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Readest

readest · Entertainment

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What is Readest?

Readest is an ebook reader for people who read on more than one device. It handles common formats, keeps your highlights and notes, and picks up where you left off on the next screen. Tools such as dictionary lookup, translation and read aloud help with study and language learning.

Readest is an open-source ebook reader for macOS, Windows, Linux, Android, iOS and the web. It opens EPUB, PDF, MOBI, AZW3, FB2, CBZ, TXT and other formats, with highlights, notes, full-text search, text-to-speech and a split-screen Parallel Read view. Your library, progress and notes can sync across devices, and it connects to OPDS catalogues and Calibre.

Core capabilities

  • Parallel Read opens two books side by side with synced scrolling.
  • Highlights, bookmarks and notes, with full-text search across the library.
  • Syncs progress and notes with KOReader devices.

Reading and study tools

Readest offers scroll and page views, custom fonts, layouts and theme colours, and full keyboard navigation with screen reader support. You can add highlights, bookmarks and notes while reading, and export highlights to Readwise or Hardcover. Words can be looked up in built-in dictionaries, Wiktionary or Wikipedia, or in imported dictionary packs. Text-to-speech reads books aloud, and read-along narration plays EPUB 3 media overlays or pairs an EPUB with your own DRM-free audio.

  • Annotations
  • Dictionary
  • Text-to-speech
  • Accessibility

Library, sync and integrations

The library has grid and list views, groups and full-text search across the books in view. Books can come from files, links, OPDS catalogues, Calibre or clipped web pages. Sync covers library entries, progress, highlights and notes through Readest Cloud or storage you control, and KOReader devices can sync progress and notes. Readest Cloud has a free plan with 500 MB of storage, while more storage and translation quota come with the paid Plus and Pro plans.

  • Library
  • OPDS
  • Calibre
  • Sync
  • KOReader

Platforms and licence

Readest is an app you install, not a server: get it from the App Store, Google Play, Flathub or the GitHub releases, or use the web version at web.readest.com. Linux builds come as AppImage, .deb, Flatpak and Nix, and Windows needs the Microsoft Edge WebView2 runtime. The project says the sync backend can be self-hosted, with its Supabase schema documented on the wiki. Readest is a modern rewrite of the Foliate reader and is released under the AGPL-3.0 licence.

  • Desktop
  • Mobile
  • Web
  • AGPL-3.0

Where it fits

Use cases

  1. 01

    Read a translation next to the original

    Long-press a book in the library and select a second book, or choose Parallel Read from the reader's sidebar menu. Each pane has its own table of contents, settings and progress, and scrolling stays in step by default. Turn the sync off for translations where page lengths differ.

  2. 02

    Keep your reading in sync on every device

    Sign in to a Readest account under Main Menu, Account, and turn on the Sync toggles. Library entries, progress, bookmarks, highlights and notes reach every signed-in device, while book files download only when you open them. KOReader users can also sync progress and notes with their devices.

  3. 03

    Build a library from your own sources

    Add books with the file picker, drag and drop, the share sheet on mobile or a link to an EPUB. Connect an OPDS catalogue or your Calibre library to browse and import books. Full Text Search in the library finds passages inside your books, with options such as whole words, regular expressions and fuzzy matching.