Categories: Academics

15 Best Sites To Find Cheap Textbooks

College is already a lot of money so you shouldn’t have to spend even more when paying for textbooks. The textbook websites suggested by most colleges are pretty pricey, especially when going through the school bookstore. Luckily for you, websites for cheap textbooks do exist, and here are some of the best ones to check out!

1. Amazon

This is where I usually end up buying most of my textbooks from. With Amazon Prime, your books get to you pretty quickly which is good especially if you add a class and need the textbook immediately. A lot of the textbooks on Amazon have a used book option where you can get the textbook for an even lower price and usually, they are still in good condition. Also, they allow for rentals on some of the textbooks which works out perfectly if you don’t need the book for that long.

2. Chegg

Chegg is another great place to rent textbooks from! They offer 21-day risk-free returns so if don’t need the class anymore, you can return the book free of charge! Textbooks also come with access to a 4 week free trial of Chegg Study where you can get help with assignments and learning material. Another great thing about this website is that you can also sell old textbooks.

3. Campus Book Rentals

This is another rental website that is relatively cheap and prides itself on saving over a million students hundreds of dollars. They want students to focus on their education rather than worrying about spending money on textbooks. As with any book rentals, you might end up with some highlights and notes from other renters. However, the books are still kept in good condition for your next rental.

4. Textbooks.com

On this website, you can buy and sell physical textbooks, but they also offer up the option of e-books. E-books are usually less expensive than a physical textbook and also you don’t have to deal with lugging a giant textbook around. They have up to 90% off some textbooks with a 30-day return policy.

5. Better World Books

Better World Books sells used books for a low price while also donating money to literacy and environmental sustainability.  Their website boasts that they have never thrown away any book as any book that isn’t sold they recycle it. They have reused over 300 million books! When you purchase from Better World Books, you can also have the option to ship it carbon balanced for only a few cents extra. So you can save money and also donating a book to a kid in need. Better World Books is always encouraging its staff to volunteer and they constantly participate in projects to help others.

6. ECampus

On ECampus you can buy, rent, and sell textbooks and e-books! They offer so many discounts on textbooks that are a way cheaper option than your campus bookstore. Also, you get free shipping on orders over $35.

7. Cengage

Cengage has a couple packages that allow you access to even more than textbooks! You can get the Cengage Unlimited eTextbook package for 4 months for only $69.99! In the package, it includes access to course materials, over 15,000 eTextbooks, and up to 4 hardcopy textbook rentals. For a little more money you can get Cengage Unlimited with access to even more study tools!

8. Allbookstores.com

One great thing about Allbookstores.com is that it has a compare prices option where you can browse the cheapest textbooks from various online websites.  You don’t have to scour the Internet or all these websites to find the cheapest textbook because it’s all on one website. Thus, if you are looking for a simple, time-saving solution to finding low-priced textbooks this is the website you should look at first.

9. AbeBooks

On AbeBooks, you can buy cheap used books while also getting great deals on rare works of literature and fine art! If you’re an English major and super obsessed with books as I am then you need to look at this website! You can also get signed books from authors which is an even bigger bonus. Finding cheap textbooks and rare volumes of classic works of literature? I think yes!

10. ValoreBooks

The front page of their website literally says “The Cheapest Textbooks” so it must be true. If you rent from them it comes with free return shipping so need to panic about spending money to ship your book back. They also offer a 30-day Money Back Guarantee which again is great if you drop or switch classes! Students save up to $500 per year by using this website!

11. Ebay

Remember when everyone used to use eBay all the time before Amazon? Surprisingly, eBay has a large selection of textbooks, and studies guides that people are auctioning off for low prices. The only downsides to this website are the possibly long shipping times and also spending lots of time trying to bid on items. However, it could be fun too as you get the whole auction experience.

See Also

12. Knetbooks

Another good website to rent books from! All of the shipping is free no matter how much you spend too! I like this website as it has multiple rental options where you can choose how long you need the book for, which works well for quarter system people. Plus, you can shorten or extend your rental at any time.

13. FlatWorld

FlatWorld just wants students to get textbooks for a reasonable price! Some universities are actually just using their textbooks only which includes the use of a homework system, test banks, instructor manuals, PowerPoint Notes, and a Customized Platform! So both students and teachers can get good use out of this website.

14. Alibris

You can get new or used textbooks from here and save up to 80% off! Alibris says they literally have “millions” of textbooks just waiting for people to purchase them! Also, new textbooks are release pretty quickly on here so you can always expect new textbook editions to be found!

15. TextBookx

Sell or buy cheap textbooks on here! On TextBookx you can earn up to 2 times more when selling your books back on their website. There is also free shipping on all orders. Also as a bonus, they sell school supplies!

Hopefully, these websites guide you on your path to finding cheap textbooks! No student should have to worry about spending tons of money on books when they are already stressed about so many other things.

Have you tried any of these websites? Let us know in the comments below!

Featured Image: https://pin.it/6nmGfVT
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Caitlyn Somers

Caitlyn is a third-year student at UCLA. She is majoring in English. She enjoys writing, and going to hot yoga classes and, of course, binge-watching Netflix. At UCLA, Caitlyn is a feature writer for HER Campus, part of the American Cancer Society club, and a member of Alpha Gamma Delta.

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