It doesn’t matter if you’ve had a Kindle since the first generation or if you’ve just purchased your first one. Amazon can delete books that you’ve purchased, and you’ll no longer have access to them. While this is rare, it still happens. In 2009, copies of George Orwell’s novel 1984 were deleted from users’ Kindles because of rights issues, and it could happen again. Even worse, account bans from returning books can render your digital library useless.
EBooks that are purchased through the Amazon Kindle library are basically license agreements between Amazon and you, meaning that you’ve purchased the license but not the actual book. But if you’re worried that your purchases are going to vanish, there is at least something you can do about it to ensure that you’ve got copies backed up on your device.
Amazon is taking a big step in the right direction with Kindle ebooks
A surprisingly pro-consumer move.
What is DRM and why does it matter?
Digital Rights Management can instantly revoke access to paid items
Digital Rights Management, or DRM, is a tricky subject. It’s a layer of encryption wrapped around a file to control what you can and can’t do after you “buy” an item. Video games, eBooks, and other digital items often ship with a layer of DRM to prevent you from sharing them illegally with other users. But it often results in degraded performance in video games, single-device locking for eBooks, and other issues. Something like a physical book can be bought, shared, and owned for as long as you’d like. You can pick it up, move it around, and do whatever you’d like with it. A digital purchase, on the other hand, you’re basically “renting” it from Amazon, and they can take it back in a moment.
Kindle uses three different types of file formats for its eReaders: AZW/AZW3 (sometimes referred to as Kindle Format 8), KFX, and KCR. AZW/AZW3 eBooks are typically easy to strip of their DRM, while KFX and KCR files are typically far more difficult. What makes this even more difficult is that since a Kindle is typically always connected to Wi-Fi, Amazon can just randomly delete books from your account if you’ve purchased them through the Kindle store. The same could be done if any of the aforementioned formats are removed in the future, meaning you’d either have to download them again in a new format or potentially even purchase them again.
What can you do about it?
Sometimes Amazon plays nice, other times, you have to play dirty
If you have a vast digital library of different books, Calibre is the program that I would recommend in this situation. Why? It has a massive selection of plug-ins available, including the DeDRM plugin that will come in handy for a situation such as this. As of January 2026, Amazon has allowed publishers to offer DRM-free downloads in both EPUB and PDF formats, but this is primarily going to be used by smaller publishers and independent authors. Major publishers often don’t opt out of DRM, but smaller publishers who want users to be able to enjoy their books anywhere often do.
We are not lawyers, and this information is for educational purposes. Laws vary by jurisdiction. Removing DRM for personal use, while a common practice among digital archivists, is technically a breach of license, and Amazon reserves the right to terminate accounts that violate its terms. Never share or distribute decrypted files, as this constitutes copyright infringement and piracy.
Using Calibre, alongside the DeDRM plugin and KFX Input plugin, will allow users to potentially remove the DRM from their purchased books and back up copies for themselves to use in the future. You’ll need your Kindle Serial Number, along with a file that has been accessed with the download & transfer via USB option on the Amazon website. This will allow you to take your purchased books from the Kindle store and use them on other eReaders, or read them on programs such as Calibre itself. It’s also a way to ensure that you have a digital backup of the purchases that you’ve made. TL;DR?
- Buy the book on Amazon.
- Download via Download & Transfer via USB.
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Import to Calibre, and input your Kindle serial number.
- Content and Devices -> Devices or Settings -> Device Options -> Device Info
- Convert to EPUB/PDF for proper archival purposes.
- OS
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Windows, MacOS, Linux, Portable, Android, iOS
- Price model
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Free
- Version
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8
- Services
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eBook Management
Make purchases in other storefronts
Buy elsewhere, then use Calibre to convert it to a Kindle format
Now, if you’d rather own the digital license for your book, there are a few different options available. You can always purchase books from a different storefront, like the DRM-free eBook Section from Kobo, or purchase from sites like Smashwords. Many different websites out there offer DRM-free books, and using Calibre, you can easily turn these files into a Kindle-compatible eBook that you can keep on your device without worry. Since there is no DRM, there is nobody who can strip these titles away from you.
If you’ve purchased a book in the EPUB format, you can easily just email the book to your specialized Kindle email address, which is found under Settings -> Your Account. This does apply a light bit of DRM, since it tethers it to your cloud account. Otherwise, if you’d prefer to transfer via USB on Calibre and bypass the Kindle servers, you can import your EPUB book, select Convert Books, and set the output format to AZW3. This way, you can edit metadata, add covers, and all the extra info you’d like to ensure that your home screen doesn’t look barren, alongside no formatting issues.
How to tell if a book has DRM on Amazon
It’s better to know before you buy on Amazon, and this can help
If you’re about to pull the trigger on a new book on Amazon, there are a few things that you can look out for. With the new policy updates, if a book is DRM-free, there should be a disclaimer that mentions something along the lines of “At the Publisher’s request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied”, and this will typically be under the Product Details portion of the page. If this text isn’t here, there’s a very good chance that DRM is being applied.
If you’ve already purchased a book on the Kindle store, you can also check under Manage Your Content and Devices, find the book you’re interested in checking out, and use the More Actions option to see if there are other download options available. If you see something along the lines of “download available in additional formats (EPUB/PDF)”, then your book does not have DRM and is available to be downloaded without the use of additional software.
Enjoy your digital library wherever
Knowledge is a great thing to have. But losing access to books that you’ve spent money on is not a great thing at all. While there are some moral gray areas to removing DRM, as long as you’re keeping these books for yourself, your account and your titles are safe and sound. Your Kindle is great for many things, not just being locked to a specific storefront for eternity.
