest version of Kindle for Mac on your computer, you’ll probably see a message in Epub Ultimate indicating that you’ll need to install Kindle for Mac version 1.31 instead. Follow the instructions for Epubor Ultimate to do so. Fortunately, the process is pretty straightforward.
Kindle app on PC and Mac (Image credit: Future)
On a computer with the correct versions of Epubor Ultimate and Kindle installed, open the Kindle app and sign in with your Amazon account. Next, right-click on the book you want to convert, then choose Download from the menu. Next, go to the Epub Ultimate and select the Kindle tab on the left.
Drag the book you want to convert on the right side of the app. Doing so will decrypt the Kindle file. Next, click on ‘Convert to PDF’. Finally, tap on the folder icon at the bottom right, which will open the location of your converted PDF. and that is all; Your Kindle book is now available in PDF format.
Why choose Epub Ultimate over Caliber?
You might be wondering why you should buy Epubor Ultimate when you can use Caliber for free. There are two big reasons for this. Firstly, Epubor is very easy to use. Second, it lets you convert files from many different formats. In addition to the Kindle, you can convert DRM-protected files from Kobo, Google Play, Nook and Adobe Digital Editions without having to install a plug-in.
If you only have a Kindle Book to convert to PDF, it makes sense to use Caliber. Otherwise, consider Epubor. Available on both PC and Mac.