Buying Books on a Budget

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Guest Post:  Karrie from Happy Moneysaver:

I love shopping for new books. In fact, I love them so much that there was a time when I’d get a Christmas card every year from every bookstore within a 50 mile radius. {Okay, not really.} But I do enjoy walking into a bookstore and taking in that first big whoosh of book-scented air! {Ahh…! Bliss!} As a busy mom, my “free reading time” is severely limited, but that doesn’t stop me from buying a new book {or two} every once in awhile.

But here’s the thing…I never pay retail!

How’s that even possible, you may ask? Well, my fellow bibliophiles, you’re in luck!  I’m going to share my deepest, darkest secrets best tips and suggestions for buying a smorgasbord of literary delights on the cheap! Are you ready? Let’s begin…

Paperback Swap.com – Paperback Swap allows you to trade books with other users for free*! When one of your books is requested by another member, you simply print out a shipping label, pay the postage and ship it out within 3 days.  Once the member receives your book, you receive 1 book credit to use toward your next swap. {1 book=1 book credit. Credits are required to request books. This way, no one can “take” without “giving back”.} There are no due dates, no late fees, and the books are yours to keep or trade again as you wish. *While you do have to pay to ship the books out, you don’t pay shipping to receive it. The “receiver” always gets free shipping.

Half Price Books – If you happen to live nearby one of their retail stores, you’re in luck! At Half Price Books, you can find titles for (literally) half the retail price. They also have an awesome clearance section, with several titles (mostly of the paperback variety) priced at $3.00 or less.

Can’t find what you’re looking for in the store? No problem! Visit their online store and search from hundreds of titles available from independent retailers. {Which is very Amazon.com-ish, but hey – it works!}

If you’re looking to make a little extra money, you can sell your unwanted titles to a HPB retail store. Please keep in mind that they pay the minimal amount based on supply and demand. For example, I went in with a large box of children’s books (approx. 100 books) and received less than $12 as payment.

Swagbucks – The site that pays you to search to your heart’s content! Rack up those points and redeem them for Amazon.com gift cards! {Woohoo! Free books!} Generally speaking, I can accumulate between $5-$10 worth of free Amazon gift cards per month just by using Swagbucks. How cool is that?!

eBay, Craig’s List – You can find some amazing deals by visiting these sites, especially when it comes to textbooks or out-of-print titles! Sellers even offer “lots”—5 books or more—which works out well if you’re into a particular genre or author.

Library Sales – Score great paperbacks and magazines for well under a $1. Proceeds generally benefit your local library fund which goes toward buying NEW books to check out!

Thrift Stores –With paperbacks generally priced at $0.25 and hard covers priced around $2 each, thrift stores offer a super-cheap way to build your library! If your local thrift store offers coupons or discount days, you can use those to increase your savings as well.

Yard/Garage Sales – The proverbial deal “hot spot” during the spring and summer months, yard sales are “Ground Zero” for snagging a fantastic deal. {The cool thing here is the fact that you can often barter for a lower price, which adds a whole new level of bargain-hunter satisfaction. However, don’t take advantage of the seller! Bartering should really only be used in the case of a whole box of books versus ONE title.}

And there you have it, folks…my tried ‘n true tips for turning a bibliophile into a frugaliophile! {That’s totally a word, by the way. No, you can’t look it up.} So what do you think? Have you tried any of these websites before? What are some of your best kept book buying secrets?

Karrie is a chocolate-addicted busy stay at home mom of twins + 2 living in the Pacific Northwest. She has a recurring dream every night of finding something FREE while shopping. But hey..at least in her dream she is still wearing clothes!! She blogs over at happymoneysaver.com where you can find amazingly cool thrifty tips, recipes and hot deal ideas!