Blurb BookWright vs Kindle Direct Publishing
Blurb BookWright
store.blurb.comKindle Direct Publishing
kdp.amazon.comSide by side
| Figure | Blurb BookWright | Kindle Direct Publishing |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | Yes |
| Android | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 10 | 1 |
| Spec score · Print-on-Demand Platforms | 8.7 (#12) | 8.5 (#17) |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Support | Blurb directs customers to its Help portal for answers and customer support contact. | Authors can request phone support from a KDP representative by submitting a call request through the KDP Contact Us Form. |
| What it does | BookWright is Blurb’s free desktop application for designing and publishing books and other printed projects. | KDP lets authors self-publish eBooks, paperbacks, and hardcover books and make them available on Amazon. |
Plans
Blurb BookWright
- BookWright softwarePrice not published
- Softcover photo book$12 a month
- ImageWrap Hardcover photo book$32 a month
- Linen Hardcover with Dust Jacket photo book$32 a month
- Layflat photo book$60 a month
- BookWrightFree
- BookWrightFree
- Paperback book, Economy Color, 5×8 in$3.99, paid once
- Paperback book, Standard B&W, 5×8 in$4.99, paid once
- Premium Magazine$7, paid once
In their own words
Blurb BookWright
Blurb BookWright is desktop software for designing custom books, including photo books, paperbacks, hardcovers, magazines, notebooks, and wall art. It provides customizable templates, freestyle grids, typography and cover tools, bleed lines, and trim guides. Image tools support scaling, cropping, enhancement, and auto-retouching powered by Perfectly Clear by EyeQ. Text Flow fits text into frames and accepts Rich Text Format imports, while Photo Manager imports photos from Adobe Lightroom, SmugMug, and Dropbox. Users can work offline in the desktop software, but publishing requires an internet connection and a free Blurb account is needed for features and publishing options. Finished projects can be printed on demand, ordered in bulk, or purchased as PDFs. BookWright is free to use; users pay for a book when they send it to print. Listed requirements include Windows 7, 8, or 10, or macOS 10.13 or later, with 2GB RAM and 500MB storage. Books can be up to 440 pages.
Kindle Direct Publishing
Kindle Direct Publishing lets authors self-publish eBooks, paperbacks, and hardcover books and make them available through Amazon. Authors retain full rights to their books. eBook royalty choices are 35% and 70%; the 70% option is limited to certain territories and subject to delivery costs. Print books can earn up to 60% royalties and are printed on demand, with printing costs deducted from royalties when an order ships. Manuscript formats include DOC/DOCX, KPF, EPUB, HTML, RTF, TXT, and PDF. Kindle Create for Windows and Mac can prepare manuscripts exported from Microsoft Word, Apple Pages, or Google Docs. Authors can promote eBooks and paperbacks with Amazon Advertising, and share Instant Book Previews or sample chapters. KDP Select is a free 90-day program for Kindle eBooks that includes Kindle Unlimited and eligibility for certain promotions; enrolled eBooks must remain exclusive to the Kindle Store during that period. Publishing is free, but KDP does not accept magazines, periodicals, calendars, or spiral-bound books. New title creation and first-time submission are limited to two titles per format each week.