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Foliate

Foliate is a lightweight, GNOME‑centric e‑book reader that supports EPUB, MOBI, Kindle, FB2, CBZ, and PDF, with paginated and scrolled views, dark/light themes, annotations, and dictionary lookup.

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License
GPL-3.0-or-later
Latest version
3.3.0 (April 1, 2025)
Developer
John Factotum
Installs
13,464 (Flathub, 30 days)
Install Website ↗ Source code ↗
Foliate screenshot
Foliate screenshot
Foliate screenshot
Foliate screenshot

What is Foliate?

Foliate started as a fork of the older *Bookworm* project, aiming to bring a modern, GNOME‑friendly interface to e‑book reading. The first stable release appeared in 2019, and the project has kept a regular release cadence, reaching version 3.3.0 in April 2025.

The application is aimed at users who want a clean, distraction‑free reading experience without the bulk of full‑blown e‑book managers. It is ideal for students, researchers, and casual readers who prefer a simple UI.

Compared to Adobe Digital Editions, Foliate feels lighter and more integrated with the GNOME desktop. It lacks the DRM handling that ADE offers, but it compensates with a modern theme system, quick dictionary lookups, and a more flexible annotation system.

Best for: Readers who want a lightweight, GNOME‑centric e‑book viewer without DRM or complex library features.

Key features of Foliate

  • Open EPUB, MOBI, Kindle, FB2, CBZ, PDF
  • Paginated and scrolled reading modes
  • Customizable fonts, line spacing, and themes (light, sepia, dark, invert)
  • Reading progress slider with chapter markers
  • Bookmarks and annotations
  • Find in book and quick dictionary lookup

Pros

  • Fast, low resource usage
  • Native GNOME integration
  • Open source and free
  • Extensive format support
  • Customizable appearance

Cons

  • No DRM support
  • Limited library management features
  • No built‑in e‑book store
  • Occasional lag with large PDF files

Windows programs Foliate replaces

Adobe Digital Editions

How to install Foliate on Linux

Flatpak (Flathub)flatpak install flathub com.github.johnfactotum.Foliate
Ubuntu / Mintsudo apt install foliate
Debiansudo apt install foliate
Fedorasudo dnf install foliate
Arch / Manjarosudo pacman -S foliate
openSUSEsudo zypper install foliate

Tips for Windows users

Foliate accepts the same file extensions as Adobe Digital Editions (EPUB, MOBI, Kindle, PDF). Drag‑and‑drop or use the File → Open menu to load books. Keyboard shortcuts are similar to other GNOME apps: Ctrl‑+ / Ctrl‑− to zoom, Ctrl‑B to toggle bookmarks, and F3 to search. Unlike ADE, Foliate does not sync reading progress across devices; you’ll need a separate cloud solution if that is required.

Recent releases

  • 3.3.0 —

    - Updated for GNOME 48 - Added support for mouse forward/backward buttons - Improved text wrapping in headings - Improved default link style

  • 3.2.1 —

    - Fixed tables not displayed in FB2 books - Updated translations

  • 3.2.0 —

    Various improvments and fixes, including a revamped translation tool, better focus handling, and better PDF rendering, now faster and no longer blurry.

  • 3.1.1 —

    - Fixed end of chapter cut off when chapter starts with page break - Fixed incorrect text wrapping in tables - Fixed a performance issue with OPDS catalogs

Foliate: frequently asked questions

Does Foliate support DRM‑protected books?

No, Foliate does not handle DRM. You need to remove DRM before opening the file.

Can I use Foliate on KDE or other desktops?

Foliate works on any X11 or Wayland session, but it looks best on GNOME because it uses GTK themes.

How do I add a custom dictionary?

Foliate uses the system dictionary. Install the desired dictionary packages (e.g., hunspell‑en) and they will be available in the lookup feature.

Is there a way to sync my bookmarks across devices?

Foliate does not provide built‑in sync; you can store the book files in a cloud folder and open them on each device.

Updated