How to Make Money Selling Back College Textbooks

You may not be able to make a profit selling your used college textbooks, but you can make a percentage of what you originally paid for it. After a year's worth of use, look on the bright side that you get some extra cash at the end of the year.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Bring your textbook back to your college bookstore. They will usually buy them back. However, if you want to make more of a profit, search out other alternatives beforehand.

2. Selling your textbooks directly to other students is the most lucrative way to get rid of your used textbooks, and the easiest way to do this is online. So the first thing you will need to do is find your textbook on a site that allows people to sell their possessions. Ebay, Half, and Amazon are your best options in no particular order. The easiest way to find your specific textbook is by entering the ISBN number in a search bar; this number is located next to the bar code and will be labeled "ISBN."

3. Look through the other listings for your textbook. Gauge the average price and condition of the other listings and compare what you have to this average. Naturally, a book that shows little to no signs of use and includes any applicable contents such as CDs and study guides will be worth more.

4. Create an account on whichever site you choose to sell your textbook through. Before you can sell anything, you will also need to enter your bank account information so the proceeds can be directly deposited. If you choose one of the three aforementioned sites, this whole process is completely safe and only takes a few minutes.

5. To sell your book quickly, list it at a a price lower than those with the same physical condition and contents. For example, if your textbook is in "very good" condition, list it for a few cents less than the cheapest textbook in "very good" condition. Likewise, if your textbook is "acceptable" to "fair" condition, list it as one of the three cheapest options.

6. When your textbook sells, you will be provided with a shipping credit of at least $3.70 and the buyer's address. The shipping credit, however, will be transferred to your account with the rest of the proceeds, so it will not be immediately available. Simply write out or print a shipping label, package the textbook and take it to the post office or another shipping provider. Postage can be paid for either on site or online beforehand.

7. Place a flier around campus in the fall if you can wait. New students eager to get a textbook will go to you to buy their book if you list in significantly lower than what the college bookstore is asking. You can usually get more for it this way than you would get by selling it online. You have no shipping or site fees to pay this way as well.

Tips & Warnings

• If a bookstore's offer is comparable to what you could get selling the book online, it may be smarter to take the easier, guaranteed money.
• Padded envelopes provide adequate protection while keeping shipping costs low.
• Timing is everything; books will sell much faster near the beginning of a semester.
• Between postage and shipping supplies, the cost of mailing your textbook to the seller often exceeds the shipping credit.
• Novels are very rarely worth selling online for the reasons listed above; however, it is usually worthwhile to sell more expensive books online despite these factors.

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[GlenGlenGlen]

on 8/9/2008 You can also sell textbooks to www.sellbackyourbook.com. They buy textbooks and all other books as well!! sellbackyourbook.com is simple to use and offers great prices and fast payment!