Read classic books free on iPhone and iPad
The classics you want are in the public domain and free to read legally. The biggest source is Project Gutenberg. justRead has Project Gutenberg built in as a catalog, so you can search it, browse by category and download an EPUB straight into your library.
See where classics come from
Where classics come from, legally
Public-domain books are free to read, but only some sources are reliable.
- Project Gutenberg
- A long-running library of public-domain books in plain EPUB, and the source built into the app.
- Any other OPDS catalog
- A public-domain site that publishes a catalog feed can be added by its address, like any other source.
- Public domain depends on the country
- A book can be free to read in one country and still under copyright in another, so check the rules where you live.
What readers fetch first
The most downloaded titles from Project Gutenberg in the 30 days before 23 October 2026.
How the built-in catalog works
justRead lists Project Gutenberg under Sources in Add Books, next to Calibre and your own library folder.
Search it or browse by category, then download in place. Downloaded books land in your library and stay readable offline.
The free OPDS catalogs roundup lists other sources, and the OPDS reader page explains how catalogs work.
Read them comfortably
justRead can show a page with nothing on screen but the book.
Pick the font, size and margins that suit an old text; the customization page lists every setting.
Free books, paid app
The books
Public-domain books cost nothing to read.
The app
justRead has a 14-day free trial of the whole app, and a paywall appears after it.
For more places to find legal books, read where to download free EPUB books.