How You Can Sell Used Books online

 

Do you by chance have loads of quality old books or used textbooks lying around in your office or home? just sitting and gathering dust on your shelves? Selling books online is a great way to make some extra income using those same old books.

The sooner you sell your used textbooks, the better. They become outdated quickly and, the more relevant they are when you sell them, the more money you can make.

Below, we've listed the best places to sell your books. On top of that, there is some advice on what to look out for when selling textbooks online.

Tips for selling second-hand books

Here are the best ways to maximize your profits when selling books online:

1. Consider postage and packaging costs

Postage can be pricey. Because of this, it's possible to make very little profit when using websites like Amazon and eBay to sell your books.

That's where other sites like WeBuyBooks.co.uk are a bit more transparent. They cover the postage costs, so the valuation they give you should be the exact amount that you'll receive when your books are snapped up. That is unless they decide your books aren't in good enough condition to sell.

2. Check the book's edition before listing it online

You might have a super old and rare book on your shelf without even realizing it. If you've got a really early edition of a book, particularly one that's fiction and therefore pretty timeless, it could be worth a small fortune.

The edition of a book could be the difference between a price tag of a few quid and thousands of pounds. It's definitely worth checking it out before listing the book online.

Still got some books from when you were a kid? Depending on the edition (and the condition), they could be worth thousands.

3. Compare book-selling websites to get a good price

It's likely that your book valuations will vary widely from one site to another, and each site mentioned below has its own advantages.

When researching each book-selling website, think about whether it would suit your particular type of book. For example, if you're looking to sell a textbook but you can't see any other academic books on the site, it's probably not the right one for you...

4. Photograph your books before sending them to the reseller

When reselling your books online, you'll need to send them in for the site to evaluate them – but be wary. You have no control over how the books will be handled during postage.

We've read some angry reviews from users claiming that their valuation was reduced substantially due to water damage that wasn't there when they posted it. Before you post your pre-loved books, be sure to take lots of photos to prove their condition.

5. Profit from out-of-print fiction books

While selling textbooks should bring in a decent amount of cash, the market for second-hand chart fiction and children's books is pretty much dead.

If you are selling fiction, you'll make more money with the more obscure titles in your collection, or books that are out of print. There'll be much less competition in the market, meaning the price of yours should be higher.

Best Places To Sell Books Online

We recommend using these websites to sell your used books:

1. Facebook Marketplace

If you're looking to sell your books online, Facebook Marketplace is a great place to start. Creating an ad is very easy and only takes a few minutes.

It's completely free if you're exchanging the books in person. However, if you choose to send items directly by post via Facebook Marketplace, they'll charge a 2% fee.

If you want to get rid of your university textbooks quickly, it's a good idea to bundle books from certain modules together and sell them in bulk.

Also, don't throw away books just because you've made notes inside them. This is one of the rare instances where your scribbles might not decrease the book's value. Good notes could actually come in handy for some students, meaning you could potentially earn more cash for the books you own.

Also, you can find a Facebook group with people from your course. Facebook groups are an easy way of tapping into the crop of students in the year below who need to buy the used books you own – your ideal market.

2. eBay

If you're not already on the ball selling everything you possibly can on eBay, now's the time to give it a whirl. They say that one man's trash is another man's treasure, and that's definitely true with eBay.

Unlike some of the other sites on this list, eBay will take a slice of your profits. Depending on how busy you are, they may even charge you to list items. We have a whole guide on how to sell on eBay like a pro, including info on the fees, so check this out before you get started on selling your books to really maximize your profits.

If your books are in high demand or are out of print, you could end up making a good chunk of money by selling them on eBay.

Tip: Make sure you carefully select your titles and keywords to ensure your books are found by the right eBay audience. For example, if you're selling a book about accountancy, include words such as 'business' and 'finance' in your listing.

3. WeBuyBooks.co.uk

From what we've heard, WeBuyBooks.co.uk is one of the best sites to sell books in the UK.

They have the quickest and most efficient system going for selling your unwanted books. As a result, customer reviews are pretty decent.

All you need to do is enter the ISBN number (usually found next to book barcodes) on their website, or scan it on their book-selling app, and you'll receive an instant valuation. You can then choose to accept or reject it as an offer.

Once you've entered enough products to meet the minimum value requirement of £5, you can print off the shipping label and send your books over to their warehouse free of charge. After your books have been checked, the money should be in your account the next working day. It's as easy as that.

4. Amazon

It's not just Amazon themselves who sell books on the site! Anyone can sign up and sell books to a market of millions of people.

Amazon has a couple of selling plans to choose from but, unless you've managed to stockpile an outrageous number of books, the individual plan should be enough for you.

That said, unless you're selling books for a pretty good price, Amazon's rates may make it a bit costly to sell second-hand books through them. We cover the fees and all the best tips for selling in more detail in our guide to making money on Amazon.

Once you've got to grips with the fees, it's just a case of uploading the details of your books and their condition onto the site, and waiting for someone to buy them.

5. Abebooks

Abebooks is a less well-known book-selling website, but you'll be amazed at just how popular it is with those in the know (particularly with students).

In fact, it has over twenty years of online bookselling experience, so can offer millions of titles. Abebooks works in a similar way to Amazon. But, there's also the option to sell your books to collectors or other sellers, which might be a good idea if you've got rare or collectors' items.

If you plan to sell books there, though, you need to know your potential buying audience, and when they would be most likely to shop (e.g. September for used textbooks).

There's a monthly subscription fee of around £20 if you're selling less than 500 books, which could add up if you don't manage to sell all of your books quickly. On top of this, you'll pay an 8% commission for every sale (minimum £0.30).

This list certainly isn't exhaustive. There are loads of other sites out there that could get you a good deal on your old books. These are just our top picks.

Before you start selling books online, think about how many books you have to sell, and what the most practical option will be.