Here is a list of the best free CHM file reader software and online tools. These free software and online services allow you to open and view CHM documents. CHM which stands for Compiled HTML file format is a document format that contains HTML documents, images, Java scripts, and more in compressed form. It is basically used for help documentation and may consist of text, images, and hyperlinks.
Now, there are not many free software that allow you to view files with the CHM extension. So, if you want to read a CHM file, you need a special application that supports the file format. In that case, this guide will help you find multiple freeware that let you read CHM documents on your PC. Apart from that, there are a few online tools that you can use to view CHM files online in a web browser. So, check out the article to know the full list.
Best free CHM file reader software and online tools
Here are the best free CHM file reader software and online tools:
- Calibre
- Sumatra PDF
- Cool Reader
- Free CHM Reader
- CHM Viewer
- GroupDocs
- Vole Media CHM
Let us discuss the above CHM readers in detail now.
1] Calibre
Calibre is a free CHM file reader software for Windows and other operating systems. It is basically a free open-source eBook management software that also lets you open and view CHM files. It offers a built-in eBook reader that allows you to read CHM files.
You can find all the necessary reading tools in this software. Features like bookmarks, zoom in/ out, page-flipping patterns, and more are available in it. Additionally, you can also change font style, font color, text layout, background color, text color, etc., to view the CHM file. An online dictionary feature is also provided in it that lets you look for the meaning of a word or phrase on the web.
Just download and install calibre on your system and then launch the application. Now, press the Add books button to import your source CHM file to it. Next, from the main interface, double-click on the CHM file you want to open. The file will be opened in its E-book viewer window where you can read it.
Apart from just viewing the CHM file, you can even convert it to other formats using its inbuilt eBook converter tool. It lets you convert CHM to formats like EPUB, MOBI, PDF, DOCX, RTF, TXT, and more formats.
Calibre is one of the best eBook readers using which you can read CHM files as well as various other eBooks. Plus, you can find some handy tools in it such as an eBook downloader, eBook metadata editor, etc.
Read: Read DjVu books on PC using free DjVu Reader software or websites.
2] Sumatra PDF
Sumatra PDF is a free eBook reader that also lets you view CHM files. You can use it to read files in formats like DjVu, CBZ, CBR, XPS, EPUB, MOBI, FB2, PDB, etc. It offers some really good features that help in enhancing your reading experience. Some of these features include zoom in/ out, rotate, enable double facing or single page view, fit page width, enable presentation or fullscreen view mode, page navigation options, and more. It also lets you open multiple CHM files in different tabs at a time.
You can also convert CHM to TXT using it. For that, you can use its Save as feature that enables you to save CHM files in text format.
It comes in both portable and installer versions. You can download the preferred version from sumatrapdfreader.org.
See: Best Free Comic Book Readers for Windows.
3] Cool Reader
Cool Reader is a free CHM reader software for Windows 11. It is basically a free eBook reader that also supports CHM files to open and view. You can also read files like FB2, TXT, RTF, DOC, TCR, HTML, EPUB, CHM, PDB, and MOBI in this freeware.
Some nice reading features that you get in it are page navigation options, view bookmarks, search text, rotate the page, modify the font style, adjust line spacing, change text alignment, tweak background colors, change languages, etc. It also offers a feature to enable night reading mode as per your requirements. A nice text-to-speech feature to listen to the text is also available in it.
All in all, it is a good free book reader that also lets you view CHM files.
Read: Best PDF and eBook Reader Apps for Windows.
4] Free CHM Reader
As the name suggests, Free CHM Reader is a dedicated free software that lets you read CHM files. This software cannot open any other file apart from CHM as it is entirely dedicated to reading CHM files. However, it only shows text from the imported file.
You can simply open a CHM file in it and then read it using available features. These features are page navigation features, zoom in/ out, etc. It also provides you a Find option to search for specific text in the opened file. You can even view book information like Title, Authors, Publisher, ISBN, Contributor, Rights, etc.
Download it from here.
Read: Open .hlp files with WinHlp32.exe; Convert HLP to CHM
5] CHM Viewer
Another free software that you can try is CHM Viewer. It is a dedicated free software using which you can open and read CHM files on your PC. You can zoom in/ out, change the background color and hot spot color, and modify the font to customize your reading experience. Plus, an option called Export as HTML files is also available in it. Using it, you can convert your CHM file to HTML format.
It is an easy-to-use CHM viewer with basic reading tools. You get it here.
6] GroupDocs
GroupDocs is a free online CHM reader that lets you open and view CHM files. It is a free web service that offers various file-related utilities. You can use it to convert your files, read documents and files, compare files, edit documents, merge files, etc. On its Viewer page, you can open and read your CHM documents.
The basic file viewing tools like page navigation, zoom in, zoom out, etc., are available in it. It also provides options to export the CHM pages as PNG images and download the CHM file as a PDF document.
Try it here.
7] Vole Media CHM
Vole Media CHM is a free software to view, edit, and review CHM files. It allows you to create new CHM files and edit them as well as read the existing ones. It is a part of the Sanwhole Studio Desktop suite that offers various other applications like Office applications, PDF creator, Notes, etc.
You can simply download and install the Sanwhole Studio Desktop suite on your PC. Then, select the Vole Media CHM and launch it. After that, open your existing CHM documents in it. You can check the table of content using which you can navigate from one chapter to another in a CHM file. It lets you view the basic information of the opened CHM file. Apart from that, you don’t get any reading-specific tools in it.
This software also provides all advanced tools to create professional HTML 5 multimedia CHM. It comes with a built-in Word editor that allows you to create professional CHM document files. You can even add advanced responsive HTML controls into your CHM documents such as Hover zoom, Accordion, Light-box, MP4 Video, Slide-show, Advanced Tabs, Embed HTML, and more.
If you want a free CHM viewer plus editor, you can try this one as it is really advanced software to generate CHM files. You can download it from here.
That’s it. Hopefully, this post helps you find a suitable free CHM reader software or online tool.
How do I open a CHM file online?
To open a CHM file online, you can use a free online tool. There is this free web service called GroupDocs that lets you open and read CHM files online.
What programs can open CHM file?
The programs that can open CHM files on Windows PC include Calibre, Sumatra PDF, and Cool Reader. If you want to use a dedicated application, there are freeware called Free CHM Reader and CHM Viewer. We have discussed these software in detail which you can check out below.
How do I open CHM files in Windows 11/10?
To open and read CHM files on Windows 11/10, you can use Calibre. It is a free and open-source eBook manager that also lets you view CHM documents. Besides that, you can also try applications like Sumatra PDF, Cool Reader, etc.
How do I convert a CHM file to PDF?
If you want to convert a CHM file to a PDF document, you can try the tool called GroupDocs. It is a free online tool that lets you read CHM files as well as convert CHM to PDF. You can find a dedicated feature to export your CHM file as a PDF document. You can find the details about this tool in this post below; so check out!
Now read: Convert CHM to PDF using free converter tools.
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