Our family loves reading, but we also live on a disciplined budget and have had to work hard to find inexpensive books. Thankfully, we’ve found lots of secrets for getting books for free or cheap through the years. Here are some of our best suggestions to find inexpensive books:
Your local libary
This one is obvious and should come first because I really can’t sing the praises of local libraries enough. We have checked out thousands of books from our libraries through the years (and have saved thousands of dollars in the process!)
When my husband was in seminary, we were on a very tight budget. Amazingly, we were able to order all but three of his seminary books for his program through the library. We’ve also taken advantage of storytimes, special kids’ programs, summer reading programs (and rewards), talent shows, homeschool programs, and book discussions. If you don’t have a library card, run and get one!
Half-Price Books
Half-Price Books is one of our all-time favorite stores for finding great books!
1. Shop the clearance shelves first. Every store has a large clearance section where all of the books are generally $1 or $2. We have found that there are almost always hidden gems. They also seem to update their clearance stock frequently, so you can check back fairly often for new books.
2. Find an annual HPB Clearance Sale at a local convention center. Each year, many larger cities host a clearance sale that takes place in a convention center or large warehouse. Most books go for $1 or $2, and there are literally thousands to choose from.
3. Enroll your kids in HPB’s Feed Your Brain summer reading program. For the months of June and July, kids can bring in a reading log signed by mom and dad to earn a $5 gift card to spend in the store. With four kids and two months during summer, that’s $40 to spend for our family — which goes a long way at Half-Price Books!
4. Sell back your old books to get cash or in-store credit. This is a great perk of HPB, although you should definitely lower your expectations of how money much you’ll get back. I don’t think they pay more than a quarter or so per book, so even if you bring in several boxes full, you still may end up with only a few dollars. Still, though, a few dollars can buy a few new books!
5. Get to HPB early on Black Friday. If you’re one of the first 100 people in line at HPB on Black Friday, you’ll get a HPB tote with a $5 gift card. One shopper even gets a surprise $100 gift card! I took a few of my kids with me one year, and we were able to find some great new books with our gift cards.
Little Free Library
You may have seen these little birdhouse-looking structures around your community. We seem to stumble upon them all the time now that we’re looking for them, and they work just like they sound. You can take whatever book is inside if you leave another book for someone else. Honestly, these can be hit or miss for us — sometimes they have a very small and adult-driven selection, but other times they have some great kids books to choose from. It’s certainly worth stopping and looking!
Paperback Swap
We used to use this program all the time when we were looking for specific books for our homeschool curriculum. You post several books on the site that you are willing to trade, and if someone wants your book, they will request it. You pay postage to send the book to them, but then you get a credit on the site to request a book from someone else (they pay postage). Mailing books is fairly inexpensive because you can send them via media mail, and then it’s always fun to receive “free” books you’ve requested in the mail.
Online used retailers
I have three favorite used books sites that we use regularly:
Betterworldbooks.com: This site has a great selection of used books for great prices, and they generally have coupon codes you can use, too. They also donate lots of money for literacy and place great emphasis on recycling and sustainability. One note, though: Oftentimes it takes the full 8-12 business days to ship, so make sure you have time to wait.
Thriftbooks.com: Generally speaking, I think this site has a bit of a better selection than Better World Books does. They also offer coupon codes and Reading Rewards for repeat buyers. Their shipping is a little bit faster, too, but there have been times I haven’t been thrilled with the conditions my books have arrived in.
Amazon.com: Of course, you can never go wrong with at least perusing Amazon for used books. Their selection is pretty amazing, and oftentimes they have the best prices, too.
We have also used Abe Books, Discover Books, and Alibris on occasion, so you can check out their selections, too.
Looking for more practical help on reading with your kids? Check out these posts: