Amazon Kindle tablets are electronic books, plain and simple, and that’s what makes them great. For reading made simple, you can’t beat the sharp e ink display of the best Kindle ereader. Amazon has let the Kindle family sit mostly idle for quite some time, years in some cases, but that doesn’t mean these aren’t still the best electronic reading tablets you’ll find, especially if you buy books from Amazon’s Kindle book store.
Every Kindle has a sharp display and extra long battery life, as in weeks of reading, not just hours or days. The basic Kindle is probably good enough for most people, and if you’re only reading books, not listening to audiobooks or reading details graphic novels, you can opt for the least storage and have plenty of room for a large library.
The best of the bunch is the Kindle Paperwhite, because it’s simple, affordable, yet durable enough that you can take it anywhere, even to the pool or into the bathtub. Yes, you can relax with your electronic books in the bath, because the Kindle Paperwhite and Kindle Oasis are water resistant.
If you want a lot more power, the Kindle Scribe is in a class by itself. It is more than just a gigantic Kindle ebook reader, it can also let you take notes and write journal entries with an included stylus. Amazon even has a section of the Kindle book store just for books you can write upon.
What about the Kindle Kids? Is it worth buying?
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We’re not including the Kindle Kids options on this list because the Kindle itself isn’t different if you buy the Kids version. If you get the Kindle Paperwhite Kids, you get the exact same Kindle Paperwhite, and you also get a little bit more.
The Kindle Kids bundle comes with a colorful cover, though you can find cheaper (and more colorful) covers from third-party sellers on Amazon and Etsy. It also comes with a subscription to Amazon’s Kindle Kids Unlimited service. This is a library of Kindle content aimed at children. It isn’t the most extensive library, but if you are starting from scratch, it will give your kids something to read.
Is Kindle Kids worth it? Not if you already have a library of books for your kids, or if you have specific books in mind you want them to read. It isn’t worth the premium just for the colorful cover, so make sure you’ll put the Kindle Kids Unlimited library to good use, or else it’s worth buying the non-Kids version.
The quick list
Want to cut to the chase and find out which Kindles are the absolute best? Below, you’ll find a roundup of our choices. You can also jump to a more detailed review of each Kindle further down the page, and our price comparison tool will help you find the best deals.
1. Amazon Kindle Paperwhite (2021)
Best overall
The Kindle Paperwhite hits the sweet spot between price and performance: it’s water resistant like the expensive Oasis, but with a better screen than the basic Kindle. Battery life is excellent, and it now has USB-C charging, too. The Kindle Paperwhite has been on the market since 2021, so hopefully Amazon will give us a newer model soon. Look for great sales on this Kindle.
Read more below
Best budget
The basic Kindle is just fine for most people, as long as you won’t get it wet. Amazon upgraded the backlighting so it’s almost as bright as the Kindle Paperwhite, and the screen is just as sharp. It also comes with 16GB of storage, which is plenty of space for books and audio. This Kindle has been around since late 2022, so hopefully Amazon will give us a refresh and a nice price cut soon. Look for great sales on this one.
Read more below
Best for a big screen
Whether you want to read on the biggest screen, or you want the writing, doodling, and journaling features, the Kindle Scribe is a truly powerful Kindle for all of your book and writing needs. It isn’t water resistant, so take care, but its features put this Kindle in a whole different class, not to mention its huge display. Amazon keeps improving the Kindle Scribe with newer features and now a section of the Kindle book store with Scribe books that you can write in, including puzzle books and journals. The Kindle Scribe is the newest Kindle of the bunch.
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4. Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition
Best for audiobooks
The Signature Edition offers a few upgrades over the standard Paperwhite, including wireless charging and an auto-adjusting light. It also offers 32GB of storage, making it ideal for storing audiobooks. If you live that all-wireless lifestyle, the Signature Edition is worth the splurge, especially if you find it on a great sale. The Kindle Paperwhite Signature edition has been on the market since 2021, so hopefully we’ll get an updated version soon.
Read more below
Best premium Kindle
The 2019 Oasis is getting quite old in the tooth, which is why it’s the last Kindle on our list, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t worth considering. You can find this Kindle, which hit shelves in 2019, on sale for great low prices if you keep a watchful eye on Amazon. The Kindle Oasis gives you premium materials and actual buttons to press for page turning, which is helpful when you’re in the bathtub with prune hands.
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The best Kindle 2024
Below you’ll find full write-ups for each of the best Kindles in our list. We’ve tested each one extensively, so you can be sure that our recommendations can be trusted.
The best Kindle overall
The Amazon Paperwhite is the ideal electronic book reader, and you can take it just about anywhere you might take a regular old book. You can read in the bathtub, or by the pool, with less worry than you’d have holding a paperback, because the Paperwhite can get wet, no problem.
You can read in bed and the Paperwhite will adjust to a warm backlight to make your eyes more comfortable. Reading on a Kindle’s ultra-sharp display is already more comfy than reading on your phone or iPad, and the Paperwhite has plenty of backlight for reading any time, day or night.
You can also read while you travel, because the Kindle Paperwhite comes with 16GB of storage. That’s enough to pack a full library, but if you also enjoy listening to audiobooks from Audible, you’ll have space for a bunch of titles to go alongside your texts.
Read the full Amazon Kindle Paperwhite review
The best budget Kindle
The base model Kindle is no slouch, and recent upgrades have made it maybe the best bargain-priced Kindle ever. Keep an eye on that price, too, because Amazon loves to put this ereader on sale whenever it throws a Prime Day party.
The screen on the Kindle is now just as sharp as every other Kindle display, a full 300 pixels per inch (to compare, the mighty iPad Pro is only 265 ppi). That’s the best upgrade you can give a reading device, and the only feature the Kindle is lacking compared to the more expensive Kindle Paperwhite is water resistance. Don’t get this Kindle wet.
Otherwise, you still get 16GB of storage, which is plenty of space for a ton of books, magazines, and even audiobooks. The battery also lasts and lasts on Kindle devices, so you can count on a month of daily reading with this Kindle. If you want something brighter that you can also take to the beach, go for the Paperwhite. The Kindle is still great for reading during the day on dry land.
Read the full Amazon Kindle (2022) review
The best Kindle for a big screen
The Kindle Scribe is an amazing device when you realize all it can do. It’s a full-fledged Kindle with the biggest reading screen, but it doesn’t sacrifice that great Kindle sharpness, so text still looks super crisp. If you like reading on a screen the size of an iPad but want Kindle comfort, the Kindle Scribe is your best bet.
You can also write on the Kindle Scribe, and Amazon has been steadily improving the writing and doodling features, adding more pen styles since launch. There’s also a special section of the Kindle book store with books you can write on if you own a Kindle Scribe. The selection is mostly crossword puzzles and semi-blank daily journals, but it’s growing and shows a lot of potential.
The Scribe may seem pricey for a Kindle, but it’s a great deal for a writing tablet this size, and Amazon does love to put Kindle devices on sale. If you want to take notes, especially if your textbooks are available for Kindle, this is the only Kindle to buy.
Read the full Amazon Kindle Scribe review
The best Kindle for audiobooks
If you love audiobooks along with your reading and you can splurge a bit, the Kindle Paperwhite Signature edition is worth considering. For a bit more (still less than the fancy Kindle Oasis), you get twice the storage space. This Kindle Paperwhite can also charge wirelessly, if you have a bedside charger that you like, though the battery should also last weeks, just like every other Kindle.
That extra storage space comes in handy if you like audiobooks. A long, unabridged book is usually between 100-200MB of storage space, so having tons of long books or podcast episodes can add up quickly. The Kindle Paperwhite is a great vacation and travel device, and having the extra space means you definitely won’t run out, no matter how long you’re away.
Otherwise, this is the exact same Kindle Paperwhite, with the same water resistance and the same sharp display. It’s not quite as bright and premium as the Kindle Oasis, but it’s much brighter than the base model Kindle.
Read the full Amazon Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition review
The best premium Kindle
This is the luxury Kindle, the fancy model, and it isn’t hard to see why Amazon needs the Kindle Oasis in the family. The other Kindle devices – aside from the even pricier Kindle Scribe – feel cheap in comparison. They are all plastic, while the Oasis has a premium metal shell that feels great to hold.
The Kindle Oasis used to be the only water resistant model, but now the Paperwhite is also safe in the bath or by the beach. Unless it’s a very fancy beach, in which case you’ll want to show off with the Oasis. It has a larger, brighter display than the other Kindle ereaders other than the Scribe, so it will stand out.
It also has page turn buttons, which is a nice feature if your hands are wet. The design is different from other Kindle devices, with a pronounced grip on the back that makes it easier to hold. Overall, it’s a premium device, and you can’t get more on a Kindle unless you go for the much larger Kindle Scribe.
Read the full Amazon Kindle Oasis review
How to choose the best Kindle for you
How to choose the best Kindle for you
The basic Amazon Kindle 2022 is a fine ereader, and will likely be enough for most people. It has the same number of pixels per inch as the best Kindle ereader you can find, so every Kindle excels at reading text and print .
If you like to read in the bath, or if you take your Kindle to the beach and get close to the waves, you’ll want a Kindle Paperwhite. That device can get wet, even with salt water. So can the Kindle Oasis, but that’s a much more expensive, premium device than most folks will need, with a nicer build and a larger, brighter screen.
The Kindle Paperwhite Signature Edition meanwhile is what you should go for if you want the maximum possible storage in a conventional Kindle. The Scribe has even more, but offers more of a big-screen tablet experience, backed up by its stylus.
All Kindle ereaders can hold thousands of books, but if you plan on using your Kindle for audiobooks, you should upgrade to a model with 16GB or more storage.
How we test the best Kindles
We read. We read a lot, and we read every day. We use our Kindle devices to read books from Amazon, and we also use accounts from our local libraries to load free ebooks onto our Kindle. We also have a selection of documents and files that we use to test the clarity of the Kindle display, and the ease of transferring our own files.
We are also avid audiobook fans, and keep a subscription to Audible that feeds us new books monthly. We use our Kindle for listening to books, and occasionally for reading and listening at the same time, depending on content.
We read at all times of day, on the train, by the bed, in the bath, and wherever we find the time. We love to read, and we test our Kindle devices doing what we love.