A Kindle Cloud Reader alternative for books you already own
Kindle Cloud Reader is a good browser reader with one defining constraint: it reads what is in your Amazon library. Books bought from the Kindle store, and files you have pushed through Send to Kindle, which converts them into Amazon's format on the way in. If you have a folder of EPUB files and want to read one right now, that is a detour.
Ownership is the real difference
Amazon's reader is the front end to a store. That is not a criticism — it is a coherent design, and if you buy your books there it works extremely well, right down to your page position following you onto an e-ink Kindle mid-chapter.
It does mean the format question is decided for you. A DRM-free EPUB from Standard Ebooks, a publisher's direct download, a manuscript a friend sent you: each has to be routed through Send to Kindle and converted before Amazon's reader will show it to you.
Scrolla starts from the opposite premise. The file is yours, EPUB is an open standard, and the reader should just open it. No conversion, no account, no store.
Side by side
Reading is free forever. Premium ($5/month) adds the study tools — highlights, notes, full-book search, sync and audiobook mode.
| Kindle Cloud Reader | Scrolla | |
|---|---|---|
| What it opens | Books in your Amazon library | Any EPUB file you have Free |
| Opens an EPUB directly | No — it goes through Send to Kindle first | Yes, natively Free |
| Account required | Amazon account | None to start reading |
| Where it runs | Browser | Browser |
| Highlights & notes | Yes, synced across Kindle devices | Yes Premium |
| E-ink device sync | Yes — Kindle hardware | No |
| Offline reading | Yes | Not yet |
When Kindle Cloud Reader is the better choice
- You buy your books from the Kindle store — those books will not open anywhere else.
- You own a Kindle and want your place to follow you between the browser and the device.
- You want offline reading in the browser today.
If your library lives in Amazon's ecosystem, staying there is the sensible call. This page is for the folder of EPUB files that does not.