Key Difference: Google Books is a service that allows users to search full text books and magazines that have been scanned by Google online. The books are scanned, converted to text and stored in a digital database for easy access. Google eBooks is a service by Google that allows users to view books that have been made available for sale by their publishers.

Google has become a house-hold name because of its efficient search engine. Almost anything and everything can be ‘googled’. Google initially made a name for itself using the search engine, it is now dabbling in many other technologies. The company's mission statement from the outset was "to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful.” Google is famous for its Internet-related products and services, such as its internet search, cloud computing, software and advertising technologies. Staying true their mission statement, Google has launched programs such as Google Books and Google eBooks to organize and make it easier to search books on the internet. People often confuse Google Books and Google eBooks as one and the same because of the similar names. However, these are two different services.

Google Books is a service that allows users to search full text books and magazines that have been scanned by Google online. The books are scanned, converted to text and stored in a digital database for easy access. Google Books was previously known as Google Book Search and Google Print and was introduced in October 2004. The results from the search are shown in both Google web search as well as Google Book search. When the searches are clicked on they, depending on the type of publication it is, the user can either see a preview, snippets, or full copies of the work. If the book is a public domain book, it can be fully viewable online and the user can also download a digital copy of the book. Google Books can also include new books by authors if the publishers are a part of the Google Books Partner Program.

Google eBooks is a service by Google that allows users to view books that have been made available for sale by their publishers. Google eBooks was launched in December 2012 in the US. Google’s website states, “Google eBooks are made available for sale by their publishers. Just as with Google Books, you can preview a limited number of pages. However, if you like what you see, you have the option to purchase a digital copy of the work, which you can then view in full on most Internet-enabled devices, or even download.” Google eBooks offers universal access and non-restrictive copying. The users must purchase eBooks at Google eBookstore or other retailers and can then read the copies as well as download them for offline viewing.

Google Books and Google eBooks differ from each other as Google Books allows viewers to search full text books that have been scanned by Google. eBooks allows users to purchase their copies from retail online store and then view them or download them at their own leisure.

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