Read your AO3 downloads offline: shelf, search and clean EPUBs
Choose the folder where your AO3 downloads are. Ficshelf lists every fic with its tags, filters them the way AO3 does, opens each one in a clean reader and saves an EPUB for your e-reader. It never contacts AO3, so it works while AO3 is down.
Choose your downloads
Drop a folder, files or a ZIP here: EPUB, HTML and PDF.
: fifteen made-up fics, with an older copy, a PDF and a page saved from the browser.
Titles and tags only, never the files. (Chrome and Edge; a subfolder, not Downloads itself).
Listing your files
Reading the top of each file in your browser.
- Reads the top of each file, not the whole file, so a few thousand fics list in seconds.
- Filters like AO3's: fandom, relationship, character, tags with include and exclude, rating, warnings, length, status, dates.
- Files never leave your browser. Ficshelf never contacts AO3.
Ficshelf is an independent tool by Peak Apps Studio. It does not sell or host fanworks. AO3 is not affiliated with it, nor is the Organization for Transformative Works.
Your library
Search inside every fic
Whole words; quotes for a phrase. The first search reads each file once; later searches skip fics that cannot match.
Library at a glance
Duplicates and older copies
What it opens
| File | What happens |
|---|---|
| EPUB | Read in full: tags, summary, notes, chapters. Saved again as a clean EPUB. |
| HTML | Read in full, also a page saved from the browser with Save as. Scripts and outside images are dropped. |
| Listed from its file name and opened in your browser's own viewer. Its text is not read. | |
| ZIP | Opened, and the EPUB, HTML and PDF files inside are added. |
| MOBI, AZW3 | Not read. Download the EPUB from AO3 instead. |
What is not tested yet
AO3 has been offline since October 29, 2026, so no real AO3 download could be opened while this was built. Ficshelf reads the layout AO3 documents for its HTML and EPUB downloads (a preface with a tag list, then the chapters), with every selector tolerant: a field it does not recognise is kept, and a file with no tag list still gets a title from its name.
The test files are our own text in that layout. If one of your files does not open as it should, write to info@peakappsstudio.com. Until real files have been checked, this page does not claim to read every AO3 download.
The OTW status page said on October 30, 2026 that no AO3 data has been deleted. What AO3 said, and what you can do now
Free, and what Pro adds
| Task | Free | Pro, $8 once |
|---|---|---|
| Shelf, table, filters, library summary | Yes | Yes |
| Reader, remembered place, one fic as EPUB, text or printable page | Yes | Yes |
| Duplicate and older-copy finder | Yes | Yes |
| Search inside the text of every fic | No | Yes |
| Merge a series or a selection into one EPUB | No | Yes |
| Tidy ZIP: Fandom/Author - Title [id].epub, with a catalog | No | Yes |
| Catalog as CSV, JSON and a Markdown reading list | No | Yes |
Paid once through Gumroad, no subscription and no account here. The key turns Pro on in this browser.
What stays on your device
- The files. Read here, in this tab. Nothing is uploaded and no request goes to AO3.
- The shelf. If Remember my shelf is on, one small record per fic (title, author, tags, counts, file path) sits in this browser's IndexedDB so the shelf is back after a reload. Forget this shelf empties it.
- Your place. The chapter and scroll position of each fic you read is kept in this browser's local storage.
- Offline use. After the first visit this page opens without a connection. Chrome and Edge can also remember a folder; Safari and Firefox ask for it again each visit.
Questions
Can I read AO3 fics offline?
Yes, if you downloaded them first. Choose the folder with your EPUB, HTML or PDF files here and read them in your browser. Ficshelf never contacts AO3, so it works while AO3 is down. Reading AO3 fics offline on iPhone, Android and PC
Does Ficshelf download fics from AO3?
No. It only opens files you already have. It sends no request to AO3 and hosts no fics. Downloading all your bookmarks: what works
Which files does it open?
EPUB and HTML downloads, pages saved from the browser, and ZIP files that hold them. PDFs are listed and open in your browser's own viewer. MOBI and AZW3 are not read: download the EPUB from AO3 instead.
Are my files uploaded?
No. The files are read by this page on your own device. If you leave Remember my shelf on, titles and tags (never the files or their text) are kept in this browser so the shelf is back after a reload; Forget empties it. We count page visits with Cloudflare Web Analytics: no cookies, no personal data, and never your files. When you click a Pro button, a counter of our own adds one to a daily total for this tool, with the page and the kind of site that sent you: no cookies, no personal data, no IP address kept, and never your files.
Will the EPUB it saves work on my Kindle?
Amazon lists EPUB among the file types Send to Kindle accepts. The EPUB Ficshelf writes has a title, author, language, contents and one file per chapter. AO3 to Kindle, step by step
Was this tested on real AO3 downloads?
Not yet. AO3 has been down since October 29, 2026, so Ficshelf was written to the layout AO3 documents for its downloads and tested on files made in that layout. If a real file does not open as it should, write to info@peakappsstudio.com.
What does Ficshelf Pro add?
Pro costs $8, paid once. It adds full-text search across the whole library, merging a series or a selection into one EPUB, a tidy ZIP of the whole library, and a catalog as CSV, JSON and a Markdown reading list. Opening, filtering, reading and saving a single fic as EPUB stay free.
Is Ficshelf made by AO3?
No. Ficshelf is an independent tool by Peak Apps Studio and is not affiliated with AO3 or the Organization for Transformative Works. AO3 is named only to say which files the tool opens. It does not sell or host fanworks.