How To Save Money On College Textbooks

College textbooks are expensive. Depending on the courses that you’re taking and the number of different textbooks that are required per course, the cost of college textbooks can sometimes be even pricier than the cost of the classes themselves. This is especially true for community college classes which is kind of ironic since the students attending those schools frequently do not have the excess money to spend on expensive texts. But they’re required and you have to have them to be able to pass your classes (and get an education) so what can you do about it?

Here are some tips that you may or may not already know about how to save money on college textbooks:

• Buy used from your campus bookstore. This is the most common method of somewhat reducing the price on your college textbooks and the one that you probably already know about. Even if you didn’t already know about it, you’d find out soon enough because most campus bookstores give you the option up front of buying used or buying new. The cost is considerably lower to buy used so always do that.
• Buy used from a local bookstore. There are many college textbooks that you can buy used from places other than your college campus bookstores and the prices are likely to be lower than the used books in your campus store. Some courses use books that are normal literature books (English and Cultural Studies classes are the most likely culprits but other courses do as well) so if you do some digging, you can often pick them up very cheap at local used bookstores. Many cities also have used textbook stores where you might be able to pick up the books that you need.
• Buy used online. There are plenty of online sites where you can get used textbooks at a discount. Amazon.com, Half.com (from eBay), TextbookX.com, and AbeBooks are common places that students check out but do your research into some other online bookstores if you want to find a good discount. Don’t forget to factor shipping costs into the overall price of your textbooks.
• Buy an old version of the textbook at any of the above locations. Be sure to check with the instructor of the course so that you know if the book has changed so much that it won’t be useful to you in the current course. However, changes are usually minor and often, you can photocopy the pages that you need during the course of the class from students who have newer copies of the book. The outdated versions are much cheaper even with the extra copy costs.
• Plan ahead. If you know what courses you are going to be taking the semester before you take them, you can start looking into who you know (or who you can find) that might be taking those courses before you. At the end of the semester, they’ll want to unload their books and you can get them for cheap (or sometimes free if you play your cards right!)
• Buy only what you need. Many courses say that a certain textbook is required when it’s actually optional. Books that are for general use (dictionaries, grammar books, citation manuals) may be useful but aren’t always necessary. Definitely get what you need but don’t get those extras if you don’t need them.
• See if there’s an online version. Some college textbooks are now available online. You can access these for free or for low cost if you don’t mind reading your course material on your computer.

College textbooks are pricey and the costs are only going up. But you don’t have to spend as much as it might seem when you first get your book list. Do your planning in advance, be wise about where you buy your books and always think used. Then you might have some money left over to do something fun on your weekends this semester!

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