Kobo’s built-in reader works well for EPUBs from the Kobo store, but if you want more control, two free, open-source alternative readers are worth a look.
KOReader is a powerful, highly customizable document reader. It handles EPUB, PDF, DjVu, CBZ, FB2 and more, and really shines with PDFs and scanned documents thanks to features like reflow, margin cropping and zoom. It also offers detailed typography settings, dictionary lookups, reading statistics, progress sync between devices, Wikipedia lookups and a big plugin ecosystem. If you like to tweak everything, this is the one.
Plato is a lighter, minimalist reader designed specifically for Kobo devices. It has a clean, fast interface, good support for EPUB, PDF, CBZ and DjVu, and a simple library built around folders and metadata. If you want something sleek that just works, try Plato.
You don’t have to choose: both can be installed side by side, and you can always go back to the stock Kobo reader. Thanks to NiLuJe’s One-Click Install packages from the MobileRead forums, installing them (along with the KFMon launcher that starts them) takes just a few minutes.
Note to you, I prefer Plato, as it is simple and easy to use.
Before you start
- Do a full reboot of your Kobo first, then connect it to your computer via USB straight from the Home screen, without opening any book.
- Connect only one Kobo at a time.
- Download everything to your computer, not onto the Kobo itself.
- When you’re done, always eject the Kobo safely instead of just pulling the cable.
Step 1: Download the package
Go to the One-Click Install Packages for KOReader & Plato thread on MobileRead. The first post lists the available packages. Click the ZIP you want: KOReader only, Plato only, or both together (for example OCP-Plato-0.9.45_KOReader-v2026.03.zip). Leave the ZIP as it is; don’t unpack it.
macOS users: Safari likes to auto-unzip downloads. If that happens, grab the original ZIP back out of the Trash (or disable “Open safe files after downloading” in Safari’s settings).
Step 2: Download the install script
Get the script for your system from NiLuJe’s install guide and put it in the same folder as the ZIP from Step 1.
Windows: Download the install.ps1 script. Your browser may open it as text; if so, right-click the link and choose Save Link As. Then right-click the file → Properties → tick Unblock → OK.
Step 3: Run the script
- Windows: right-click
install.ps1→ Run with PowerShell.
The script finds your Kobo, asks you to confirm which package to install, and copies everything to the right place. Just follow the prompts.
Step 4: Eject and reboot
Safely eject the Kobo. It will process the update and restart on its own.
Step 5: Start reading
After the reboot you’ll find new icons in your library for KOReader and/or Plato. Tap one to launch it. To get back to the stock Kobo interface, simply exit the app from its menu.
Tip: Kobo firmware updates can remove the launchers. If the icons stop working after an update, just run the same script again with the package to restore them.