How to Buy and Read Kindle Books on iPad

Combine Safari and Amazon to get Kindle books on your beloved Apple device

What to Know

  • Download the Kindle app from the App Store onto your iPad.
  • Log into Amazon > connect the app to your account > purchase a book from the Kindle section > start reading.

This article explains how to get and read Kindle books with an Apple iPad. Be sure to download the Kindle reader from the App Store onto your iPad and connect it to your Amazon account first.

How to Buy Kindle Books for Your iPad

The Kindle app is compatible with both Kindle books and Audio Companions, but not with Audible books. The app also supports the Kindle Unlimited subscription. Use the Amazon Cloud Reader if you don't want to download the Kindle app.

Although you can browse through and read Kindle Unlimited books through the Kindle app, you cannot actually buy Kindle books with the app because Apple limits what can be sold through an app. As a workaround, use the Safari web browser and go directly to amazon.com.

Then follow these steps:

  1. Log into your Amazon account.

  2. In the Kindle Books section, select the title(s) you want.

    A selection of titles under the Amazon Kindle section.
  3. In the left-hand navigation column, pare down your options by making choices, such as Prime Reading Eligible or Kindle Unlimited, etc.

  4. Add selected titles to your shopping cart. You can also purchase a Kindle book using the Buy Now with 1-Click option. That option is a simple method for ordering using already stored billing information from your Amazon account.

    If you do not want to use the 1-Click option yet, click Kindle Edition underneath the title and star rating for the book. That takes you to the full description of the book where you will have additional options.

    Some books are automatically included with a Prime membership. In those cases, the cost is $0.

  5. When you're ready to buy, you need to tell Amazon where to send the book. Because you already connected your iPad to your account, you will see that option under Deliver to: when you expand the menu.

    An example of the purchase options for Kindle books on Amazon.
  6. Give Amazon a minute or two to complete the purchase and send the book to your device. If you don't see it, tap the Sync button at the bottom-right corner of the library on the Kindle app to refresh all of your purchases.

  7. On your iPad, open the Kindle app to see your book. Start reading.

How to Use the Kindle App to Read iPad Books

The app is divided into five tabs that are accessed using the buttons at the bottom of the screen:

  • Library: This section reveals your entire Kindle library. Books that you have downloaded will show up with a checkmark in the bottom right corner. You must download a book to read it, but after you've downloaded it, you can read it online or offline.
  • Community: This tab gives you access to Goodreads, which is a social network for book lovers. Goodreads is a great place to share your bookcase with other friends or avid readers, and it is also a great place to discover new books.
  • Your current book: The book you are currently reading will show up in the middle of the tab buttons.
  • Discover: Amazon uses your reading habits to pair you with similar books. While you cannot buy books directly from the Amazon app, you can put them on your wishlist, which makes them easier to find when you go to Amazon.com directly.
  • More: If you need to change your settings or sign into a different account, use the More tab. 

Can I Change Fonts, Change the Background Color, and Search the Book?

While you are reading a book, tap anywhere on the page to reveal a menu across both the top and the bottom of the iPad's display.

The bottom menu is a scroll bar that helps you zip across pages. This tool is great if you are resuming a book you've already started from another source, like a paper copy of the book. The Kindle app should resume where you left off even if you read it on another device, so you shouldn't need to skip around continue reading from a book you started on your Kindle. 

The top menu presents several configuration options. The most important is the font button, which is the button with the "Aa" letters. Through this sub-menu, you can change the font style, the size, the background color of the page, how much white space to leave in the margins, and even change the brightness of the display.

The search button, which is a magnifying glass, will let you search the book. The button with three horizontal lines is the menu button. Use this button to go to a specific page, listen to the audio companion, or read through the table of contents.

On the other side of the menu is the share button, which will let you send a text message with the book's link to a friend, a bookmark of annotations, the x-ray feature that brings up information about the page (including definitions of some of the terms), and a bookmark button.

How Do I Listen to My Audible Books?

You need to download the Audible app to listen to your Audible books; the Kindle app only works with Audible companions. After signing in with your Amazon login, download your Audible books to the iPad using that app and listen to them.

Should I Be Using Apple Books Instead of Kindle?

It really doesn't matter if you use Apple Books or Amazon's Kindle app for reading. They are both very good readers. Apple Books has a neat page-turning animation, but Amazon has the largest library of books available and nice features like Kindle Unlimited. 

If you like to comparison shop, using both e-readers will allow you to compare prices against each other. And don't forget to check out all of the free books available that are in the public domain. 

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