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Publishing · head to head

BookBaby vs Pressbooks

BookBaby logo

BookBaby

Publishing

Pay-per-book self-publishing service for ebook conversion, print on demand and distribution

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Pressbooks logo

Pressbooks

Publishing

Open source book production built on WordPress, and the default tool for open textbooks

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Pressbooks has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: BookBaby every stage beyond the base package, ISBN registration, expanded distribution, extra proof revisions and editing, is billed separately, so the advertised entry price is rarely the final cost.; Pressbooks self-hosting is free in licence terms only; it requires WordPress multisite administration, upgrades and backups, which is a real staff cost most institutions underestimate.
  • They diverge on capability: BookBaby covers Ebook conversion, Pressbooks covers Single source, three outputs.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which BookBaby and Pressbooks actually diverge.

Attributes where BookBaby and Pressbooks differ
AttributeBookBabyPressbooks
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelOne-time purchase per projectOpen source, no licence fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebWeb, Self-hosted

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Publishing).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in BookBaby

  • Ebook conversion
  • Print on demand
  • ISBN assignment
  • BookBaby Bookshop
  • Editing and cover design add-ons
  • Distribution to major retailers

Only in Pressbooks

  • Single source, three outputs
  • Cloning and adaptation
  • H5P interactive content
  • LMS integration
  • Open source under the GPL
  • Accessibility tooling

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

BookBaby

  • A first-time author who wants a single vendor to handle conversion, printing and distribution without learning the formats themselvesnot Pressbooks
  • An author who wants a direct storefront (BookBaby Bookshop) alongside Amazon and Apple Books listingsnot Pressbooks
  • A non-fiction author producing a small print run for events or clients rather than ongoing retail salesnot Pressbooks
  • An author who has a finished manuscript and wants ISBNs assigned and registered under a known publisher of recordnot Pressbooks

Pressbooks

  • A university library replacing a commercial textbook by adapting an existing open textbook rather than commissioning a new onenot BookBaby
  • A course team that wants readings delivered inside Canvas or Moodle with embedded exercises rather than as a static PDFnot BookBaby
  • A research institute publishing reports that must exist as a web page, an EPUB and a printable document without maintaining three filesnot BookBaby
  • A consortium standardising open textbook production across several institutions with a shared catalogue of adaptable titlesnot BookBaby

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

BookBaby

  • Every stage beyond the base package, ISBN registration, expanded distribution, extra proof revisions and editing, is billed separately, so the advertised entry price is rarely the final cost.
  • Unlike Draft2Digital or Kindle Direct Publishing, there is no free tier; authors pay upfront for services regardless of whether the book ever sells a copy.
  • Revision rounds after the first proof are charged per round, which penalises authors who want to iterate on formatting.
  • Editing is priced per word rather than as a flat fee, so a full manuscript edit can cost more than the entire publishing package.
  • It packages services that KDP, Draft2Digital and IngramSpark offer for free or on a royalty-share basis, so cost-conscious authors comfortable with self-formatting pay for convenience they do not need.

Pressbooks

  • Self-hosting is free in licence terms only; it requires WordPress multisite administration, upgrades and backups, which is a real staff cost most institutions underestimate.
  • Professional print PDF output depends on a commercial rendering engine that is licensed separately, so the genuinely free self-hosted route produces web and EPUB output but not press-quality print.
  • Design control is limited to the supplied themes unless someone writes custom CSS, so books tend to look recognisably like Pressbooks books.
  • There is no distribution, no ISBN service and no retail channel, so it produces files and web pages but plays no part in selling anything.
  • The editing experience inherits WordPress conventions, and authors working on long or heavily structured manuscripts find it slower than a dedicated writing application.

Pricing, plan by plan

BookBaby

On request
  • Ebook Publishing$299/one-time
    • Ebook conversion and formatting
    • Distribution to major ebook retailers
    • 100 percent royalties from most retailers
  • Print on Demand$399/one-time
    • Paperback print on demand setup
    • No inventory purchase required
    • Amazon and BookBaby Bookshop listing
  • Print plus Ebook Bundle$2190/one-time
    • Basic cover design
    • Ebook conversion and print on demand
    • A run of printed copies included

Pressbooks

Free
  • PressbooksFree
    • GPL licensed, self-hostable with no software fee
    • WordPress multisite administration is your responsibility
    • Print PDF export depends on a separately licensed rendering engine

Which should you pick?

Choose BookBaby if

  • You need ebook conversion.
  • You also want print on demand.
BookBaby review

Choose Pressbooks if

  • You need single source, three outputs.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Self-hosted.
  • You also want cloning and adaptation.
Pressbooks review

Questions people ask

Is BookBaby or Pressbooks better?
Neither clearly leads. BookBaby starts at On request and Pressbooks at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, BookBaby or Pressbooks?
Pressbooks has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for BookBaby and Free for Pressbooks.
Does BookBaby or Pressbooks run on more platforms?
BookBaby runs on Web. Pressbooks runs on Web, Self-hosted.
Can I use Pressbooks for free?
Yes. Pressbooks has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. BookBaby starts at On request.
What is BookBaby best used for?
BookBaby is most often used for a first-time author who wants a single vendor to handle conversion, printing and distribution without learning the formats themselves, an author who wants a direct storefront (bookbaby bookshop) alongside amazon and apple books listings, a non-fiction author producing a small print run for events or clients rather than ongoing retail sales, an author who has a finished manuscript and wants isbns assigned and registered under a known publisher of record. Of those, a first-time author who wants a single vendor to handle conversion, printing and distribution without learning the formats themselves and an author who wants a direct storefront (bookbaby bookshop) alongside amazon and apple books listings are not what Pressbooks is typically brought in for.
What can BookBaby do that Pressbooks cannot?
BookBaby covers Ebook conversion, Print on demand, ISBN assignment, BookBaby Bookshop. Pressbooks covers Single source, three outputs, Cloning and adaptation, H5P interactive content, LMS integration.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

BookBaby: Does BookBaby take a cut of royalties?

No for most retailers; authors keep 100 percent of the retailer royalty. BookBaby earns money from the upfront service fees instead.

Pressbooks: Is Pressbooks really free?

The software is GPL licensed and free to self-host. The hosted service is priced, and professional print PDF output requires a commercially licensed renderer, so budget accordingly.

BookBaby: Can I publish only an ebook without print?

Yes, ebook-only packages start at 299 US dollars and do not require the print on demand package.

Pressbooks: Can I sell a book made in Pressbooks?

You can sell the EPUB or the printed book through any distributor, but Pressbooks itself provides no ISBN, no storefront and no distribution.

BookBaby: Is a BookBaby ISBN owned by me or by BookBaby?

ISBNs are registered with BookBaby listed as the publisher of record unless you supply your own, which affects how the book is catalogued.

Pressbooks: Why do universities use it for open textbooks?

Because an openly licensed book can be cloned into another institution network and adapted for a different course, which turns a finished textbook into a starting point rather than a fixed artefact.

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