Another semester, another scavenger hunt for the best deals on books! The time has come once again to look at our classes, check those syllabi, and figure out where on earth to begin searching for books for cheap. But don’t you worry! We’ve put together a list of our go-to’s to help you prepare for this semester.
1. Chegg
This is a great place to start looking for rental and buying options for both books and ebooks. In addition to their discounted prices, you can also expect free returns within the first 21 days of your purchase, a free 4-week trial of their Chegg Study Textbook Solutions service and even little surprise gifts (such as sample products, energy drinks, coupons, and more!) to come with your order!
2. Amazon
Let’s not forget about their special deal for students: 6 months of an Amazon Prime membership for free! You can enjoy all the perks of Amazon Prime (like Prime Video, Prime Music, Prime Reading, Prime Day sales and exclusive deals, free two-day shipping and select free same-day shipping) as well as its huge selection of books to choose from; there is even an option for you to trade in your old textbooks for their gift cards. When shopping for books and materials for your classes, you can’t go wrong by checking out their site!
3. Campus Book Rentals
With a majority of their books priced around $20, Campus Book Rentals is as budget-friendly as it gets. What makes them stand out to us is both their ability to let students write notes and highlight within the text and let us choose how long we want to rent their books! You can also enjoy free shipping both ways and free returns within the first 21 days of your purchase.
4. eCampus
This site also offers flexible options with choices ranging from the quarter term, short term, to semester-long rentals. When it comes to their ebooks, they even offer easy offline access so you never have to worry about accessing your purchased items. Their rewards program, or eWards, gives you points for purchases, referrals, even a $5 off coupon for your purchase of $30 or more! And when you spend $35 or more, you can even forget about those shipping fees!
5. Cengage
On Cengage, you have three options when it comes to book rentals. You can simply search and choose your book and rental time (from 4 months all the way up to 24 months), subscribe to their Cengage Unlimited program or subscribe for their cheaper Cengage Unlimited eTextbooks plan. Both of their subscriptions have a free week trial that is well worth taking a look at. While the prices range from $69.99-$119.99 for the semester, they are very comparable to the price of a normally discounted textbook (at about $17.50 and $30 per month), but with the perk of having access to their full library of 15,000 ebooks!
Having some trouble figuring out which sites and deals are best for you?
6. BigWords.com
BigWords is a textbook search engine that will find and compare textbook prices from other websites for you. And better yet, the site also does the same for helping you find the best place to sell your books, too!
7. AllBookstores.com
This is another site that serves well for price comparison during your search! Never be afraid to mix and match your orders and sites for the best deals.
Local options:
8. Half Price Books
Located in East Wichita, you can find all kinds of books, new and old (along with a never-ending supply of DVDs and CDs, records, sketchbooks and notebooks, even collectibles!), for great prices! Check out the special textbooks tab on their website to search their library. By the end of the semester, consider selling your books for cash to keep or to use in the store!
9. Book-A-Holic
With 3 locations across town, you can browse a great selection of books and even do so via email or phone! They are locally owned and family operated since 1993 and also offer a buyback service in-store. And be sure to text “BOOKWORM” to 555888 for additional deals and discounts!