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Publishing · head to head

Pressbooks vs Reedsy

Pressbooks logo

Pressbooks

Publishing

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

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Reedsy logo

Reedsy

Publishing

Vetted marketplace of publishing freelancers with free writing and formatting tools attached

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real 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.; Reedsy it is a marketplace, so the outcome depends entirely on the individual you hire, and Reedsy vets credentials rather than guaranteeing the quality of any specific engagement.
  • They diverge on capability: Pressbooks covers Single source, three outputs, Reedsy covers Vetted marketplace.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Pressbooks and Reedsy actually diverge.

Attributes where Pressbooks and Reedsy differ
AttributePressbooksReedsy
Pricing modelOpen source, no licence feeFree tools; freelancers quote per project
PlatformsWeb, Self-hostedWeb

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Pressbooks

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

Only in Reedsy

  • Vetted marketplace
  • Quote and compare
  • Reedsy Studio
  • Typeset export
  • Reedsy Discovery
  • Free courses

What people use each for

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

Pressbooks

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

Reedsy

  • A first-time author who can afford professional editing but has no way to judge whether a freelancer has genuine publishing experiencenot Pressbooks
  • A writer who wants a print-ready interior and EPUB without buying formatting software or learning typesettingnot Pressbooks
  • An author needing a specialist such as a translator or a genre-specific cover designer that a general marketplace would burynot Pressbooks
  • A small press wanting overflow editorial capacity from screened professionals without running its own recruitmentnot Pressbooks

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Reedsy

  • It is a marketplace, so the outcome depends entirely on the individual you hire, and Reedsy vets credentials rather than guaranteeing the quality of any specific engagement.
  • The terms require you to keep communication and payment on the platform, so a professional you want to work with repeatedly stays inside a system that takes a commission on every project.
  • Vetting narrows the pool and raises prices, so authors on a small budget will find the same categories of work available for far less on open marketplaces.
  • The free editor offers only a handful of interior templates with little typographic control, so anyone who wants a specific look still needs a designer or a page layout application.
  • There is no distribution, no ISBN and no sales channel, so Reedsy solves the production half of publishing and leaves the entire commercial half to you.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Reedsy

Free
  • ReedsyFree
    • Manuscript editor, collaboration and typeset export at no cost
    • Freelance work quoted individually by each professional
    • Reedsy commission built into the quoted price

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Reedsy if

  • You need vetted marketplace.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want quote and compare.
Reedsy review

Questions people ask

Is Pressbooks or Reedsy better?
Neither clearly leads. Pressbooks starts at Free and Reedsy at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Pressbooks or Reedsy?
Pressbooks starts at Free and Reedsy at Free.
Does Pressbooks or Reedsy run on more platforms?
Pressbooks runs on Web, Self-hosted. Reedsy runs on Web.
Can I use Pressbooks for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Pressbooks best used for?
Pressbooks is most often used for a university library replacing a commercial textbook by adapting an existing open textbook rather than commissioning a new one, a course team that wants readings delivered inside canvas or moodle with embedded exercises rather than as a static pdf, a research institute publishing reports that must exist as a web page, an epub and a printable document without maintaining three files, a consortium standardising open textbook production across several institutions with a shared catalogue of adaptable titles. Of those, a university library replacing a commercial textbook by adapting an existing open textbook rather than commissioning a new one and a course team that wants readings delivered inside canvas or moodle with embedded exercises rather than as a static pdf are not what Reedsy is typically brought in for.
What can Pressbooks do that Reedsy cannot?
Pressbooks covers Single source, three outputs, Cloning and adaptation, H5P interactive content, LMS integration. Reedsy covers Vetted marketplace, Quote and compare, Reedsy Studio, Typeset export.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Reedsy: What does Reedsy charge me?

Nothing directly for the tools. The commission on freelance work is included in the quote you are given, so the price you see is the price you pay.

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.

Reedsy: Can I hire someone I found on Reedsy and pay them privately?

It is against the terms while the relationship originated on the platform, and you lose the payment protection and dispute process. Professionals risk removal from the marketplace for agreeing to it.

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.

Reedsy: Is the free formatting tool good enough to publish with?

For standard prose fiction and most non-fiction, yes. For anything with complex layout, images, tables or a distinctive typographic identity, it is not.

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