Every Possible Way to Save Money on Textbooks

(These tactics will save you hundreds of dollars this semester)

College textbooks aren’t cheap. The average student spends over $665 dollars on textbooks per year, and 7 in 10 students bypass purchasing a textbook because of the cost.

I was a student last year, and I know exactly what it’s like to spend tons of money on textbooks, only to sell them back for pennies on the dollar. I tried every trick in the book, so I hope this post gives you the tricks/tools to save money this semester.

Make friends in your class

As you progress through college, the assumption is that you will make friends along the way. Use this to your advantage! If you think you can swing it, share a textbook with your friend. It gives you a good reason to study together, but this approach can sometimes backfire. Who sells the book back at the end of the semester, how do you split the cost of the textbook? Figure this out before making any purchases, it will save you a headache in the future.

This is one of the most important things you can do.

Never buy or sell to the bookstore

Purchasing or selling back textbooks at the bookstore is a sure-fire way to money.

Oftentimes bookstores will lure incoming freshman by packaging “all the books you need for your first semester.” It might be easy, but spending a few minutes finding lower cost alternatives could save you hundreds of dollars.

The bookstore is a good place to buy school apparel, but not textbooks.

Check the library

Oftentimes the library will have a copy of the physical textbook on reserve. You may find that you compete with many other students for this option, but there’s nothing better than free. The only catch is that many libraries won’t let you leave with the book, so expect to study on-site!

Oftentimes libraries will also have online textbooks available — this sounds insane, but I know people who have used this approach and saved tons of $$. Make sure to talk to your librarian as each school is different.

Go Boundless

(Full disclosure: I work for Boundless.)

Boundless offers textbook alternatives for most of the gen-ed classes you take the first couple years of college.

This is where normal textbook publishers screw you over. Does physics change enough to warrant a new edition every year? If you want to pay $120 dollars for the latest edition, be my guest, but when you have tuition, food, and bills to pay for, you can’t sink that money into a textbook. We get that.

Boundless offers a textbook alternative that is more concise, and covers the important material you need to know, plus, each book is only $19.99, and has no expiration date.

P.S. — We’re being sued by those textbook publishers who think it’s okay to rip you off.

The Amazon sell-back method

This is one of my favorite tricks — become an Amazon seller, and sell your books directly to other students. Oftentimes there’s a little risk that your book won’t sell at the end of the semester, but if your textbook is popular, you can usually recoup the majority of the cost. For example, if you purchase a textbook used for $90, oftentimes you can sell it back for almost the same price (unless a new edition is released).

This approach takes more time and effort (like printing off shipping labels), but it’s a nearly guaranteed way to save some serious cash. If you price the book at the lower end of the spectrum, you can usually sell your book very quickly.

Use your school’s Facebook group

Last year Facebook came up with these nifty Facebook groups available exclusively to students at your college/university. There’s typically a Facebook group where students can post what textbooks they have for sale. This is a good way to snag a textbook from someone who took the class a semester before you.

As a word of caution, exchange cash in person, and if you think the person you are buying the textbook off is a creeper, then bring a friend…or pepper spray.

If you dare, buy an international edition

Last year, a student entrepreneur was sued by Wiley for selling used copies of international textbooks. Put simply, these greedy publishers sell textbooks overseas for much less (usually about 50% less). If you want to save some cash (and don’t mind differences in certain portions of the text), buy an international edition. These versions may be tough to resell, as many people aren’t aware that you can purchase an international edition for much less.

Don’t rent textbooks

I’ve given you several ways to save tons of money on textbooks, but I highly advise against renting a textbook. Spending $40-$50 dollars is too expensive for a heavy, outdated textbook, plus, you have to deal with the hassle of waiting for your textbook in the mail at the beginning of the semester, and you have to send it back at the end.

Talk to your professor

Don’t be afraid to email your professor and ask if the textbook is required (or if you can purchase an earlier edition). Many professors are on your team, and they don’t want to see you pay ridiculous prices for a textbook. Other professors are tightly linked to the textbook publishers, and receive kickbacks on custom textbooks. I had two professors who epitomize both ends of the spectrum. One professor gave me an access card to do the online homework for free, and I had another professor who forced me to pay $150 dollars for his own textbook. It’s very hit-or-miss.

Long story short — send an email and check with your professor about textbook options. They might be cool, they might be cruel.

What do I do if my textbook is bundled with an access code?

This is a very common situation, yet the HEOA textbook provision (it’s a law in the U.S.) says the following:

A publisher that sells a college textbook and any supplemental material accompanying such college textbook as a single bundle shall also make available the college textbook and each supplemental material as separate and unbundled items, each separately priced.

In short, publishers are required by law to unbundle textbooks. If you find you are unable to purchase an unbundled textbook, it’s worth giving the textbook publisher a call and seeing if you can purchase the items separately.

In Conclusion

It’s important to realize that you can save yourself hundreds of dollars every semester by being proactive about your situation. Take control, and save yourself hundreds of dollars this semester!