How to buy books on Kindle
As a writer, it’s no surprise that I love to read. But like many others, it wasn’t always like that. As a child, I hated assigned reading with a passion; I refused to read books that I hadn’t chosen myself. The idea of reading was boring and time-consuming. Why read stories when you can watch them on TV?
But as my passion for writing grew, so did my love of books. Reading a book felt like a private connection with the author, like revealing a secret that triggered imaginary journeys. Stephen King once said that reading “creates an ease and intimacy with the writing process”, and that’s what I felt.
A Kindle e-reader ended up changing my life. Books are already portable, but eBooks are portable to the next level: all your books are at your fingertips in one compact device. But how do you get the most out of your Kindle? Let’s start with how you can buy books on the device.
Also: The best e-readers: Kindle, Kobo, etc.
How to buy ebooks on Kindle
Step 1: Link Your Kindle to Your Amazon Account
When you buy a new Kindle, you have the option of already linking it to your Amazon account when it is delivered. If you didn’t choose this option during checkout, sign in to your Amazon account on your Kindle or create an account.
Step 2: Access the Kindle Store
The Kindle home page will show Your Library, which contains books you’ve purchased or borrowed, and the Store with books to purchase.
Step 3: Select a book to buy
The Kindle Store lets you browse by genre and popularity, or find recommendations just for you.
Once you see an interesting book in the Kindle’s digital library, you can see a summary, page count, and other information about the book. You can also scroll down to read reviews and learn more about what others are saying about the book.
Step 4: Buy the book
Once you have chosen a book, press the button Buy for [$ price] on your Kindle to purchase it. This process will charge your Amazon account, so whatever payment method you use on Amazon will be applied to the purchase.
The button changed from Buy for $8.99 at Read now after purchase. Image: Maria Diaz/ZDNET
Once payment has been processed, the book will begin downloading to your Kindle and will be available in your Kindle Library (the Kindle homepage) within seconds.
FAQs
If you’re not sure if you’re ready to buy a Kindle book, you can try a sample one. Think of it like reading certain pages in a bookstore before committing to buying a book — except you can do it from anywhere with your Kindle or other device with the Kindle app.
A sample Kindle book tends to be either about 10% of the book, or the first chapter, or both. After reading the sample, you can purchase the book on your Kindle to download the rest.
If you want to buy Kindle books from your iPhone, you will need to do so through a web browser. Although you can have the Kindle and Amazon apps on your iPhone, purchasing books using these apps on an iPhone is unfortunately not supported.
To buy Kindle books on your iPhone, follow these steps:
- Access a web browser (such as Safari, Google Chrome, or Firefox).
- Go to Amazon.com and sign in.
- Find the Kindle book you want to buy.
- Select Kindle format under the book title.
- Buy and check.
- The Kindle book will be downloaded to Kindle devices connected to this Amazon account.
One of the benefits of buying the Kindle format of a book is that it’s already cheaper than the hardcover version. But there are ways to find even better deals when shopping for Kindle books. Amazon always offers deals on its site, and you can find daily Kindle deals, monthly offersand Kindle Exclusive Deals.
If it’s in the Kindle Virtual Library, it’s available for purchase. Many translated books are available in the Kindle Store, and some books are available in multiple languages.
Simply search for the book you’re interested in and see if it’s available for purchase.
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