D&D Beyond is an entirely separate company from Wizards of the Coast. They are just using licensed material from Wizards of the Coast. Therefore, to use the content on this site you have to purchase it here. Hope this clears up any questions you have about accessing the material.
You have to re-buy them on here, however as black Friday is coming up I recommend waiting until then because if it's anything like last year they will have a sale.
Depending on how you want to use DDB, you might not need to buy entire "books." You can just buy the races/classes/etc. you want if you are primarily looking for a character builder, for example. If you have the time, inclinations, and skills, you can also homebrew most things. The buyer's guide that is linked in my signature details some of the purchasing options.
How do I access online content for books that I own physically
If you don't want to purchase the content online, you can manually enter just about any of the content you need as private homebrew content in DDB. Since you have the books, you have all the information you need. Buying the content online saves you the time and effort of manually entering here, so it's up to you if it's worth spending some money to save you that time and effort.
If you're a player, this may not actually take much time, since a lot of the things you need may already be available in the Basic Rules. You'd just need to add whatever else you need for your character that's not in the Basic Rules, and doesn't cost anything extra.
If you don't want to purchase the content online, you can manually enter just about any of the content you need as private homebrew content in DDB. Since you have the books, you have all the information you need. Buying the content online saves you the time and effort of manually entering here, so it's up to you if it's worth spending some money to save you that time and effort.
If you're a player, this may not actually take much time, since a lot of the things you need may already be available in the Basic Rules. You'd just need to add whatever else you need for your character that's not in the Basic Rules, and doesn't cost anything extra.
Despite having bought the Players Handbook, I still have to do this for PHB content.
This statement is meant to be both provocative and condescending. Look at these pathetic huddled masses in their private and closed games, cringing behind the policy of no homebrews and no custom content. This is an insult and injury even to fire types. HEED THIS! Your better off playing rpgmaker. It's everything this place wants to be when it grows up. Seriously. Otherwise, good luck, they will overdo things. All because of safety and security... kor.
If you don't want to purchase the content online, you can manually enter just about any of the content you need as private homebrew content in DDB. Since you have the books, you have all the information you need. Buying the content online saves you the time and effort of manually entering here, so it's up to you if it's worth spending some money to save you that time and effort.
If you're a player, this may not actually take much time, since a lot of the things you need may already be available in the Basic Rules. You'd just need to add whatever else you need for your character that's not in the Basic Rules, and doesn't cost anything extra.
Despite having bought the Players Handbook, I still have to do this for PHB content.
If you don't want to purchase the content online, you can manually enter just about any of the content you need as private homebrew content in DDB. Since you have the books, you have all the information you need. Buying the content online saves you the time and effort of manually entering here, so it's up to you if it's worth spending some money to save you that time and effort.
If you're a player, this may not actually take much time, since a lot of the things you need may already be available in the Basic Rules. You'd just need to add whatever else you need for your character that's not in the Basic Rules, and doesn't cost anything extra.
Despite having bought the Players Handbook, I still have to do this for PHB content.
I’ve never had to yet. Do you have an example?
I needed to add spells and backgrounds. It has since been resolved. For some reason, the content wasn't active immediately, but a couple days later it all worked and I ended up with duplicates.
All through college, I complained about having to buy looseleaf textbooks with expensive e-content that included the e-book plus all the quizzes required to get grades... now I want access codes available between hardback D&D books and D&D Beyond availability so it's possible to buy the books fair and square and also have a license to their content here, rather than paying twice. If D&D Beyond has the licensing to sell digital versions of Wizards of the Coast content in so many package options, Wizards of the Coast COULD issue editions with access codes printed inside.
It isn't uncommon for textbooks because publishers make deals with university bookstores so they can keep churning out "revised" editions and make their e-content mandatory to succeed in the courses. Normally I'd agree with you that you get what you pay for, but in this case it's hardback books that I use ALL the time rather than stupid one-semester-only materials that can't be resold.
those are text books... Barnes and Nobles has ebook licensing but when you buy a physical copy of a book from them they dont give you the ebook for free.
Also as people have said DnDbeyond is not wizards. So they get 0$ for every physical book sold. So why would they give away their product for free and recieve nothing for it
So I recently have seen this site due to watching another group make an ad from their sponsorship. I can see so many useful DM tools and player tools through this but I have physical books that deter me from purchasing them here, I doubt that it's possible, but is there a way to prove that I own these books so I can access them on this site? If possible then I would transfer from the physical aspect to this as my current Campaign is written into my laptop. Please let me know if this is possible! Thank You!
Public Mod Note
(Stormknight):
Post moved to existing discussion on this topic
I've added your post to an existing discussion on this topic.
There have been some fairly lengthy discussions on this topic on these forums in the past, but the main reason why it's not possible to unlock content on D&D Beyond for free is because this website isn't owned by Wizards of the Coast - it's created and owned by Curse, an entirely separate company, who license the D&D product from Wizards of the Coast.
That said, the team here at D&D Beyond understand that some people already purchased all of the physical books and want the community to be able to use this site, so there are a number of options:
All of the Basic Rules and the tools on D&D Beyond are free - zero cost.
You can use the homebrew tools to add any content you like from your books for personal use - the only thing we ask is that you don't publish it as public homebrew.
You can purchase individual options in the marketplace for only a few dollars. If you wish to play a Drow Swashbuckler rogue, you can purchase both Drow and Swashbuckler directly, unlocking them for your account. If you later decide that you wish to purchase the Player's Handbook on D&D Beyond, the money you have spent on content from it (in this example - the Drow subrace) is discounted from the cost of purchase.
It's also worth noting that there are often discount codes available and the cost of each book on D&D Beyond is typically significantly cheaper than the physical purchase already.
How do I access online content for books that I own physically
D&D Beyond is an entirely separate company from Wizards of the Coast. They are just using licensed material from Wizards of the Coast. Therefore, to use the content on this site you have to purchase it here. Hope this clears up any questions you have about accessing the material.
You have to re-buy them on here, however as black Friday is coming up I recommend waiting until then because if it's anything like last year they will have a sale.
Depending on how you want to use DDB, you might not need to buy entire "books." You can just buy the races/classes/etc. you want if you are primarily looking for a character builder, for example. If you have the time, inclinations, and skills, you can also homebrew most things. The buyer's guide that is linked in my signature details some of the purchasing options.
Trying to Decide if DDB is for you? A few helpful threads: A Buyer's Guide to DDB; What I/We Bought and Why; How some DMs use DDB; A Newer Thread on Using DDB to Play
Helpful threads on other topics: Homebrew FAQ by IamSposta; Accessing Content by ConalTheGreat;
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If you don't want to purchase the content online, you can manually enter just about any of the content you need as private homebrew content in DDB. Since you have the books, you have all the information you need. Buying the content online saves you the time and effort of manually entering here, so it's up to you if it's worth spending some money to save you that time and effort.
If you're a player, this may not actually take much time, since a lot of the things you need may already be available in the Basic Rules. You'd just need to add whatever else you need for your character that's not in the Basic Rules, and doesn't cost anything extra.
Despite having bought the Players Handbook, I still have to do this for PHB content.
I don't want to come across as a jerk but... when you buy a physical book you don't get an ebook version for free.
Civics.... ouch.
... meh, just a 58.
This statement is meant to be both provocative and condescending. Look at these pathetic huddled masses in their private and closed games, cringing behind the policy of no homebrews and no custom content. This is an insult and injury even to fire types. HEED THIS! Your better off playing rpgmaker. It's everything this place wants to be when it grows up. Seriously. Otherwise, good luck, they will overdo things. All because of safety and security... kor.
I’ve never had to yet. Do you have an example?
I needed to add spells and backgrounds. It has since been resolved. For some reason, the content wasn't active immediately, but a couple days later it all worked and I ended up with duplicates.
All through college, I complained about having to buy looseleaf textbooks with expensive e-content that included the e-book plus all the quizzes required to get grades... now I want access codes available between hardback D&D books and D&D Beyond availability so it's possible to buy the books fair and square and also have a license to their content here, rather than paying twice. If D&D Beyond has the licensing to sell digital versions of Wizards of the Coast content in so many package options, Wizards of the Coast COULD issue editions with access codes printed inside.
It isn't uncommon for textbooks because publishers make deals with university bookstores so they can keep churning out "revised" editions and make their e-content mandatory to succeed in the courses. Normally I'd agree with you that you get what you pay for, but in this case it's hardback books that I use ALL the time rather than stupid one-semester-only materials that can't be resold.
those are text books... Barnes and Nobles has ebook licensing but when you buy a physical copy of a book from them they dont give you the ebook for free.
Also as people have said DnDbeyond is not wizards. So they get 0$ for every physical book sold. So why would they give away their product for free and recieve nothing for it
So I recently have seen this site due to watching another group make an ad from their sponsorship. I can see so many useful DM tools and player tools through this but I have physical books that deter me from purchasing them here, I doubt that it's possible, but is there a way to prove that I own these books so I can access them on this site? If possible then I would transfer from the physical aspect to this as my current Campaign is written into my laptop. Please let me know if this is possible! Thank You!
Hi there headhunter1032,
I've added your post to an existing discussion on this topic.
There have been some fairly lengthy discussions on this topic on these forums in the past, but the main reason why it's not possible to unlock content on D&D Beyond for free is because this website isn't owned by Wizards of the Coast - it's created and owned by Curse, an entirely separate company, who license the D&D product from Wizards of the Coast.
That said, the team here at D&D Beyond understand that some people already purchased all of the physical books and want the community to be able to use this site, so there are a number of options:
It's also worth noting that there are often discount codes available and the cost of each book on D&D Beyond is typically significantly cheaper than the physical purchase already.
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