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Kavita vs Calibre: catalog facts
Kavita	Calibre
Freemium The server is free and open source. An optional Kavita+ subscription adds external…	Free Free and open source, funded by donations.
Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted, Web	Windows, macOS, Linux
Purpose-built readers for EPUB, PDF and image-based comics, including webtoon mode Multi-user with per-library and age restrictions, through built-in logins or OIDC	Converts between all the major ebook formats, including for Kindle Fetches metadata and covers from the internet automatically
You have to run and maintain a server, and expose it safely if you want remote access Some metadata enrichment is only available through the paid Kavita+ add-on	The interface is dense and has accumulated two decades of features It will not remove DRM; that requires third-party plug-ins with their own legal questions
Self-hosted, Web application	Downloadable app
Open source	Open source
License: GPL-3.0	License: GPL-3.0
Account needed	No account needed
Works offline	Works offline
Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 20, 2026	Official website Full listing and sources Checked September 20, 2026

Catalog facts only. Anything “not stated” is unconfirmed. Check full listings for details.