Project Gutenberg

Project Gutenberg helped pioneer free digital reading long before ebooks became mainstream. Founded in 1971, it has spent more than 50 years making literature available online at no cost, relying on volunteers to digitize and carefully proofread texts.

Its collection now includes tens of thousands of books across literature, history, science, philosophy, and many other subjects. The project describes itself as completely free, with no fees or registration required, and it also highlights partnerships and volunteer efforts that support both ebooks and audiobooks.

For listeners, Project Gutenberg points to two strands of audio: older volunteer-read recordings and a newer open audiobook collection created in collaboration with Microsoft and MIT. That mix of public-domain classics, open access, and volunteer energy is a big part of what makes the project so enduring.