Free EPUB conversion: what we accept and what to fix first

Chiify converts your Word document or Google Doc export to EPUB automatically — no charge. Most freelance formatters charge $50–$200 for this, so it's one of the biggest cost savers for indie authors.

What we accept

• .docx — preferred. From Word, Google Docs, Pages, LibreOffice, or anywhere.
• .epub — used as-is. Good if you have a pre-made EPUB and want to skip conversion.
• .pdf — accepted but discouraged. PDF doesn't reflow well on small screens; the resulting EPUB will look awkward on phones.
• .txt — accepted; gets basic formatting (paragraphs only).
• .md (Markdown) — accepted; we use the heading levels and lists.

How the conversion works

We use a custom EPUB conversion engine that:

1. Reads your document's structure (headings, paragraphs, lists, tables, images).
2. Generates a clean EPUB 3.0 with proper navigation, table of contents, and metadata.
3. Embeds fonts where you used them.
4. Validates the output against Amazon's KDP validator and Apple's iBooks asset checker.
5. Delivers an EPUB that passes both on first try.

What you should clean up first

Before uploading, spend 10 minutes on these:

Use Word's heading styles

In Word, select your chapter titles and apply Heading 1. Section breaks should use Heading 2. This is how we build the EPUB's table of contents — without these, the TOC will be empty.

Remove cover image from inside the doc

Some authors paste the cover at the start of the doc. Don't — we add the cover separately from the file you upload to the cover field. A cover embedded in the manuscript shows up twice in the final EPUB.

Use real bullet/numbered lists

Use Word's bullet button, not "- " or "* " characters typed manually. We can detect the real lists; we treat manually typed dashes as plain text.

Image captions

Wrap captions in italic. We'll style them as captions in the EPUB.

Avoid colored text

Most retailers strip color from ebooks. If you absolutely need a color (e.g., for a quotation block), put it in a styled paragraph and we'll preserve it.

Avoid two-column layouts

Word's two-column feature doesn't translate to ebooks (where readers can change font size and column width). Use single-column manuscripts.

Check page break behavior

Each chapter should start on a new page. In Word, use Insert → Page Break before each chapter heading, not blank lines.

After conversion: preview

Once uploaded, our previewer shows you exactly what the EPUB looks like on iPhone, Kindle, and Kobo. Walk through every chapter — small layout glitches are easier to fix at this stage than after you've published.

Bring your own EPUB

If you'd rather hand-craft your EPUB (using Vellum, Sigil, or similar), just upload your .epub file directly. We don't re-process pre-made EPUBs — they go to retailers as-is.