If there’s one thing you like to do more than anything else, it’s read. You’re a great lover of books of all sorts and every free moment is the right opportunity for you to start a new reading. Excuse me? Are you leaving for a trip and would like to avoid weighing down your suitcase by bringing with you volumes upon volumes? Well, in that case, don’t worry: you can make up for it by downloading free PDFs to store directly on the memory of your tablet, smartphone, laptop or eBook reader.
Wandering around the Web, it is in fact possible to find free books in PDF format to store on your computer and other devices, so that you can read them directly and comfortably on the go. To download PDF for free, simply appeal to some websites that offer users a huge assortment of titles. Obviously, do not expect best sellers at the top of the sales charts: the books that can be downloaded from the Web are in fact old classics of world literature on which the copyriht no longer applies or works by emerging writers who have chosen to exploit the Web as a channel for dissemination of their work.
If I have convinced you and if, therefore, it is your intention to download PDF for free, I suggest you take five minutes of free time and focus on reading the following lines so you can find out how to stuff your tablet, your smartphone, your computer or your eBook reader with many titles that, in this way, will not burden the weight of your suitcase.
Preliminary information
Before getting into the heart of the tutorial and explaining to you how to download PDF for free, it seems only right to provide you with some information regarding the compatibility of such files with various devices and the software you can use to read them.
On a PC, i.e. on Windows, PDF files can be read with all common web browsing software, such as Chrome or Edge, or with dedicated readers, such as the very popular Acrobat Reader or the lighter and faster Sumatra PDF.
On macOS, you can make use of the above-mentioned Internet browsers, the default Preview software or other dedicated software, such as Adobe’s Acrobat Reader. To learn more, read my tutorial on programs to open PDFs.
On the mobile side, there are many apps you can use to read PDFs, such as Google’s PDF Viewer on Android and the default Books app on iOS – read my guide on apps to read PDFs to learn more.
As for eBook readers, most e-book readers support PDF files, but to transfer files to them (and perhaps optimize them for their screen) you may need some dedicated software, such as Calibre.
The PDF files I’m going to talk about in the tutorial can be opened with any application and on any device, as they are not protected by DRM (i.e. digital locks that restrict the use of files on certain applications and devices, due to rights issues); if you have to deal with PDF files protected with Adobe DRM, use Adobe Digital Editions to open them.
In case you were wondering, it is possible to remove DRM from books in electronic format. However, this practice goes against the terms of use of stores that provide for downloading PDF eBooks and, therefore, I won’t go into it.
Finally, I want to tell you that some sites may allow you to download books only in ePub or other eBook formats: well, you can easily convert these files to PDF using Calibre and following the directions I gave you in my tutorial on how to convert ePub to PDF.
As for the actual PDF download, if the documents are opened in the browser instead of being downloaded to your device, do the following: to download the PDF to your computer, click on the download icon (the one with a downward-pointing arrow or a floppy disk) on the toolbar at the bottom of the browser tab.
If, on the other hand, you want to know how to download PDF to your smartphone or tablet, you have to use the share menu. For more information, I suggest you follow my guide on how to download PDF, in which I described the whole procedure to be carried out.
How to download PDF books for free without registration
Once you’ve clarified the above information, I’d say you’re ready to take action and find out how to download free PDF books without registration: all you have to do is visit the sites I’m about to recommend, choose the work you’re interested in and hit the respective download button.
Project Gutenberg
If you want to download PDF for free, I suggest you first visit Project Gutenberg, which hosts hundreds and hundreds of public domain eBooks in all languages of the world and in all different file formats, including PDF.
To download free PDFs from Project Gutenberg, click here to connect to the home page of the website and click on the search field located at the top left. Then type in the title of the book you want to download and click on the magnifying glass icon to start the search process.
Once you see the search results page, click on the title of the book you want to download. Wait for the new web page to appear, then click on the PDF format among the various download solutions available. If you are unable to locate the PDF format among the various file types in which the book is available, click on more files….
The PDF download will start automatically and for free.
Project Gutenberg, as already mentioned, hosts works in many different languages: if you want to browse only those in Italian, visit this page of the site.
Library of Italian Literature
Another great way to download PDF for free is to turn to the Library of Italian Literature. This site hosts the works of historical authors, such as Giacomo Leopardi and Dante Alighieri, all in PDF format.
If you would like to download free PDFs from the Library of Italian Literature, please click here so we can link you to the main page of the site.
Next, click on the Works heading on the left, click on the letter representing the initial of the title of the PDF you wish to download and, once the results page appears, click on the title of the book you are interested in.
Alternatively, you can search for books by author, by clicking on the entry Authors on the left and then selecting the initial of the name of the author you are interested in.
At this point, the PDF book of your choice will open directly in a new tab of the web browser you are using.
Free Ebook
If you prefer the works of emerging authors to the great classics of literature, I highly recommend you visit the site eBook Gratis, which contains only ebooks in Italian and only works by contemporary authors who have decided to publish their work online at no cost.
The works hosted belong to the most diverse genres: from horror stories to essays dedicated to the world of technology, through adventure novels, romantic tales and much more. Almost all ebooks are available in PDF format (otherwise they are in ePub) and their downloading does not require registrations.
To do so, connect to the main page of eBook Gratis, click on the Free Books item at the top and browse the list of available works. Unfortunately, there is no subdivision by genres, but only a list to browse, using the numbered pages at the bottom of the screen. Alternatively, you can use the search bar located in the right sidebar, to search for a book by its title.
Once you have found the ebook you are interested in, click on its cover image, then on the downward arrow icon in its descriptive tab and that’s it: the book will be downloaded on your device.
ManyBooks
ManyBooks is also another great website through which you can download free PDFs and enrich your personal library with new titles. The site lets you find books in all major world languages (including Italian) and includes numerous classic works and books by independent writers. However, it requires registration or social authentication to download the various titles.
If you want to download free PDFs from ManyBooks, click here, in order to connect to the service’s website. Then choose a literary genre or type the title of the book you would like to download in the search field at the top of the page and press the Enter button on your keyboard.
Once the search results are displayed, click on the title of the book you think you might like, then click on the Free Download button and log in to the site. If you don’t have an account yet, fill in the form with your name, email address and password or, alternatively, authenticate yourself through your Facebook or Google profile by clicking on one of the buttons displayed on the screen.
When logged in, select your favorite literary genres, go ahead, choose PDF as your preferred file format, decline the newsletter subscription, and click the Download now button, to download your selected book.
If you want to browse only Italian-language works, visit this ManyBooks page.
FeedBooks
Another excellent site that allows you to download books for free is FeedBooks. It provides users with a rich catalog consisting mainly of works on which the copyright no longer applies for some time. However, it is almost mainly ePub files, which can then be converted into PDF.
If this solution interests you and you want to download free books using it, click here to connect to the FeedBooks website. Once you see the FeedBooks web page, click on the Public Domain item located in the upper right corner. Then, use the Categories menu (in the left sidebar) to select a literary genre of your interest and view the related works available for download.
Alternatively, type, in the search field located in the upper right corner, the title of the book you want to download and then press the Enter button on your keyboard, to start the search.
Once you see the search results page, click on the book you are interested in, then click on the Download button and the free book download will start.
How to download PDF for free from Google
If your intention is not only to download PDF books, but also other documents in the said format, I suggest you do a Google search.
Yes, you read that right! The famous search engine lets you search for, and then download, documents in PDF format, filtering the results of the search performed.
To find only PDF files with Google, perform a search with the title of the document you are interested in followed by the filetype:pdf operator. By adding “filetype:pdf” to the search terms, you’ll only find documents in PDF format. Convenient, isn’t it?