How to Upload Epub to Kobo?

Q:"How to add external epub to Kobo Desktop? - My Kobo Aura HD H2O is "in the mail" so I'm trying to prepare for it by adding existing non-DRM ePub books that I already own. Ideally I'd like to be able to add books to the Kobo Desktop App and have the device sync via WiFi when it arrives. I've looked through the Kobo support / KB section and google a bit, as well as explored the Kobo Desktop app, but I'm not seeing a way to do this. What am I missing? How to upload ePub to Kobo desktop? Thanks in advance!"

Do you also want to upload ePub books to Kobo desktop, but have no idea how to do this? Well, you are not alone. Many people would like to know how to put ePub on Kobo. Therefore, in this guide, we would like to introduce you effective ways to upload ePub to Kobo desktop, no matter the ePub books are DRM protected or not.

Part 1: Brief Introduction to Kobo (the format it use and DRM protection)

Kobo is a Toronto (Canada) based company; the company's name is an anagram of "book", which sells eBooks, audiobooks, eReaders (the Kobo eReader) and tablet computers. When it refers to eBook, Kobo is an eReader device series developed and published by the Canada company with the same name.

With three generations of Kobo e-readers under its belt and widely available, along with the Kobobooks.com e-book store and partnership with the (faltering) Borders book chain, Kobo has become increasingly visible in only two years and now claims to control roughly 10 percent of the US e-book market. Its latest e-reader, the eReader Touch, has received largely positive reviews while Kobo's e-reading apps have topped the iTunes Store and are the default e-book platform on tablets from Samsung and RIM.

Kobo produces several e-readers with e-paper screens. Kobo's e-readers use Wi-Fi to sync a user's book collection and bookmarks with Kobo's cloud service, which can also be accessed from Kobo e-reading apps for Windows and OS X computers and Android, iOS, BlackBerry, and Windows Phone smartphones.

There are thousands of eBooks sold on Kobo store, most of which are DRM protected, exactly the reason that people couldn't share their purchased Kobo eBooks with others. The book file formats supported by Kobo eReader devices include EPUB, EPUB3 (Note: Kobo Original and Kobo Wi Fi does not support EPUB3), PDF, and MOBI.

ePub books are quite common in the market. Most ePub books are DRM-free, which will be quite easy for you to upload ePub books to Kobo devices from another Kobo device since Kobo actually accepts ePub (except Kobo Original and Kobo WiFi). There are also some ePub books that come with DRM protection, which makes it impossible to upload ePub books to Kobo directly. You need to make use of 3rd-party ePub DRM removal and converter tool to upload DRM protected eBooks to Kobo, which will be discussed below.

Part 2: How to Upload ePub Books to Kobo Desktop

For common ePub books that have no DRM protection, you could directly upload ePub books to Kobo desktop app and then sync to Kobo eReader devices easily. You can connect your Kobo eReader to your Windows computer, and then drag and drop books into your eReader Library. The below steps would show you how to upload ePub books to Kobo desktop app directly.

1. Connect your eReader to your computer using a Micro USB cable.

2. Tap Connect on your eReader.

3. When Windows prompts you, click Open folder to view files.

4. A desktop explorer window will open, showing the contents of your eReader.

5. Open a second desktop explorer window, and display the books you want to add to your eReader.

6. Drag and drop your books into the eReader.

7. Eject your eReader when you're finished.

The above steps are applicable to Windows computer users. If you are using a Mac, just follow the below steps to add ePub books to Kobo desktop app on Mac:

1. Connect your eReader to your computer using the a Micro USB cable.

2. Tap Connect on your eReader.

3. On your computer, open your Finder application.

4. Select KOBOeReader from your list of devices.

5. Open another Finder window and display the books you want to add to your eReader.

6. Drag and drop your books into the KOBOeReader Finder window.

7. Eject your eReader when you're finished.

Now, you have added ePub book files to your Kobo eBook reader app. It would automatically sync to your Kobo eBook reader device.

Part 3: How to Convert ePub to Kobo with Leawo Prof. DRM

As mentioned above, some ePub books are DRM protected like ePub books from your old Kobo eBook reader device. In this case, to add ePub books to Kobo device from your old Kobo device, you have to remove the DRM protection first and then you will be able to add these DRM ePub books to new Kobo eBook readers. You could turn to Leawo Prof. DRM for help, a professional eBook DRM removal and converter that could remove DRM protection from ePub books from Kobo and then convert DRM ePub books to other DRM-free books in PDF, ePub, Mobi or AZW for Kobo.

Download and install Leawo Prof. DRM on your computer. The below guide would show you detailed steps on how to remove DRM protection from ePub books on your old Kobo device for uploading to new Kobo eReader device.

 

Step 1: Log into your Kobo app

Launch and log in your Kobo app on your computer. You could then see all downloaded eBooks under the “Downloaded” tab.

Step 2: Launch Leawo Prof. DRM

Launch Leawo Prof. DRM and then click the “Add Files” button. There are two “Add Files” buttons. Click either one.

Step 3: Add Kobo eBooks

On the popup “Add Files” window, consecutively open “Library > Kobo” tab to choose Kobo eBooks for converting. Click the “Add” button to add chosen ones to the converting list.

Step 4: Set output format

Click the pencil icon in each loaded eBook title and then under the "Target Format" group, select an eBook format that meets your target eReader device. Choose to output to ePub, MOBI, AZW3 or TXT according to your new Kobo device requirement. For your time saving, you could check the "Apply to All eBook files" option under the "Option" tab.

Step 5: Set output directory

After setting output format, set an output directory in the “Output” box at the bottom of this Prof. DRM.

Step 6: Start to convert Kobo eBooks

Finally, click the “Convert” button. Leawo Prof. DRM would start converting Kobo eBooks instantly. The Kobo DRM removing will happen in the background.

The conversion will take you a few minutes, depending on the eBook file size and your computer performance. After converting, you could upload the converted DRM ePub books to new Kobo device freely.

Note: Leawo Prof. DRM could not only help you convert DRM ePub books from Kobo. If you have ePub books with DRM protection from Kindle and Adobe Digital Edition, Leawo Prof. DRM could also help. Please refer to how to convert Kindle eBooks and how to convert Adobe Digital Edition eBooks for detailed operation.

Actually, Leawo Prof. DRM is a comprehensive media solution that could help you remove DRM protection on iTunes video, convert DRM iTunes music, convert DRM audiobooks from iTunes and Audible, eBooks from Kindle, Kobo and Adobe Digital Edition, and download and convert Spotify music.

Part 4: How to Convert ePub to Kobo for Free with Calibre

Calibre is a free ePub to Kobo converter tool that we would like to recommend to you. It’s a totally free eBook converter that handles eBook conversions between various eBook file formats like ePub, Mobi, PDF, TXT, AZW, AZW3, etc. As a cross-platform open-source suite of e-book, Calibre supports organizing existing e-books into virtual libraries, displaying, editing, creating and converting e-books, as well as syncing e-books with a variety of e-readers.

Follow the below steps to learn how to convert ePub to Kobo for free with Calibre.

1. Download and install Calibre on your computer.

2. Select the ebook you want to convert, or add it to the program's library if you haven't done it yet.

3. Then right click on the title and add any missing meta information – or fix wrong data if necessary.

4. On the top right corner of the data editing window, open "Output format" drop-down box to set output format according to your Kobo device. ePub or PDF is recommended.

5. Click the Convert E-books button on the top toolbar.
6. Hit the OK button and Calibre will convert the ebook in a few minutes.

Now, your ePub books have been converted for Kobo. However, you should know that Calibre could only convert ePub eBooks for Kobo if the ePub books are DRM-free. It you want to convert DRM protected ePub books to Kobo device, you have to install third-party DRM removal plugin for Calibre , or just try Leawo Prof. DRM.

Part 4: Leawo Prof. DRM vs. Calibre

For your convenience, we have made a comparison table between Leawo Prof. DRM and Calibre to show you their differences. You will know more things about them through comparing.

	Leawo Prof. DRM	Calibre
Remove DRM from eBooks	Yes	Yes, with the help of extra DRM removal plugin.
Convert eBooks from Kindle, Kobo and Adobe Digital Edition	Yes	Yes
Supported output book formats	epub, mobi, azw3, txt	EPUB, LIT, LRF, FB2, MOBI, PDB, PDF, PMLZ, RB, TCR, TXT
Ease of use	Easy	Complicated
Other features
Convert DRM iTunes videos	Yes	No
Convert DRM iTunes music	Yes	No
Convert DRM iTunes audiobooks	Yes	No
Convert DRM Audible audiobooks	Yes	No
Download and convert Spotify music	Yes	No