I’m a Kindle-worm. I begin and end my day with Kindles. However, during my initial days of using Kindle, I’ve always had this doubt if Kindle books expire. Here’s my answer.
When you purchase a Kindle book, it is yours to keep forever. Kindle books don’t expire, and you can re-download your Kindle books at any time from Amazon’s website. You can also share or retrieve books as as the account remains active. Once your Amazon account is closed, you lose access to your Kindle books.
In this article, I’ll be sharing some more interesting information on longevity of Kindle books and other rules imposed by Amazon in handling books.
What's inside?
Do You Keep Kindle Unlimited Books Forever
Kindle Unlimited is a subscription service that allows you to access a large selection of Kindle books for a monthly fee. With Kindle Unlimited, you can borrow up to 10 books at a time, and you can keep them for as long as you are a member of the service.
When you enroll in Kindle Unlimited, you’ve access to unlimited reading and listening on any device. You can keep your Kindle Unlimited books forever, even if you cancel your membership (provided you’ve downloaded it already). However, if a book is removed from the Kindle Unlimited catalog, you will no longer have access to it.
Additionally, some books may only be available to borrow for a limited time. When you borrow a book from Kindle Unlimited, it will appear in your library just like any other book you’ve purchased or downloaded for free.
You can keep track of which Kindle Unlimited books you’ve borrowed by looking for the “With narration” badge next to the titles in your library.
Unlike physical books, there are no due dates for Kindle books borrowed through Kindle Unlimited. However, you can only have 10 titles borrowed at a time.
If you’d like to keep a particular book beyond the 10-title limit, you’ll need to return it before borrowing another title. Kindle Unlimited books are also available to read offline, just like any other book in your library.
Also read: How long does a Kindle fire last?
How Long Can You Keep A Kindle Book Before Returning
When you borrow a Kindle book from a library, there’s usually a set loan period depending on the library, but it’s typically one to three weeks. Once the loan period has expired, the book will automatically be returned to the library and you’ll no longer be able to access it.
When you check out a book from a library using your Kindle, you’re actually borrowing a digital copy of the book. Just like with physical books, there is a lending period associated with each digital book.
At the end of the lending period, the book is automatically returned to the library (and removed from your Kindle).
If you finish the book before the lending period is up, you can return it early by following these steps:
1. Go to Amazon’s Manage Your Content and Devices page.
2. Select “Your Content” tab.
3. Find the book you want to return and select the Actions menu next to it.
4. Select Return for Refund.
You’ll be asked to confirm that you want to return the book. Once you do, the book will be returned to the library and removed from your Kindle. You will also receive a refund for any unused portion of the lending period.
Also read: Why is Kindle so expensive?
How To Keep Kindle Books Forever
You can have Kindle books forever by either maintaining your membership. However, there are other secret tips like downloading the book, transferring the book to other devices, or taking a backup.
The first step is to download the book to your computer. This way, even if you cancel your Amazon prime membership, you’ll still have the book on your computer.
The second way to keep your Kindle books forever is to convert them to PDFs. This way, they can be read on any device, not just Kindles.
This is a great hack to maintain a copy of Kindle book offline and I always follow it!
To do this, you need a program like Calibre.
- Once you have Calibre installed, simply add your Kindle book to it and then click the “Convert books” button.
- Choose PDF as the output format and hit OK. Your Kindle book will now be converted to a PDF, which you can save on your computer or even put on a USB drive for safekeeping.
The third way to keep your Kindle books forever is to back them up using Amazon’s own backup service. This service is free and relatively simple to use.
- Just go to Amazon’s website, sign in with your account, and then click the “Manage Your Content and Devices” link.
- On this page, you will see an option to create a backup of your Kindle content.
- Simply choose where you want to save the backup (an external hard drive is a good idea) and hit the “Start Backup” button.
Amazon will then create a backup of all your Kindle books, which you can restore at any time.
How To Remove Books From Kindle But Keep In Library
If you’ve a Kindle and want to remove books from your device but keep them in your library, there are a few steps you will need to follow.
- First, open up the “Manage Your Content and Devices” page on Amazon.
- From there, select the “Content” tab and then find the book or books you want to remove from your Kindle.
- Once you’ve selected the book or books, click on the “Actions” menu and select “Delete.”
This will remove the book from your Kindle, but it will remain in your library.
Tip: If you want to download it again, go to your “Library” on Amazon and re-download the book.
Do Free Kindle Books Expire
Free Kindle books don’t expire in the same way that paid Kindle books don’t expire, provided you haven’t borrowed it. Once you download a free Kindle book, you can access it indefinitely, as long as you’ve a device on which to read it or an Amazon account through which you can access it.
What happens if you’ve used the lending service?
When the lending period ends, automatically, the kindle books expire.
So, if you want to keep the book on your device, you must purchase it before the end of the lending period.
If you’ve borrowed a Kindle book from a friend or from Amazon’s lending library, you may be wondering if there’s an expiration date.
The answer is yes, Kindle books do expire. Once the lending period ends, the book will no longer be available on your device.
If you’re interested in a particular book, it’s best to purchase it before the end of the lending period. That way, you’ll be able to keep it on your device indefinitely and read it whenever you want.
Also read: Can you use Kindle app on airplane?
Is There A Time Limit On Kindle Books
Purchased Kindle books don’t have time limits. However, borrowed books have a lending period of 1-3 weeks. Taking a Kindle book on rent has a limit of 30 days.
Here are a few things you should know:
1. If you’re borrowing a Kindle book from a public library, the lending period is usually 14 days.
2. You can also borrow Kindle books from some private lending libraries, but the lending period varies depending on the library.
3. If you’re buying a Kindle book, there’s no time limit on how long you can keep it. However, if you’re renting a Kindle book, the rental period is usually 30 days.
5. Finally, if you’re borrowing a Kindle book from a friend, the lending period is up to the book’s owner.
Also read: Do Kindles have different chargers?
FAQ
How Long Do My Kindle Books Last
Kindle books last forever but if you’ve borrowed it, there’s a set date. Similar to Kindle’s longevity as a device, books also have excellent durability.
Does Kindle Unlimited Work On Old Kindle
Kindle Unlimited is available on all Kindle devices, including the Kindle Fire HD tablet and the Kindle Paperwhite e-reader. If you have an old Kindle, you can still access Kindle Unlimited by downloading the Kindle app for your device.
Do Kindle Library Books Return Automatically
Yes, when you borrow a Kindle book from a library, it will be returned to the library automatically when the loan period expires. The average loan period for library Kindle books is one to three weeks. Once it has expired, the book will be returned to the library and you will no longer be able to access it.
