PDF Drive alternatives: 20 competitor sites to download free books

Have you ever wanted to download free reading material but got stuck? Well, you are not alone. Most people need help finding books or reading material online. However, websites like PDF Drive offer the best solution when faced with such a situation. But are there other similar websites like it? Discover some top PDF Drive alternatives you can rely on.

PDF Drive is an online platform containing a colossal database of eBooks from all across the world. The website is free to use and download, ideal for sourcing educational and recreational PDF books. Material available includes guides, educational materials, magazines, novels, and audiobooks.

PDF Drive alternatives

Like most online platforms, PDF Drive has alternative websites offering the same services. These websites are extensive, each offering their versions of the services. Here is a breakdown of sites like PDF Drive for you to try.

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1. Project Gutenberg

Where can I find free PDF books? Project Gutenberg is among the best websites. The platform is a digital library with an extensive collection of free eBooks. Its content mainly comprises classic literature and older works no longer US copyrighted. Project Gutenberg is free to use with no registration required. The platform doesn't require other apps to operate, and your standard browser or ebook reader is enough.

2. PDF Room

What is the best PDF book download website? PDF Room is among the most popular choices. The website is a free PDF books platform and ebooks search engine platform. PDF Room has a user-friendly interface for browsing and downloading PDF materials. Content offered on PDF Room includes scholarly articles, ebooks, user manuals, and technical documents.

3. Ebook Searcher

Ebook Searcher is a search engine for ebooks, epubs and PDFs. The platform directs users to sites where they can find and download reading material. Ebook Searcher is ideal for authors and readers. For authors, they can use the website to check if their eBooks are free to download or copyright infringed.

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4. LibreTexts

LibreTexts is a web-based website that allows the creation and distribution of open educational resources (OERs). LibreTexts is part of the eBook Library category, functioning as a Learning Management System. Unlike PDF Drive, LibreTexts operates exclusively online.

5. FreeBookSpot

FreeBookSpot is a free eBook links library where you can find and download reading material in any category. Content available on FreeBookSpot includes engineering, scientific, programming and fiction. You can download any of these books free without registration.

6. Bookboon

Bookboon is an online resource website for students to source free educational material. Bookboon platform is easy to use, fast, and accessible, and registration is free and easy. You can sign in using an e-mail address or Microsoft, Facebook, Google or LinkedIn.

7. Bookyards

Bookyards is a web portal which provides access to educational information and reading materials. The platform has an extensive library of books, external web links, news and blog links, ebooks and a vast collection of online resources. Bookyards' search function allows easy access to content on the platform.

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8. Free-eBooks

Free-eBooks is among the leading sources on the Internet for free eBooks and one of the best alternatives to PDF Drive books. The titles offered on the website are available in different formats, including ebup, PDF, txt, and HTML.

The Free-eBooks platform allows you to search for content by author or title. Once you get a book, you can read its description or reviews from other readers. However, to download, you must create an account free for readers or authors.

9. Yes-PDF

If you want free PDF books, the Yes-PDF platform is an ideal choice. The website is a free search engine where you can search and download millions of PDF files onto your device. The platform uses crawlers to regularly scan the Internet and add PDF files to their database. Yes-PDF has preview cover photos, is up to date, and offers recommendations based on the user's recent searches.

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10. Google Scholar

Google Scholar is a freely accessible web search engine that indexes scholarly literature's full text or metadata across various publishing formats and disciplines. Content on Google Scholar includes peer-reviewed online academic journals and scholarly literature like articles, theses, books, abstracts, and court opinions.

11. LibriVox

LibriVox is a free online platform that provides public-domain audiobooks. The audiobooks, read by volunteers worldwide, contain books covering various genres and languages.

12. Digital Public Library of America

The Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) is a large-scale US public digital library. The DPLA brings together the riches of America's libraries, archives, and museums and makes them freely available. The online resource allows readers to check out books banned by local libraries.

13. Internet Archive

Internet Archive is a digital library offering many free downloadable texts and books. It also hosts a collection of modern eBooks accessible without a subscription. Internet Archive offers content in over ten formats, including PDFs, ePubs, Kindle, Item Tile, Abbyy GZ, plus others.

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14. ManyBooks

ManyBooks was created in 2004 to provide an extensive library of books in digital format accessible free of charge on the Internet. The site also has free and discounted bestsellers, from romance and action to adventure and fantasy. You can access free downloads or read content directly from the ManyBooks website. As a member, you can access unlimited free books and even write reviews on titles you read.

15. OnlineProgrammingBooks

OnlineProgrammingBooks is among the top websites for programmers and the best alternative to PDF Drive's books. You can use the OnlineProgrammingBooks platform to search for any publication related to computer science, web and graphic design, programming, and mobile app development.

You can also get databases, artificial intelligence, networking, and computer hardware resources. Although some PDFs are free, others are available at discounted prices.

16. Open Culture

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Open Culture is ideal if you are looking for free books on an online PDF platform. The website has hundreds of audiobooks, online courses, and movies. Open Culture allows you to download at no extra cost and in various formats, such as Kindle, PDF, HTML, and Plain Text.

Content available includes fiction, drama, poetry, adventure, and other literary genres written by classic authors. All the resources are available without a subscription or sign-up, including audiobooks in MP3 format.

17. Open Library

Open Library is an open, editable library catalogue. The platform provides a source for users to read, borrow, and discover a vast collection of books for free. Features of Open Library include free library books online (controlled through digital lending), favourite book tracking, virtual library explorer and full-text search.

18. Smashwords

Smashwords is a distributor of independent eBooks offering free and paid books. All books are DRM-free, meaning you can enjoy them on any e-reading device without limitations. Smashwords platform is a powerful search tool to make content searching easier. The formats provided include Epub, Kindle, PDF, and RTF.

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19. Europeana

Europeana is a web portal created by the European Union containing digitized cultural heritage collections of many European institutions. You can access many works of art, books, artefacts, videos, and sounds from Europe through the collections page.

The Europeana platform allows you to search, save and share art, books, films and music from thousands of cultural institutions. Europeana is one of the most popular sites for downloading PDFs for free.

20. Booknet

Booknet is a literary platform for free PDF books ranging from fantasy to suspense, mystique, mystery, science fiction, romance novels, noir novels and more. To take advantage of Booknet's free readings, register on their portal. In addition, you can purchase a subscription to a new book by paying only once. Booknet's subscription gives you access to all the latest chapters from the moment the writer publishes them until the end.

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Is PDF Drive free books legal?

Yes, it is. The platform is legal in countries like the USA on condition that you read the content and not print or publish it. Per the PDF Drive's DMCA disclaimer, the data provided by the platform is for general purposes, with the company not offering warranties on the content.

PDF Drive alternatives include websites like Bookboon and Smashwords. These platforms are the best alternatives, offering similar functions to PDF Drive. You can download free educational material and fantasy/fiction novels from these alternatives.

Yen.com.gh published about Library Genesis alternatives. Library Genesis is a file-sharing platform comprising extensive reading material like scholarly journals, academic papers and general interest books.

Library Genesis is among the largest file-sharing websites available. You can use it to download reading content for free with no hassle. But with such an extensive library, does Library Genesis have alternatives?

Source: YEN.com.gh