Project Gutenberg
| Project Gutenberg | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Digital library |
| Established | December 1971 (first document posted) |
| Collection | |
| Specialization | Public domain works |
| Size | Over 77,500 documents |
Criteria for collection | Works not protected by copyright in the United States |
| Other information | |
| Director | Eric Hellman (acting CEO of Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation) |
Parent organization | Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation |
| Website | gutenberg |
Project Gutenberg (PG) is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of books or individual stories in the public domain. All files can be accessed for free under an open format layout, available on almost any computer. As of 22 March 2026, Project Gutenberg had reached nearly 78,000 items in its collection of free eBooks.
The releases are available in plain text as well as other formats, such as HTML, EPUB, and MOBI. Most releases are in the English language, but many non-English works are also available. There are multiple affiliated projects that provide additional content, including region- and language-specific works. Project Gutenberg is closely affiliated with Distributed Proofreaders, an Internet-based community for proofreading scanned texts.
Project Gutenberg is named after the inventor Johannes Gutenberg, whose works in developing printing technology led to an increase in the mass availability of books and other text.