How to send Libby books to Kindle, plus fixes outside the US

Here is how to send Libby books to Kindle: borrow an ebook in Libby, open your Shelf, tap Read With, choose Kindle, then confirm on Amazon's page with Get Library Book. The book arrives on your Kindle e-reader or in the Kindle app the next time it syncs over Wi-Fi. As of November 2026, this only works with US public libraries, so readers elsewhere should skip to the section on alternatives.

What you need before you start

Check these four things first. Most failed deliveries trace back to one of them.

• A US public library card from a library that lends ebooks through Libby.
• Libby on iPhone, on Android, or in a browser at libbyapp.com. The steps are the same in all three.
• An Amazon account with a Kindle e-reader, the Kindle app for iOS or Android, or Kindle Cloud Reader registered to it.
• Wi-Fi on the Kindle, so it can download the book once Amazon sends it.

You do not need Amazon Prime or Kindle Unlimited. Library loans are free and sit outside Amazon's subscriptions. Kindle Unlimited is a separate paid catalogue and has nothing to do with your library card.

How to send Libby books to Kindle, step by step

The labels below match Libby's current wording. Do each step in order, and resist the urge to open the book in Libby along the way.

Check the title before you borrow

1. Search for a book in Libby and tap its cover to open the details page.
2. Look in the Read With section. If Kindle is listed, the title can go to your Kindle.
3. To skip this check in future, open the search filters, set Read With to Kindle, and pin the filter so every search shows only Kindle-ready titles.

Borrow the book and send it

1. Tap Borrow, then confirm the loan.
2. If Libby offers to open the book, close that prompt instead.
3. Tap Shelf at the bottom of the screen, then Loans.
4. Find the book and tap Read With. If that button is not shown, tap Manage Loan, then Read With.
5. Choose Kindle. Libby hands you over to Amazon in your browser.
6. Sign in to Amazon if asked, using the account your Kindle is registered to.
7. Check the Deliver to menu and select the device or app you want.
8. Tap Get Library Book.

Get the book onto your Kindle

1. Make sure the Kindle is connected to Wi-Fi.
2. On an e-reader, open the quick settings and tap Sync. In the Kindle app, go to Library and pull down to refresh.
3. Open the book from your library. Library loans show alongside books you own.

Once a loan has gone to Kindle, Libby keeps it set to Kindle for the rest of that loan. To read it in Libby instead, go to Manage Loan, then Read With, then Libby. The official LibbyLife guide walks through the same flow.

Make Kindle your default in Libby

If you read everything on Kindle, set it as your default. Libby will then skip the choice for every new loan.

1. Tap Menu.
2. Under Settings, tap Read Books With.
3. Tap Kindle.

To undo this later, return to the same screen and pick I Have No Preference. To change just one book, go to Shelf, then Loans, then Manage Loan, then Read With, and choose Kindle or Libby.

Avoid setting Libby as your default if you ever send books to Kindle. Libby's own troubleshooting page lists that preference as one reason the Kindle option fails. If Read Books With is missing from your Menu entirely, your library card is almost certainly from outside the US.

Three rules that catch people out

Do not open or download the book in Libby first

This is the most common mistake. If you download another format, such as EPUB, in Libby or on your library's OverDrive site, the loan is locked to that format. The only fix is to return the book and borrow it again, which can mean rejoining a waitlist.

Only ebooks go to Kindle

Audiobooks and magazines stay in Libby. E-ink Kindles such as the Paperwhite cannot play Libby audiobooks at all. Audible is Amazon's own audiobook route, but it is a separate paid store, not a library service.

Progress and highlights do not move between apps

Reading position, notes and highlights do not sync between Libby and Kindle. Pick one place to read each loan. Third-party guides also disagree on whether Kindle highlights stay visible after a loan ends, so copy anything you need before the due date.

Common problems and fixes

Problem	Likely cause	Fix
No Kindle option on one title	The publisher offers no Kindle format	Check Read With before borrowing, or read that loan in Libby
No Kindle option on any title	Library outside the US, or Libby set as default	Confirm your library, then set Read Books With to Kindle or No Preference
Kindle option vanished after borrowing	The book was downloaded in another format	Return it and borrow it again
Book not on the Kindle	No Wi-Fi, wrong Deliver to device, or a different Amazon account	Sync, check the device, then redeliver from Amazon
Amazon keeps asking you to sign in	Browser session or the wrong account	Sign out of Amazon, then retry in another browser

The book never shows up

First sync the Kindle on Wi-Fi and wait a minute. Then check which Amazon account the Kindle uses: Amazon only delivers to devices registered to your own account, so a Kindle on a partner's account will not appear in the Deliver to list.

If the account is right, redeliver it. On Amazon's website, open Manage Your Content and Devices, find the library book, choose More Actions, then Deliver or Remove from Device, and pick your Kindle.

One third-party guide says Amazon ended its Download and Transfer via USB option in February 2025. We could not confirm this on Amazon's site. If your Kindle has no Wi-Fi, check Amazon's help pages before relying on a cable.

The Amazon sign-in loop

Sometimes Amazon's page keeps returning you to sign-in instead of showing Get Library Book. Sign out of Amazon in your browser, sign back in with the account tied to your Kindle, then tap Read With again in Libby. If it still loops, try a different browser, or do the send step from libbyapp.com on a computer.

Sending to a child's Kindle

A Kindle set up under Amazon Kids will not appear as a normal delivery target. Send the book to your own account first. Then add it to the child's profile through Family Library in Manage Your Content and Devices.

Returning and renewing a Kindle loan

Deleting the book from your Kindle does not return it. It stays checked out and keeps counting against your loan limit.

• Return early in Libby: Shelf, then Manage Loan, then Return Early.
• Return early from Amazon: find the book in Manage Your Content and Devices and use the return option under More Actions.
• Renew in Libby only: open Manage Loan near the end of the loan and look for the renew option. If others are waiting, you may only be able to place a hold.

When a loan expires, the book stops opening on your Kindle. You do not have to do anything to hand it back.

When Kindle delivery isn't available for your library or region

Libby's reading preference help page is clear: Kindle Books are for US libraries only, and if your library is elsewhere the setting does not appear. Some converter sites claim UK users see a broken Kindle button, but the official word is that the option is simply absent. If you are in the UK, Canada or Australia, this is not a bug you can fix.

These are the legitimate options instead:

Option	Works outside the US	What you need	Trade-off
Read in the Libby app	Yes	A phone, tablet or browser	Not an e-ink screen
Libby on a Fire tablet	Yes	A Fire tablet with Libby installed	LCD screen, not e-ink
A Kobo e-reader	In many countries	A Kobo e-reader and a library that uses OverDrive	A different device; check your library supports it

Libby on a Fire tablet

Fire tablets run apps, so Libby can work on them directly. Install it from the Amazon Appstore if you have a Fire tablet from 2020 or later, or one of certain earlier models. Older Fire tablets need Libby sideloaded, which Libby Help explains step by step. E-ink Kindles such as the Paperwhite cannot run the Libby app at all.

A Kobo e-reader

Kobo e-readers have library borrowing through OverDrive built in, and the Kobo Books app syncs progress with them. Ask your library whether it supports Kobo before you buy one.

Skip the DRM-stripping tools

Some guides that rank for this topic sell software that strips copy protection from library loans so you can move them to a Kindle. We do not recommend it. It breaks your library's lending terms and, in many countries, copyright law.

Apps that make it easier

You only need two apps for the US route. The others help if delivery does not work for you or a waitlist is long. Browse more readers in our Books category.

• Libby: free on iOS and Android. Borrowing, sending, defaults, returns and renewals all happen here, and it is the reader that works in every country.
• Kindle: where loans land. The app on iOS and Android receives library books just like an e-reader does.
• Kobo Books: the best e-ink route if you live outside the US and want library books on a dedicated reader.
• Audible: Amazon's paid audiobook store, since Libby audiobooks cannot go to Kindle.
• Everand: a paid subscription with a set number of unlocks a month, useful when the library queue is months long.

If you keep these apps installed and follow the order above, learning how to send Libby books to Kindle takes one try. After that, a default setting and a pinned filter make every new loan a two-tap job.