Every college student knows the struggle of finding affordable textbooks for class each semester. Some of us head straight for the university bookstore and spend a month’s worth of rent on books, while others waste countless hours comparing book prices on different websites (only for their web browser to crash, making them lose the 17 tabs they had open at once).
The problem with buying textbooks online is that there are tons of websites that sell them (Amazon, Chegg, Half.com, the list goes on…), so it’s difficult to find the lowest price of a book. And when you consider the fact that you’ll be buying books for about five different classes (and some classes require more than one book!), you’ll be exhausted.
The solution is SlugBooks.com. SlugBooks does all the work for you. All you have to do is enter the title or ISBN of the book you’re looking for into the search bar, and—voilà—a list of book prices are laid out on a simple grid. And to make it even better, SlugBooks shows you new, used and e-book buying prices and renting prices. How could this be any more efficient?!
Actually, to make it more efficient, SlugBooks allows you to search for multiple books at one time, showing a variety of book prices for each of your classes that semester, all on one page. Perfect, right?
When it’s time to sell your books back at the end of the semester, SlugBooks uses the same model to compare websites that will buy them from you. That way, you can get the biggest bang for your buck.
Founded in 2008 by UCSC graduate David Miller, SlugBooks was inspired by Slug Books Co-op, an alternative bookstore in Santa Cruz, Calif. The co-op team (including Miller, who had recently become CFO) had to close the business because the textbook market was rapidly changing.
Six years later, SlugBooks has grown from Santa Cruz and now serves American and Canadian university students, with expansions into other countries in the near future.
“The number one reason people shop for their books at their bookstore is because they think the Internet is somehow difficult, and that’s where we solve that,” Miller said. “We make it easy.”
Next semester, search SlugBooks before shelling out hundreds of dollars on textbooks. Watch how much money you’ll save. You’re welcome!