Top Student Picks on Best Websites for Cheap Textbooks

Back-to-school season is right around the corner and for some, school has already started this week. School is expensive and one of the best ways is to save money in college is to rent books instead of buying them. New semester is exciting! New classes, new people we will be meeting but we also know what it means in terms of cost.

One thing is tuition cost, other is the extra cost of textbooks which currently at average of $1300 a year! These days, schools have become smart and I’m sure you have experienced similar situation where schools change versions of books required for that particular class and you will most likely be required to buy the newest and latest version and the costs are through the roof for our wallets.

I’ve compiled this article to list best websites for cheap textbooks for students to look at before you go and buy that book from the school library at full price.

1. Chegg

You must of heard of Chegg, they have built their brand over the past few years pretty good. Their marketing really got them up there. Chegg is definitely top pick for a student as the website to consider if you can find that book on their site and rent it for much cheaper than buying. Chegg is a great option for any student and they also offer 14 or 21 day purchase guarantee. So, in other words, if you did not like the class you are taking and end up dropping it, you could just return the book for a full refund. If you have old textbooks laying around, you could also sell them to Chegg to make some extra cash, also the quotes you get are online and you can get the price you will get for the books instantly online.

Special touch with your purchase: With every purchase Chegg includes a little gift or gifts which is awesome and I have gotten Red Bull, some nice coupons for major retailers, laundry detergents, hulu PLUS subscription, power bars, 5-hour energy, etc (I don’t want to break it to you by listing everything). This is a nice touch from Chegg to get returning customers, can’t tell you how excited I am when I order something from Chegg because it’s always something interesting they send with my order. *Chegg also has great tutoring services available online.

2. Amazon

In this day and age Amazon is a go-to place for 99 percent of purchases and there isn’t something that might not find on there. Finding cheap textbooks on Amazon is just another option for anybody looking for a textbook if you want to buy, rent, or sell. I have used Amazon many times to purchase textbooks as well and experience has been great.

Special offer: If you are a student and have the .edu email account you will be eligible for free 6 months prime membership which pack the primary benefit of free two-day shipping for millions of items available on amazon along with other benefits. After that, your Prime membership will still cost 50% off per year for as long as you are a student.

3. Textbooks.com

Textbooks.com is very simple to use website and after you find your book, you will be able to check put with ease. According to their website they have the most used textbooks available on the web, with prices as high as 90% off from books cover price. You also have options to rent, sell, and buy. After you spend $25 or more, the shipping is free, but lets be real – you will most likely spend more than 25$ on textbooks.

Highlight about Textbook.com: Textbooks.com offers a best price or price match guarantee. According to their website, if you find a book that is lower price elsewhere like amazon, they will match the price!

4. Campus Book Rentals

This company is another site that I would suggest to rent from. It is known for something though and you should be a little careful though, Campus Book Rentals encourages every person to treat the book as its their own. In other words, you can do whatever you want pretty much like highlighting the book or even get one that is highlighted as well from previous owners which is something you might not like.

Highlight about Campus Book Rentals: Campus Book Rentals has an interesting and unique RentBack feature. You can send your books to them and they will rent the books out for you to different students, therefore sending you the money for every rental until the book goes out of demand. You could make some great money by doing this especially if your book is not worth much.

5. Better World Books

I had to include this one because it is for students that care about community. Better World Books is another option for buying textbooks. Better World Books collects used books, saving them from landfills, and also helps with many projects that relate to students around the world. All of that on top of already cheap textbooks.

Highlight about Better World Books: The best part about buying from Better World Books is their book for book promise where with every purchase you make they will donate a book to someone who needs it around the world.

Bottom Line

It really is exciting or at least for a few days because of new peers and new subject starting but you must still do research and not purchase from the same place you always buy. Take time to shop and find the best websites for cheap textbooks and find great deals throughout all top picks I listed.

If you want more deals, see my new page on what products and websites I use throughout my day-to-day life!

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Richard Barnett is a student majoring in finance, entrepreneur, marketer, content writer, budget traveler, and financial blog “Student Money Adviser” owner. You can read more about me here.

Student Money Adviser