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Ebook format

AZW converter

Amazon's original Kindle ebook carries the .azw extension. Structurally it is a Mobipocket file with Amazon-specific additions, most notably a DRM layer that ties a purchased copy to the buyer's registered devices.

Private for supported formats — processed in your browser

Convert supported files

Runs on your device

Drop AZW files here

Batch files can each use a different output. Nothing uploads for local conversions.

Working inputs include camera RAW, browser-local audio/video, PDF, CBZ/CBR comics, office documents, ebooks, markup, 3D models, structured text, images, and archives.

Where AZW comes from

The format debuted alongside the first Kindle in November 2007, two years after Amazon acquired Mobipocket. It served as the store's delivery format until the KF8 generation arrived in 2011, after which it lingered mainly to serve older devices.

How AZW works

  • Shares the PalmDB record layout and PalmDOC/HUFF compression of MOBI.
  • Store-bought copies add Amazon DRM keyed to a device serial number or account.
  • Formatting capabilities match Mobipocket exactly: simple HTML-era markup with no embedded fonts.
  • The extension itself does not indicate encryption — personal documents delivered by Amazon can be DRM-free.

When to use AZW

  • Reading store purchases on first- and second-generation Kindles
  • Converting DRM-free personal documents that Amazon delivered as .azw
  • Archiving early Kindle libraries in their original delivered form

Strengths and limitations

Strengths

  • Native to every Kindle device and app Amazon has shipped
  • Compression keeps a typical novel to a few hundred kilobytes
  • DRM-free copies behave exactly like standard Mobipocket files

Limitations

  • Most store-bought .azw books carry Amazon DRM, and encrypted files cannot legitimately be converted — only DRM-free copies can
  • Inherits MOBI's dated layout engine, with weak CSS and no font embedding
  • Twice superseded within Amazon's own lineup, so no new content uses it

Compatibility

Kindle devices and apps open .azw natively, which is the only place DRM-protected copies will ever work. DRM-free files open in Calibre and other Mobipocket-aware readers, but no mainstream non-Amazon hardware recognizes the extension.

Uses the same EXTH record scheme as MOBI for title, author, and identifiers, plus Amazon-specific entries such as the ASIN.

Convert AZW to another format