Where to read manhwa legally in 2026, checked October 28: start with WEBTOON, then pay for one more app only if your series lives there. WEBTOON's help center says its Originals are free to read in the app (not every episode: the newest can need Coins), and it carries Tower of God, Lookism, Eleceed and Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint in English. After that it's Manta ($4.99 a month for a library of 300+ series) if you binge, Tappytoon if you're after Solo Leveling or The Abandoned Empress, and Lezhin if you read 18+. Don't buy anything new on Tapas: it shuts down on March 31, 2027.
Tapas is the platform that changed. You can't get new Ink there since October 1, 2026, and its end-of-service FAQ says there are "no plans to hold additional sales or events" before it closes, so it drops down this list. We re-checked WEBTOON, Manta, Tappytoon and Tapas on their own pages on October 28, 2026; the Lezhin, Toomics and Yen Press details are from October 14.
Where to Read Manhwa Legally in 2026 at a Glance
| Rank | Platform | How you pay | Price we found | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | WEBTOON | Originals free in the app, Coins for Fast Pass | Coins sold in the app | Tower of God, Lookism, Eleceed |
| 2 | Manta | Monthly membership | Standard $4.99/month; Premium $8.99/month after a $4.99 first month | Bingeing, Under the Oak Tree |
| 3 | Tappytoon | Points, optional monthly plan | Standard $4.99/month, VIP $9.99/month | Solo Leveling, Abandoned Empress |
| 4 | Lezhin Comics | Coins | Coin packs, frequent sales | 18+ BL and mature titles |
| 5 | Toomics | VIP membership plus Coins | VIP shown at $4/month | Mature exclusives |
| 6 | Ize Press (Yen Press) | Buy volumes, print or digital | Per volume | Owning a copy |
| 7 | Tapas | Ink (closing) | Episodes up to 450 Ink | Finishing what you've unlocked |
| 8 | Naver Webtoon / Naver Series | Korean apps | Korean pricing | Reading ahead in Korean |
| 9 | KakaoPage / Kakao Webtoon | Korean apps | Korean pricing | Kakao originals in Korean |
1. WEBTOON
Start with WEBTOON, and you may not need anything else. Its English catalog includes Tower of God, Lookism, Eleceed, Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint, Your Throne and the finished runs of Noblesse, True Beauty, Weak Hero and The God of High School.
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The catch is Fast Pass. WEBTOON's help center describes it as a way to "read the latest episode on certain series earlier than the regular release date," unlocked with Coins you buy in the app, and says some Fast Pass episodes become free after a set period. The same help center says WEBTOON Originals are free to read in the app, which isn't the same as every episode: on October 24, 2026 Lookism's page said "Read 3 new episodes only on the app!" Older episodes aren't always on the website either: The Boxer is marked completed, but its web page shows only the first seven episodes and tells you to read more in the app.
Some series also run on Ad Pass: the same help center says you can watch short ads to unlock an episode instead of paying Coins, and each Ad Pass episode stays open for 3 days. Episodes bought with Coins stay unlocked for as long as the series is on WEBTOON.
Solo Leveling, Tower of God, True Beauty and Lookism. The last three are on WEBTOON; Solo Leveling's English edition is on Tappytoon and Manta. Cover art via AniList.
2. Manta
Manta is the subscription pick. Its Standard plan is $4.99 a month for the Unlimited Library of 300+ series. The Premium plan, added on February 11, 2025, puts 1,420 Gems in your account each month for the titles the library doesn't cover; on October 28, 2026 Manta's membership page listed it at $4.99 for the first month, then $8.99 a month. Standard is the one to take unless your series is Gem-only.
Under the Oak Tree heads the Unlimited Library list on that page, and it's the reason to pick Manta over Tappytoon: Manta is the only English storefront AniList lists for it. Manta also carries Villains Are Destined to Die, Solo Leveling and the 18+ campus BL Semantic Error.
Under the Oak Tree, first in Manta's Unlimited Library list on October 28, 2026. Cover art via AniList.
3. Tappytoon
Tappytoon runs on points. You can buy them as you go or take a monthly Club plan: Standard is $4.99 a month for 4,400 points, VIP is $9.99 for 8,000, and both add 30 bonus points a day at check-in. VIP also opens the VIP Lounge, which Tappytoon describes as "over 30 free series" readable in full while you subscribe. Everything outside the Lounge still costs points, so a long series costs real money on either plan.
It's worth it for the licenses: Solo Leveling, The Abandoned Empress, Marriage of Convenience, Villains Are Destined to Die and Who Made Me a Princess are all there. Several of those are also on WEBTOON or Manta, so check before you buy.
Who Made Me a Princess, on Tappytoon, WEBTOON and Tapas in English. Cover art via AniList.
4. Lezhin Comics
Lezhin is the 18+ shelf. Its English site pushes the Lezhin Comics Plus app for "all our mature content," and AniList lists it as the English home of Painter of the Night, Blood Bank and Killing Stalking. You pay per episode with Coins, and the site advertises Coin sales, so a long series costs a lot more than a month on Manta.
If you don't read mature titles, skip it. If you do, there's no real substitute.
The Remarried Empress (WEBTOON), Who Made Me a Princess (Tappytoon, WEBTOON), Villains Are Destined to Die (Manta, Tappytoon) and Under the Oak Tree (Manta). Cover art via AniList.
5. Toomics
Toomics mixes a VIP membership with Coins. Its terms say VIP is charged every month and gives "unlimited access to VIP-Exclusive Comics"; anything outside that list still costs Coins. On a VIP-only episode we checked, the sign-up prompt read "Join for only $4 per month!" Its catalog leans mature, so treat it as a second stop after Lezhin, not a WEBTOON replacement.
6. Ize Press (Yen Press)
Pocket Comics and Tapas both take purchased episodes with them when they close (see below); a printed volume stays on your shelf. Ize Press is Yen Press's imprint "dedicated to Korean content," and Yen Press is the English print publisher for The Remarried Empress, Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint, Solo Leveling, The Abandoned Empress and Beware the Villainess!, among others. It's the slow, expensive option, and the one that survives a platform closing.
7. Tapas (Closing March 31, 2027)
Tapas used to be the "wait or earn free Ink" option. Not anymore. Tapas says its service ends on March 31, 2027, that you can't acquire more Ink, free Ink included, since October 1, 2026, and that Ink purchases are final and non-refundable. Episodes on older webcomics went up to 450 Ink in March 2026. Once Tapas closes, you lose access to everything you've unlocked.
Use whatever Ink you have left and don't buy more. Our Tapas shutdown tracker lists where its series can still be read in English. Beware the Villainess! and Who Made Me a Princess, for example, also have English editions elsewhere.
Readers moving off Tapas are listing the same handful of apps. In an r/webtoons thread on where people are migrating, one reader named Lezhin, Tappytoon, Manta and WEBTOON, then added: "It makes me hesitant to buy stuff on any of these apps when the stuff I bought can just disappear."
That's not paranoia. Pocket Comics shut its English, French and Korean services on October 31, 2025, and episodes people had bought stopped working the same day.
8. Naver Webtoon and Naver Series
Many WEBTOON series start on Naver in Korean. Tower of God, for example, runs on Naver Webtoon and Naver Series before the English chapters arrive. It's only useful if you read Korean or want to know what's coming.
9. KakaoPage and Kakao Webtoon
Kakao's Korean apps are the other big starting point. Solo Leveling ran on KakaoPage and Kakao Webtoon in Korean; in English it's on Tappytoon and Manta. Same deal as Naver: Korean only.
Which App Has Your Series?
Check this before you sign up for anything. The English homes below come from each series' AniList entry.
| Series | Where to read it in English |
|---|---|
| Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint | WEBTOON (print: Yen Press) |
| Tower of God, Lookism, Eleceed, Your Throne | WEBTOON |
| Noblesse, True Beauty, Weak Hero, A Good Day to Be a Dog | WEBTOON (all finished) |
| The Remarried Empress | WEBTOON (print: Yen Press) |
| Under the Oak Tree | Manta |
| Solo Leveling | Tappytoon, Manta (print: Yen Press) |
| Villains Are Destined to Die | Manta, Tappytoon (print: Yen Press) |
| The Abandoned Empress | Tappytoon (print: Yen Press) |
| Who Made Me a Princess | WEBTOON, Tappytoon (print: Seven Seas) |
| Marriage of Convenience | WEBTOON, Tappytoon |
| Semantic Error (18+) | Manta (print: Yen Press) |
| Blood Bank, Killing Stalking (18+) | Lezhin |
| Beware the Villainess! | Tapas until it closes (print: Yen Press) |
Our Take on Where to Read Manhwa Legally in 2026
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You probably need two apps, not five. Start with WEBTOON and add the one paid app your favorite series lives on. If you read three or four long series a month, Manta's $4.99 Standard plan is the easiest budget to keep, because you're not doing math per episode. If you only follow one Tappytoon series, buy points for that one series and skip the plan.
And after Pocket Comics and now Tapas, we'd stop putting big money into any single app. Buy the print edition for the one series you'd hate to lose.
How We Checked This
On October 28, 2026 we re-opened WEBTOON's "Is the WEBTOON app free?" help article (Originals free, Ad Pass episodes open for 3 days), Manta's membership page (Standard $4.99; Premium $4.99 for the first month, then $8.99; 300+ library series; 1,420 Gems a month), Tappytoon's Club page (Standard $4.99 for 4,400 points, VIP $9.99 for 8,000 points and "over 30 free series" in the VIP Lounge) and Tapas' end-of-service FAQ. Lezhin's English payment page, Toomics' terms and VIP episode page, Tapas' March 2026 price notice and Yen Press's Ize Press announcement were checked on October 14, 2026. Series availability comes from AniList's English storefront links.
The October 28 pass replaced Manta's Premium price (we had only its $9.99 launch price and an unpriced intro offer) and added Tappytoon's VIP Lounge. The October 14 pass corrected Tappytoon (no $9.99 unlimited plan; its plans are points-based), Toomics (shown at $4 a month, not $9.99), and Tapas (no more free Ink). It also fixed several series listings: A Good Day to Be a Dog is on WEBTOON, not a Manta exclusive; Your Throne is on WEBTOON, not Tappytoon; Semantic Error is on Manta, not Lezhin; and Solo Leveling isn't on WEBTOON. We dropped MangaPlus (a Shueisha manga app, not a manhwa platform) and INKR, which we couldn't tie to the series in this guide.
Last reviewed: October 28, 2026
Related Reading
- Tapas Shutting Down: What We Know: dates, refunds and where the big Tapas series can still be read.
- How to Read Manhwa Free Legally: the free options in more detail.
- Best Manhwa for Beginners: what to start with once you've picked an app.
- Best Manhwa to Read in 2026: picks across genres, with platform notes.
- Best Completed Manhwa: finished series you can read start to end.
- Best Romance Manhwa 2026: romance picks with platform notes for each.
- Solo Leveling Review: the most recommended starting manhwa, now on Tappytoon and Manta in English.
References
- WEBTOON Support: What is Fast Pass?
- WEBTOON Support: Is the WEBTOON app free?
- Manta membership
- Manta: New Premium plan launching February 11, 2025
- Tappytoon subscription plans
- Toomics: Notice of Changes to Terms of Service
- Tapas end of service FAQ
- Tapas: Episode Price Adjustments (March 2026)
- Yen Press Announces New Imprint: Ize Press
- Pocket Comics to shut down (The Beat)
