The days of non-color e-readers may be numbered. (Rick Broida/Yahoo)
Color always makes its way into technology eventually: TVs, computers, PDAs/phones and now e-readers. That last category took a while, but it's finally here: If you're tired of grayscale graphic novels, PDFs, book covers, text highlights and so on, you now have color electronic-ink options from the likes of Amazon, Boox and Kobo. Below, I've rounded up what I consider the best color e-readers from the (admittedly limited) selection that's currently available.
Be forewarned: The nature of this technology means you won't enjoy the vibrant, richly detailed colors you're accustomed to on your phone or tablet. Indeed, these screens may seem pretty drab in comparison.
But as with other e-readers, you still get a super-lightweight design, amazing battery life (measured in weeks, not hours), excellent outdoor readability and that blissful distraction-free reading experience. And, hey, color is certainly nice, even if it's not perfect. (If you're not into it, we also have a roundup of the best e-readers overall.) So read on to discover my top color e-reader picks, and then continue for answers to some frequently asked questions.
Update, Aug. 11, 2025: We checked all prices and availability. We added a mention of Amazon's newest color Kindle and modified our Kobo reviews to reflect a feature change. Our number one pick for best color e-reader remains unchanged.
Weight: 7.1 ounces | Screen size and resolution: 7 inches, 300 PPI (150 PPI color) | Water resistance: IPX8 | Rated battery life: 5 weeks | Ecosystem: Kobo | Storage: 32GB | Supports audiobooks: Yes
Shots fired, Amazon. The Kobo Libra Colour brings not only a color screen to the e-reader wars but also physical page-turn buttons and an optional stylus. That means it challenges both the discontinued Kindle Oasis and the note-minded Kindle Scribe, respectively.
The Libra's design is actually quite similar to that of the Oasis. Available in black or a snazzy off-white, it's comfortable to hold in just about any orientation, thanks in part to the thicker bezel along one side and the auto-rotating screen. Within that bezel are two roomy page-turn buttons, which are hard to live without once you start using them. (Why Amazon no longer offers buttons on any Kindle is a mystery.)
As with the Clara Colour (see below), I like the fast, intuitive Kobo interface, which I think is more novice-friendly than Amazon's and just better designed overall.
Another Kobo plus is OverDrive integration: If there's an e-book available for checkout from your library, you can borrow it directly. Compare that with the Kindle, where you need to take the extra step of checking out the book using the Libby library app on your phone or PC. (Note: Although OverDrive now operates as Libby, Kobo still employs the former's nomenclature. According to a company rep, users will still be able to able to check out library books, name discrepancy notwithstanding.)
Another interesting integration: Instapaper, a web-clipping service that allows web pages to be saved for later, offline, reading. This takes the place of Pocket, which shut down in mid-2025. At this writing, Kobo had yet to complete the transition to Instapaper, but it should work similarly and will therefore remain a nice perk for those who use it.
All that's missing is Hoopla, the library e-book and audiobook service I use almost as often as Libby. I was briefly hopeful the Libra's web browser — currently available in the Beta Features section — would give me access, but the Hoopla site simply wouldn't load properly. (For what it's worth, the Kindle's browser can't load it, either.)
But the Libra does integrate Dropbox and Google Drive, making it easy to access existing documents and sync new ones. That's especially valuable if you add the Kobo Stylus 2 ($70), a comfortable metal pen with an inline function button, an "eraser" up top and magnets that securely snap it to the side of the reader. It allows you to create all manner of written pages (to-do lists, sheet music, monthly planners, etc.).
And to my surprise, the Libra can do basic OCR (optical character recognition) as well: It will convert your handwritten notes to text. In my tests, it did a surprisingly good job of recognizing my chicken scratch.
That puts it well ahead of the Kindle Scribe's comparatively limited OCR capabilities, but here's the real news: You can write notes directly on book pages. Underline a passage, draw an illustration, scribble in the margins, you name it. The Scribe doesn't currently allow that (though it will after a forthcoming software update).
Granted, with the screen spanning just seven inches, you don't have a ton of room for all this writing. And while the stylus experience is fast and efficient overall, the tip lacks that pleasant pencil-on-paper resistance you get when writing on the Scribe.
That's a minor nit-pick, though. The reality is that the Libra Colour is a more capable device than either the Paperwhite or Scribe. It simply shares the same limitation as the Clara: A bookstore with a smaller (though hardly small) catalog.
Given that Amazon's color Kindle is sidelined for the moment, doesn't support pen input, and costs $50 more, there's no question this is the top pick if you want a color e-reader, especially one with robust note-taking capabilities. I like the Libra Colour a lot, and I'm damn close to loving it.
Weight: 6.1 ounces | Screen size and resolution: 6 inches, 300 PPI (150 PPI color) | Water resistance: IPX8 | Rated battery life: 5 weeks | Ecosystem: Kobo | Storage: 16GB | Supports audiobooks: Yes
As a longtime Kindle user, I didn't think I could be swayed by a non-Kindle e-reader. I was wrong — very, very wrong. The Kobo Clara Colour impressed me at every turn, to the point where if I didn't already have such a substantial Kindle library, I'd give serious consideration to switching.
Why? For starters, as with the Libra Colour, I like the interface better. It's streamlined and intuitive; I immediately felt comfortable using it. If a non-tech-savvy person asked me which e-reader to buy, I'd suggest a Kobo over a Kindle.
Then, of course, there's the color screen — offered here for $10 below the price of the grayscale Kindle Paperwhite. As noted earlier, this is nice for book browsing and text highlighting, though not as ideal for the likes of comics and magazines. Color content is slightly fuzzy at 150 PPI (half the resolution of grayscale content), and a screen this size is fairly cramped for that kind of thing anyway.
I will say the Clara is very fast, in terms of both menu navigation and page scrolling. You get the occasional screen-refresh flash, but it happens quickly enough that it's barely distracting.
What's more, with the front-light cranked to maximum, the screen actually appears brighter and whiter than the Kindle Paperwhite's; the latter seems gray and a little drab when viewed alongside it. There's also a natural-light slider here for manually adjusting the front-light color (making it "warmer" for more comfortable nighttime reading), but the Clara can also automatically adjust it for you based on the time of day.
Meanwhile, the Clara shares the Libra's wonderful OverDrive and Instapaper integrations. Oh, how I long for Hoopla support someday.
Indeed, I think the only real downside here is the Kobo bookstore, which, perhaps unsurprisingly, has fewer selections than Amazon's Kindle store. That's in part due to the latter's robust exclusives and indie-publishing arms. For example, if you're looking for current sensation Freida McFadden, you won't find her e-books on Kobo. (Her audiobooks are there, though.) And because Kobo's store draws considerably less user traffic, there are fewer book ratings and reviews.
It's worth noting that you can get the Kobo Clara BW for $30 less. Save for its black-and-white screen, it's identical — and another excellent budget e-reader choice. But while the Clara Colour's color may not be dazzling, for just a few bucks more it's definitely nice to have.
Amazon Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition: Amazon's first-ever color Kindle will undoubtedly appeal to die-hard fans, especially those with big existing libraries they want to maintain. But it's expensive. It lacks page-turn buttons. It produces the same muted colors as its above brethren. While this is undoubtedly the best color e-reader for Kindle users, the price tag suggests a more premium device than what you're getting. Read my complete Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition review to learn more. Similarly...
Amazon Kindle Colorsoft: The newest addition to the Colorsoft lineup is slightly more affordable — $30 less than the Signature Edition — but equipped with half the storage and missing a couple other amenities. In all other respects it's the same device, and with the same disappointments. Amazon should have priced this much lower. Read all about it in my full Kindle Colorsoft review.
Boox Go Color 7: I like the Boox Go Color 7 on paper, but less as paper. Stocked with a color e-ink screen, it's thin and light, with physical page-turn buttons, a speaker and Google Play Store access — meaning you can install any e-reader apps you want. But its user interface is perplexing, and I encountered several problems with the Hoopla app. Screen flashes and ghosting proved an annoyance as well, despite a lot of tweaking of the e-ink settings. I wouldn't rule out the Go Color 7 entirely, but be prepared for a few headaches.
Remarkable Paper Pro: Although it has a large, color e-ink screen, the Paper Pro isn't really an e-reader; it's a dedicated writing tablet. An excellent one, but if you want books as well, you'll be disappointed: It doesn't support Kindle or Hoopla or any other such apps. To learn more, read my Remarkable Paper Pro review.
I struggle with this question myself. If you mostly read novels, you're mostly reading text, in which case a color screen is largely superfluous. Sure, it's nice to see color covers as you're browsing your library, and color is certainly welcome if you like to highlight text passages, but there's no real practical advantage.
Rather, it's more important for things like comic books, children's books, graphic novels, PDFs and the like. But given the limitations of E Ink technology, you'll have to endure not only some pretty drab hues, but also jerky scrolling and frequent screen-refresh flashes. For that kind of media, I'd strongly recommend a tablet instead of a color e-reader.
It's both! E Ink is a company that makes, well, e-ink screens, the latter referring to "electronic ink." Unlike an LCD, the kind of screen used in phones, tablets and TVs, e-ink doesn't require constant power. Whatever it's displaying stays visible until it changes (like, say, turning to the next book page).
Maybe. Tablets weigh more, so they're not as comfortable to hold for long periods of time and not as easy to tote in your bag. They don't last for weeks on a charge, either; an iPad Mini might let you read for just 10 hours or so before needing to plug in.
A tablet screen is also a bit harder on the eyes, as they can show a lot of glare and be hard to view outdoors. What's more, their back-lights emit potentially harmful blue light, which can disrupt sleep. E-ink comes much closer to reproducing the matte, glare-free look of paper, with front-lights that are directed away from your eyes instead of toward them.
On the other hand, tablets are far more versatile — not just because they can run a panoply of apps, but also because they're not locked into a particular e-book ecosystem. On just about any tablet, you can access Kindle, Kobo, Nook, Libby, Hoopla and other sources.
So there are pros and cons. If you can, borrow different devices from friends or family members and see which one you like best for reading.