How to Read Books on an iPad in Large Print (Free Library Books Too)

Many people put down paperbacks because the print got too small. An iPad can give those books back. Every page can be printed as large as you need, on a bright screen, with no magnifying glass.

You don’t need to be good with technology to do this. You need one free app, a few taps to make the letters bigger, and (if you like) a library card for free books.

This guide walks through the three main reading apps, how to have pages read aloud, how to make web articles easier on the eyes, and whether an iPad or a Kindle is the better choice for you.

How do I read books on my iPad?

Open a free reading app (Apple Books, Kindle or Libby), choose a book, then tap the middle of the page and use the text settings button to make the words as big as you like.

To turn a page, tap the right side of the screen or swipe from right to left. To go back, tap the left side or swipe the other way. Tapping the middle of the page shows or hides the buttons.

Which app you use depends on where your books come from:

You can use all three. Many readers keep Libby for free library books and one other app for books they buy.

Before you start, it’s worth making the iPad’s own text bigger too. Our guide to iPad settings to change after the update covers that, and most of the tips in making text bigger on iPhone work the same way on iPad.

How do I make text bigger in Apple Books?

Apple Books comes with every iPad. Its icon is orange with a white open book. You can buy books in its Book Store and read them right away.

To make the text bigger:

1. Open a book in the Books app.
2. Tap the middle of the page so the buttons appear.
3. Tap the menu button in the bottom right corner.
4. Tap Themes & Settings.
5. Tap the larger A to make the text bigger. Keep tapping until it feels comfortable. The smaller A makes it smaller.
6. Tap the X to close the panel and carry on reading.

In the same panel you can choose a theme. Apple Books has six: Original, Quiet, Paper, Bold, Calm and Focus. Bold uses heavier, darker letters, which many people find easier to read.

There are a few more options worth knowing about:

• Brightness button: choose Light, Dark, Match Device or Match Surrounding. Dark gives you light letters on a dark page.
• Font: pick a different letter style if the standard one feels thin.
• Bold Text: makes every letter thicker.
• Customize: lets you add more space between lines, letters and words. Extra line spacing helps if your eyes tend to jump to the wrong line.

If you change too much and want to start over, look for Reset Theme at the bottom of the options.

How do I change the text size in the Kindle app on iPad?

If you already buy books from Amazon, download the free Amazon Kindle app from the App Store and sign in with your Amazon account. Your Kindle books appear in your library, ready to read.

To make the text bigger:

1. Open a book in the Kindle app.
2. Tap the middle of the page to show the buttons.
3. Tap the Aa button near the top right.
4. Drag the font size slider to the right. According to Perkins School for the Blind, the slider has 18 steps, from small print up to very large type.
5. Tap anywhere on the page to close the menu.

The same Aa menu lets you change the page color (White, Sepia, Light Green or Black) and the font. Fonts include Bookerly, Georgia, Helvetica and OpenDyslexic. In the Layout options you can add more space between lines. You can even save your favorite settings as a theme so they’re there every time.

Buying Kindle books on an iPad

The Kindle app on iPad may not let you buy books inside the app, because Amazon and Apple disagree about the fee Apple takes on in-app purchases. What you see depends on your country and your app version.

The method that always works: open Safari, go to Amazon’s website, sign in, and buy the Kindle edition of the book. It then appears in your Kindle app library. If you don’t see it, pull down on the library screen to refresh it.

How do I get free library books on my iPad with Libby?

If you have a public library card, you can borrow ebooks, audiobooks and magazines free in the Libby app. Libby works with public libraries that use OverDrive to lend digital books, and many libraries in the US, UK, Canada and Australia do. There are no fees, no subscriptions and no late charges: books simply return themselves when the loan ends.

Some libraries use a different app, such as BorrowBox, either instead of Libby or alongside it. If you’re not sure, ask at your library desk or check its website.

To get started:

1. Install Libby from the App Store.
2. Open it and search for your library by name or town.
3. Enter your library card number and PIN or password. If you don’t have a card, ask your library. Joining is usually free.
4. Search for a book. Tap Borrow if it’s available, or Place Hold to join the waiting list.
5. Tap Open Book (or Open Audiobook) to start.

To make the text bigger in a Libby ebook, tap the middle of the page, then tap the reading settings icon at the top. Drag the Text scale slider. For even larger sizes, turn on Include accessibility sizes. You can also pick a bright, sepia or dark page.

Can my iPad read books aloud to me?

Yes. Turn on Speak Screen once in Settings, then swipe down from the top of the screen with two fingers and the iPad reads the page out loud.

This works in most apps, including Apple Books, Kindle, Libby, Mail and Safari. It’s a big help on tired-eye evenings.

To turn it on (iPadOS 26 and later):

1. Open Settings, then tap Accessibility.
2. Under Vision, tap Read & Speak.
3. Tap Speak Screen and turn it on.
4. If you like, turn on Show Controller so a small control panel stays on screen.

Now open a book and swipe down from the very top of the screen with two fingers. A small controller appears with play and pause buttons. Tap the three dots to change the Speaking Rate if the voice is too fast or too slow. You can also turn on Highlighting so each word lights up as it’s read, which makes it easy to follow along.

Audiobooks

For a human voice, try audiobooks. You can buy them in Apple Books (look for Audiobooks in the Book Store) or borrow them free in Libby with your library card. Many people listen while they cook, walk or rest their eyes. Wireless headphones or a small speaker make the sound much clearer than the iPad’s own speakers.

How do I make web articles easier to read?

News stories and recipes online often come with tiny text, ads and pop-ups. Safari has a feature called Reader that strips all that away and shows just the words.

1. Open the article in Safari.
2. Tap the page options button at the left end of the address bar, then tap Show Reader. (You can also press and hold that button.)
3. To change the text size, tap the same button again and use the small A and large A.
4. You can also pick a light or dark background and a different font.

If you read one website often, you can set it to always open this way: in the Reader options, tap the three dots, then turn on Use Reader Automatically.

Reader doesn’t work on every page. If you don’t see the option, the page may be a home page or a list of stories. Open a single article and try again.

How can I make reading on an iPad easier on my eyes?

A few display settings make long reading sessions more comfortable. Find them in Settings, then Display & Brightness:

• True Tone: adjusts the screen’s colors to match the light in your room, so white pages look less harsh. Turn it on.
• Night Shift: gives the screen a warmer, more yellow tint in the evening. You can set a schedule, such as sunset to sunrise.
• Dark appearance: shows light letters on a dark background in many apps. Inside your reading app, you can also choose a dark or sepia page on its own.
• Auto-Lock: if the screen keeps going dark while you read, set this to a longer time.

If the screen still feels too bright even at its lowest, go to Settings, then Accessibility, then Display & Text Size, and turn on Reduce White Point. Its slider dims the screen further than the normal brightness control.

Rest your eyes now and then by looking at something across the room. And if reading suddenly gets harder, see your eye doctor rather than just making the text bigger.

Is an iPad or a Kindle e-reader better for reading?

If you mostly read books, a Kindle e-reader is lighter and easier on the eyes in bright light. If you want one device for books, video calls, photos and email, an iPad does it all.

An iPad’s larger screen fits more words on a page even at a very big text size, which can mean fewer page turns. A stand or case that props it up takes the weight off your hands.

If you’re weighing up which tablet to buy, see our guide to the best iPad for seniors. For other helpful devices, our roundup of the best technology for elderly people covers more options.

Setting up an iPad for reading for someone else

If you’re setting up an iPad for a parent, do the reading setup together on the first day. Install the apps, sign in to their library card, make the text big in each app and turn on Speak Screen. Then show them the two-finger swipe and let them try it.

Our guide to setting up a tablet for a parent covers the rest of the setup, and how to make an iPad easier for seniors has more settings that make everything simpler.

Where to go from here

Start with one app and one book. Make the text as big as you like, and try having a page read to you. Once that feels easy, add Libby and a library card for free books.

If you’d like all of this in print, with large type and pictures of every screen, the “Reading, Watching and Listening” chapter of Your iPad, Plainly Explained walks through it step by step.