Why Humble Bundle Is a Great Place to Buy Digital Comics

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In the era of digital media, amassing a huge comic book collection is easier than ever, but it also comes with its share of challenges. File management and storage can be a pain, your comics can be split between several platforms that have different means of access, and building your collection one comic at a time can get expensive fast.

Humble Bundle can help solve those problems. If you’re already familiar with Humble, it’s probably because of their video game offers. But they also have and software , including comic books. And just like their video game offerings, they specialize in variety, flexibility, and getting the best bang for your buck.

For the uninitiated, the way Humble Bundle works is right there in the name: They sell bundles of content together that have some kind of link. That could mean books from the same publisher, like this Humanoids Megabundle . Or it could mean books with similar origins, like the Disney Masters bundle .

These bundles can have dozens of books included, but for a fraction of the price they’d cost individually. For example, the Disney Masters bundle (which has comics and graphic novels starring Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, and Uncle Scrooge) includes 48 comics valued at over $1,000 total, but you can get the full bundle for as little as $25, or basically 52 cents per comic.

The final amount you pay is actually up to you, though. Many bundles have tiers where you can pay less to get a smaller number of comics. Using the Disney Masters example again, you could choose to pay $5 for a three-book version of the bundle, or you could pay $15 for a nine-book version.

It’s tough to beat that level of flexibility and sheer value, making Humble Bundle a great choice for those wanting to buy comics at a great price. Plus, with so many titles included in each bundle, it gives you a chance to find new books you never would have tried otherwise. Which leads us to our next point.

When you’re limited to buying one book at a time, it can make finding new comics tough. You want to know you’re getting value for money, so it’s easy to fall into a pattern where you stick to headliner releases or franchises you’re already familiar with.

Buying with Humble Bundle addresses that problem. Bundles often include a mix of different writers, illustrators, and genres, giving you the chance to try a wide variety of styles. It allows you to discover things you might never have considered or even heard of.

Bundles will often include a mixture of heavy hitters and smaller comics, letting you have the best of both worlds. Humble's latest comic offerings include bundles like Dynamite Comics' Miniseries, Quick Hits and Speedy Reads book bundle which is filled with mini-adventures, and Image Comics' Image in the '20s: A Megabundle , to name a couple.

It’s no secret that superhero comics are the most popular. There’s a reason why Marvel and DC have become household names. Those are fun and all, but there are so many other types of comics out there too. You’re really missing out if you just stick to the most famous franchises.

Humble Bundle has selections from a bunch of different publishers of various sizes. That includes bundles like One Shots & Fast Reads , which has Image Comics selections like Jack Kirby’s Silver Star and Grant Morrison’s Nameless, to Dynamite Comics' mini-adventures, featuring stories with classic heroes like John Carter and the queen of pin-up, Bettie Page.

That’s only accounting for the currently active bundles, too. New bundles with a wide range of options are consistently rotating in. You never know what the next bundle will bring, which is part of the fun.

One of the headaches of building a catalog of digital comic books is the number of platforms and apps you have to account for. Your access to the book you bought can be blocked unless you use that specific platform, meaning you have to remember which book is connected to which account.

This is a form of DRM (digital rights management), which is intended to protect copyright holders. But for you, the user, it means you have to jump through hoops to read what you bought. And it can mean you don’t really own the things you buy, since your access can be restricted or rescinded at a moment’s notice.

Humble’s bundles don’t require subscriptions and often include DRM-free downloads, which means that after you buy a bundle, you get PDF, EPUB, or CBZ files which you can directly download. Whichever type you decide to use, the important thing is that you get to keep those comics. They’re yours forever.

To be clear, not every bundle is DRM-free. Under the description of each bundle, you’ll see a group of icons. If that bundle is DRM-free, there’s a book icon that says “Use on Any Device.” If not, there’s a key icon that says “Redeem on Other Platform” and the bundle description will provide more details.

Humble has always been extremely supportive of charities, for which it has raised more than $280 million since being founded in 2010 . It donates a portion of every sale to charity, but you can also pay extra money for your bundle and choose whether to give that money to the comics’ creators, Humble Bundle, its partners, or a charity of your choice.

Each month, Humble chooses a different charity to feature. That charity receives a portion of Humble Choice membership dues and the proceeds of individual bundles (unless you choose a different charity). The featured charity for August is the international ocean conservation group Oceana, while previous charities include Make-A-Wish, The Trevor Project, and No Kid Hungry.

On the listing for each bundle, you can see how much has been donated to charity thanks to purchases of that bundle. There are multiple currently available bundles that have contributed more than $10,000 of donations each. And everyone wants to put more good into the world, right? So why not do it while getting to read dozens of comics for cheap? Win-win.

Why Humble Bundle Is a Great Place to Buy Comics

When it comes to buying digital comics, Humble Bundle is the best option for sheer value, discovery, and flexibility. It combines extremely low prices, flexible downloads, a variety of titles, and a consistently rotating selection so there’s always something new for you to check out without breaking the bank.

It’s perfect for newcomers wanting to get their feet wet and see what kinds of comics they vibe with, as well as hardcore fans looking to take their collection to the next level without having to shell out hundreds of dollars at a time. Regardless of your experience level, you can discover new titles you never knew existed.

The next time you’re looking for new comics, are you going to give Humble Bundle a look? Let us know in the comments.

Corey DeMoss is a Custom Content Writer for IGN who has covered titles big and small from all around the world. He has nearly 20 years of experience as a writer and editor.