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How to Sell Books Online for Profit with the Textbooks.com Buyback Program

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Hey everyone! This blog post marks the first in a series of interviews with textbook buyback companies that let you sell books for cash online.

Instead of just reading my articles on the best buyback textbook website, you’ll now learn what books these companies buy, how much they’ll pay, and how you can send books to them to make extra money – from the people who pay cash for your books!

Our first interview is with one of my favorite textbook buyback programs – Textbooks.com. I’ve sold thousands of books to Textbooks.com over the years and have earned thousands of dollars from them.

Textbooks.com’s Director of Contact Center Operations, Chris Gibson, was nice enough to answer some questions about how Textbooks.com buys books. Thanks Chris!

Let’s see what he has to say:

How long has Textbooks.com offered a book buyback program?

Textbooks.com was established in 2006 and has offered a buyback program since that time.

How many books does Textbooks.com buy each year?

Textbooks.com purchases hundreds of thousands of books across many subjects, genres, and majors each year.

Can anyone sell used books for cash to Textbooks.com?

Anyone with an Internet connection can sell books to Textbooks.com! We have one of the largest buyback programs available online and offer free UPS shipping for our buybacks.

Do you have to live in the US to sell books to Textbooks.com?

You have to be based in the US, with a US address, to sell books to us. We do not ship or do buyback internationally.

What types of books does Textbooks.com buy?

We offer buyback value on books across all subjects and genres. These buybacks range from human biology and algebra, to a variety of Shakespeare classics.

What types of books does Textbooks.com not buy?

We typically don’t exclude specific genres or subjects from the buyback program, but we don’t purchase international editions or annotated teacher’s editions.

Textbooks that are international or teacher’s editions will usually have “International Edition” or “Teacher’s Edition” printed on the cover.

How much money will Textbooks.com offer for a book?

We offer a wide range depending on the demand for the book. Trade titles like The Great Gatsby are among the lowest value books that we purchase back, while some titles related to biology, microeconomics, and calculus have buyback values well over $100.

While we don’t have a specific minimum for an individual book, there is a $10 minimum to process a buyback order, so it can be made up of several lesser-priced books.

Are there certain times in the year when Textbooks.com buys more books?

While we offer buyback value on a large list of books year-round, certain times of the year – like December and May – see an increase as students finish using their books for a semester.

How to Check If Your Book Condition is Good for Textbooks.com

Do you buy books that have underlining and/or highlighting in the pages?

Any color or mixture of color is acceptable for highlighting, as long as it does not obscure any portion of the text. If any of the text becomes unreadable, we’re unable to purchase that book. Our guideline for writing or underlining is limited to 50% of the book, provided that it does not obscure any portion of the text.

Workbooks and study guides are graded differently due to the nature of needing to work directly in the book. Up to five pages can contain writing in pencil; any writing in pen is unacceptable.

These guidelines are put in place to benefit future customers. We hand-inspect all books that are sold back to us and we guarantee our used books. On the website, you’ll see books sold directly from Textbooks.com marked “Certified Used,” which provides peace-of-mind to our customers.

Sometimes, the book’s previous owner writes notes in the margins of a textbook. Do you accept books like these?

Notes in the margins are acceptable, as long as they are not written on more than 50% of pages in the text and as long as they don’t obscure any of the text.

Do you buy ex-library books with library stickers and stamps?

Yes, we purchase ex-library books. As long as the book is in good condition, it’s eligible for our buyback program.

When is a book considered not in “good condition”?

Textbooks.com won’t buy books with the following conditions:

• Water damage or stains of any kind
• Missing, torn, or loose pages
• Damage to the cover, binding, or spine
• Any marking inside the book that makes text unreadable
• Publisher defects

While publisher defects are not common, the most prevalent issues we see are sections that are out of order, a section missing while another is repeated in its place, or text that is printed upside down in relation to the front cover.

Some textbook retailers sell books with lower standards than Textbooks.com. We see some books come through the buyback program with signs of water damage, stains, or ruffled pages that may have been present when the student purchased a book elsewhere.

This leads some students to think that water damage is acceptable for used books, but we’re unable to purchase a book that has any degree of water damage.

It is also possible that a customer may have a book that has been stickered incorrectly. Instead of using the ISBN found on the sticker on the back on the book, it is best to use the information available on the copyright page.

What is an ISBN?

An ISBN is a 10- or 13-digit code assigned to a book. It’s located on the copyright page inside the book and usually also on the bar code on the back cover, although we recommend using the one on the copyright page.

Searching by ISBN ensures you are getting a quote for the correct book. There can be many versions or editions of a given title; some may be custom editions, some may come with online access, some may be packaged with additional components. Each “version” of a title will have its own ISBN, so it ensures we’re talking about the same book.

Sometimes the book’s bar code shows the Universal Product Code (UPC) which is not the same as an ISBN. Remember – 13-digit ISBNs start with “978,” and 10-digit American ISBNs start with a “0” or “1” (foreign ISBNs can start with different numbers).

What else might make a book unacceptable to Textbooks.com?

Any components listed in the title of a book need to be included with a buyback; that means items like DVDs, CDs, workbooks, etc.

If a buyback quote is supposed to include supplemental components and the book is sent back to us without them, we attempt to pay the customer for what is received, which may be less than the original quote. Sometimes a package won’t have any value unless everything listed in the title is included.

When looking to sell a loose-leaf item, it is important to make sure the correct ISBN is being used. While we may be purchasing a hard or soft cover text, we won’t always be purchasing the loose-leaf version of that same title.

What do you do with buyback books sent to you in poor condition?

If we receive an item in unsellable condition, we notify the customer by email and detail the reason why it can’t be purchased. We also provide instructions on arranging a return if the customer would like the item back. If the customer decides they no longer want the item, it is recycled.

How to Sell Books Online to the Textbooks.com Buyback Website

How do I create a free online account to start selling books to Textbooks.com?

To create an account on Textbooks.com, go to the Log In page in the top right corner of our website. Or you can create an account during the buyback checkout process.

What information do I need to give to get a free online account at Textbooks.com to sell used books and start making extra money?

To sell books to Textbooks.com, we would need the following information for your account: name, email address, phone number, a US-based address, and payment preference (PayPal or check).

Once I open that account, how can I check to see how much Textbooks.com will pay me for my books?

Customers can go to Textbooks.com from their computer, laptop, or mobile device and select ‘Sell Textbooks’ at the top of the page.

Enter any ISBN in the search field to see the buyback value we are currently offering for that book. From there, you can add more books to a quote.

Once all books are added, the seller enters their info and finalizes their quote.

Once finished, you print a packing slip and a prepaid UPS shipping label, and then ship the book(s) to us.

Our buyback quotes are good for 30 days. However we recommend sending in your books right away – so you get your cash faster! But it’s peace of mind for students who want to lock in a good price and still need their book for finals.

Also, customers who have purchased books from Textbooks.com can log into their account and check the buyback section in “My Account” to see what value we’re currently offering on those titles.

How to Send Your Used Books to Textbooks.com for Money

How would you like books to be sent to you?

As long as the packaging is sturdy and the books are packaged well, they should arrive to us in good condition!

It’s important to consider the size of box or envelope that is used based on the number of books being sent. Too much extra room allows books to slide around and can damage them. If any filler is used, make sure it is something that won’t stain. For example, newspaper isn’t a great choice for this!

Wrapping the books in plastic is helpful, in case the books come in contact with any water on their journey to us. This will help prevent any damage in transit.

We’ve had a few buybacks received in cereal or pizza boxes – we definitely wouldn’t recommend those!

What type of free shipping do you offer?

For buyback, we offer free pre-paid shipping labels via UPS. This provides door-to-door tracking and shipments are typically received in our warehouse within 3-5 business days.

Do you provide any insurance with your free shipping labels?

Our buyback labels are not insured. While we rarely see any damage to shipments that are sent to us, customers always have the option of purchasing insurance for added peace of mind.

What other tips you can share for making sure books arrive in good shape so Textbooks.com can pay you money for them?

This is all about packaging! As long as books are sent in sturdy packaging and don’t have a lot of room to slide around inside the box or envelope, they should arrive in good shape.

It’s a good idea to wrap books in something plastic to prevent any kind of exposure to water, especially during rainy seasons. Sellers also have to be sure to include all supplemental components quoted in the offer.

How long does it take for books to get to Textbooks.com – and how long does it usually take before a person gets paid?

Shipments usually arrive to our warehouse within 3-5 business days, depending on the distance from our centrally located warehouse in Columbia, Missouri.

From there, sellers typically get their payments in 1-2 weeks, depending on whether a seller chose Paypal or check. We say to allow up to 4 weeks from the day you send your books to the day you get your money. Paypal is the fastest way to receive a payment.

How can people contact you if they have more questions?

If sellers have questions about the buyback process, they can visit our Help Desk for answers to the most commonly asked questions. It’s definitely the best place to start. For questions about existing buyback quotes or returns, we have a dedicated customer service team and sellers can submit their questions to us via the Contact Us page, email us anytime, or call our toll-free number.

Thanks again Chris! I hope Chris’ answers to my questions have made you more aware of the best ways to sell your used books online for a profit to buyback companies.

If you’d like to start selling your books online, go to Textbooks.com and sign up for a free online account. You’ll be glad you did (I know I was!)

And as always, if you liked this interview and want to receive more tips and tricks for how to sell books online for extra money, subscribe to my blog!

Want to ask me a question or offer a suggestion for a future blog article? Email me at sellbooksfastonline@gmail.com.

Hey, did you know that you can also buy discounted textbooks for college from Textbooks.com and sell those textbooks back to Textbooks.com for cash when the semester ends? Learn more at How to Buy College Textbooks for Less on the Textbooks.com Website.

Should you Sell Textbooks on Amazon or to a Book Buyback Company to Make Money?

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Whenever I go out shopping for books to sell online, I inevitably get asked the same question by curious people who see me scanning the book barcodes:

“Do you make a lot of money selling these books on Amazon?”

None of these people even consider that I might be selling my books on a website other than Amazon. To them, Amazon is the first, last, and only place anyone can sell books for cash (even eBay is losing popularity as a good place to sell your books online).

Now Amazon is a good place to sell books online for profit – I sell books for as much as $300 regularly on Amazon.com, and a good portion of my extra income comes from my Amazon book sales.

But as the readers of my blog know, Amazon is not the only online book buyer out there. Buyback websites like Textbooks.com, Valore,Powells,  and Cash 4 Books (all of which you can find through Bookscouter) can offer many more options for selling books online.

So I’d like to spend some time answering this question:

Which Makes Me More Extra Money — Amazon or a Buyback Website?

Short answer? It depends.

Most people automatically think Amazon is the best place to sell books online for cash. After all, if you list your book on Amazon, you decide what price you want to sell it for – a buyback website will only give you a non-negotiable price quote for your book.

Moreover, Amazon receives thousands of visitors every day, which increases the odds that someone will buy your book for the price you’re asking.

But before you start listing your books for hundreds of dollars on Amazon, you should know about some of the downsides to selling books on Amazon. (Be prepared, we have a lot of information to cover).

First, while you can list your books on Amazon for any price you want (some of my Amazon books are priced over $600), the odds of someone buying your book depend greatly on the prices offered by other people selling the same book on Amazon.

Example: if there are five people selling a book and the person with the lowest price is asking $50 for his book while the person with the highest price is asking $80 for the same book, you stand an excellent chance of selling your copy of the book for $60 (especially if your book is in better condition than the $50 copy).

On the other hand, if those people are selling their copies for $2 or $5, you’ll have a tough time selling your book if you try to sell it for $60.

(That’s not to say you can’t sell a book for a high price when everyone else is selling their copies cheaply – I’ve sold books for $20 on Amazon when other sellers were asking just $4 for the same book – but I had to wait several months for my book to sell).

Things get trickier when selling textbooks online. Textbooks get new editions and are replaced quickly in universities – so while your textbook might be selling for $100 today, that price might drop to $50 next week as other students start selling their college textbooks on Amazon for cheaper prices in a vain attempt to sell their books faster and make money fast.

Booksellers call this technique “low balling” and it can make valuable books worthless in a short time. I’ve listed textbooks for $200 on Amazon.com, only to find twenty other Amazon sellers listing their copies for only $5 a week later!

Worse news: even if your book does sell on Amazon.com for a good price, Amazon takes out a lot of fees and commissions before you get paid. Here’s a breakdown:

Amazon Fees and Commissions

Currently, Amazon offers two selling plans, a Professional Selling plan and an Individual Selling plan.

People who sell on a Professional Selling plan pay a monthly subscription fee of $40, which waives some of the fees Amazon places on book sales.

People who sell on an Individual Selling plan don’t pay monthly fees, but do pay an extra $0.99 “item fee” for every book they sell on Amazon.com, which can add up if you sell a lot of books on Amazon.

Now, I’m going to assume that you’ll have an Individual Selling plan (since you probably just want to make some extra money selling books and/or sell your textbooks for some extra cash). Here’s what Amazon will take out:

First, Amazon will take a 15% commission from the price you’re selling your book for (so if you sell your textbook for $100, Amazon will take $15 lowering your earnings to $85).

Next, Amazon will charge a “variable closing fee” of $1.35. (Your textbook will now earn you only $83.65).

And finally Amazon will take out another $0.99 for its “item fee.” (Your textbook will pay you only $82.66. Not bad, but not as much as you thought you’d get, right?)

Now Amazon.com will give you a shipping credit (which they get from the person who bought your book) to help you buy postage to send your book to your buyer. The amount of this shipping credit can vary if you offer faster shipping – but most likely you’ll get a standard shipping credit of $3.99 per book.

When mailing books, most sellers use a low-cost postage called Media Mail. A 3 lb. Media Mail shipping label currently costs $3.72, so you might save some money if your book package weighs 3 lbs or less

However, if your book weighs more than 3 lbs (like a lot of textbooks) you might have to spend $4.22, $4.72, $5.22, or more on a Media Mail label – meaning you’ll lose more money on shipping.

Beyond that, you might want to buy insurance for your package (especially if you’re selling an expensive book) which will eat up even more of your profits.

All told, when you subtract all those fees and commissions, you may only get $79 or less for your $100 book!

Selling to Buyback Websites

So how do buyback websites like Sell Back Your Book, Valore, Powells, and Textbooks.com compare to Amazon.com?

Well, for starters, buyback companies don’t take any fees and commissions out of their price quotes – what they offer you is what they’ll pay (provided your book is in good condition – please read Is The Book Condition of Your Textbook Good Enough to Make Extra Money?).

Also, all the buyback companies I recommend on my blog (and most that you’ll find on Bookscouter) will let you download a free shipping label that you can print to ship your books. (Many buyback companies offer Media Mail labels, although more and more are offering UPS labels – so be sure you drop off your package at the right UPS store or United States Postal Office).

To use the example above, if a buyback company is offering $75 for your textbook, you might be better off selling it to that buyback website even if you can list it for $100 on Amazon (since we’ve just determined you’ll probably make under $79 for that book once Amazon.com takes out its fees and commissions).

So does this mean buyback websites are the best places to sell your books online?

Not always!

Sometimes, a buyback website’s price quote for a book is so low compared to what you could get if you listed that book on Amazon that it’s worth it to sell the book on Amazon, even if you have to wait weeks or months for someone to buy your book.

In these cases, even after Amazon takes out all their fees and commissions, I’ve found that the book often still earned me twice what the buyback company would have paid me.

However, if there’s a price difference of only a few dollars between what a buyback company is offering for my book versus what I can make for the book on Amazon – or if I just want to make some extra money on a textbook before its price drops on Amazon – I’ll sell the book to a buyback company.

Ultimately, it’s up to you to decide whether or not you want to sell books online to buyback websites or on Amazon.com – but just be aware that even though it might look like you’re not getting as much for your book from a buyback company, you might still come ahead.

Whew! Lots of information to digest, right? But I hope you learned something from this blog article – and if you’d like to learn more about selling books online for extra cash, please take a second to subscribe to my blog and get more valuable tips for earning extra money.

Would you like to learn valuable tips to make your books sell faster and for higher prices on Amazon? Check out my series of Sell Books Fast eBooks that will improve your Amazon sales!

Want to contact me and ask some questions? Email me at sellbooksfastonline@gmail.com. Looking forward to hearing from you!

How to Use the Wired Handheld USB CCD Barcode Scanner Reader to Make Extra Money at Home

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Barcode Reader Scanner

I’ve got a lot of books in my house (as you can probably guess). And when my book collection gets too big, I have to get rid of some of them.

But for me, this isn’t a chore – it’s another chance for me to make some extra money fast by selling used books for cash!

All I need to do is access my free Bookscouter account and compare the prices of my books with my Wired Handheld USB CCD Barcode Scanner Reader.

The Wired Handheld USB CCD Barcode Scanner Reader

Those of you who read How to Make More Money Selling Books Online with the Socket Mobile Bluetooth Cordless Hand Scanner know I recommend buying the Bluetooth Cordless Hand Scanner if you go to a lot of thrift stores looking for books to re-sell online.

This wireless scanner is an excellent way to quickly scan barcodes and look up resale book prices on your tablet or phone – allowing you to search more thrift stores in less time (and make more extra money selling books). I’ve personally seen my extra income go up to over $1000 a month since I started using this scanner.

Unfortunately a Bluetooth Cordless Hand Scanner can be an expensive investment (most sell for over $200), which is why I’m happy to recommend a less pricey scanner that can also help you sell books at home for cash.

The Wired Handheld USB CCD Barcode Scanner Reader is an inexpensive scanner (most sell for under $30) with a USB cord that plugs into the USB port of your laptop or computer.

On the downside, this scanner doesn’t connect wirelessly to your phone or tablet like the Bluetooth Cordless Hand Scanner, making it impractical to take to thrift stores (it’s also twice the size of the sleeker Bluetooth Cordless Hand Scanner).

On the plus side, however, the Barcode Scanner Reader can read barcodes incredibly fast and enters them into your computer instantly; making it a huge time saver when you sell books for cash and home and need to compare prices with Bookscouter.

Using the Wired Handheld USB CCD Barcode Scanner Reader with Bookscouter

Here’s how I use my Barcode Scanner Reader with Bookscouter to make extra money at home:

1. Place all the books you want to look up in a stack on your desk next to your computer

2. Plug the Barcode Scanner Reader’s USB cord into your computer or laptop’s USB port.

3. Go to Bookscouter.com and enter your free Bookscouter account.

4. Open a blank Microsoft Word document on your computer. Type in the names of buyback websites you want to sell your books to (for instance, I sell a lot of books to Textbooks.com, Powells, Sell Back Your Book, Cash4Books, Valore, and Chegg, so I make sure to list these companies). Write each name on a separate line in the document, leaving several spaces between each name.

5. Now click Bookscouter’s search bar and start scanning the barcodes on your books with your Barcode Scanner Reader.

6. Bookscouter will automatically look up all the buyback price quotes from the websites in its database, allowing you to compare prices for your books and select the best company to sell your books to.

7. Once you find the best place to sell your book online, scan the book’s ISBN number again – this time on your Microsoft Word document under the name of the buyback website (i.e Textbooks.com, Sell Back Your Book etc.) that you want to sell the book to.

8. Place the books you want to sell in different piles (each pile for a different buyback website).

9. Once you’ve finished scanning all of your books, you should have several lists of ISBN numbers on your Microsoft Word document, each list under a different buyback website name.

10. Now it’s a simple matter to just visit each of those buyback websites; copy and paste your list of ISBNs into their search bars; and sell the books in bulk to the website.

11. Finally, print your shipping label and free packing slip for each buyback order and place them on the pile of books you want to sell (be careful to put the right labels with the right orders!). Pack those books, ship them, and wait to be paid!

Since I started using the Barcode Scanner Reader, I’ve been able to scan dozens of books in minutes, allowing me to easily sell hundreds of books every month. For the low price, you really can’t ask for more!

I also want to add that I’ve been using the same Barcode Scanner Reader for the last six years, which says a lot for its durability.

I hope this product review shows you how to use a Barcode Scanner Reader to sell books online for profit. As always, please remember to subscribe to my blog to receive more tips on selling books online, and feel free to comment!

Is the Book Condition of Your Textbook Good Enough to Make Extra Money?

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What’s the first thing you should do when your Bluetooth Cordless Hand Scanner and tablet/cell phone tell you the book you just found is worth a lot of money?

If you answered, “Jump up and down and squeal like a little girl” – sorry, but you’re wrong (and seriously, what’s wrong with you? That kind of behavior can get you thrown out of the store! Well, unless you are a little girl…).

No, what you want to do is check to see if the book condition of the textbook or popular fiction book you found is good enough to sell online to buyback websites (or Amazon).

Here’s the deal – while you can find valuable books for cheap prices at thrift stores and garage sales, a lot of these books have been treated pretty badly. Pages get marked up and/or torn out, bindings get broken, and water damage can make turning pages a nightmare.

And if you make the mistake of sending these books to a buyback website to make extra money? Sorry, but you’ll usually end up losing money – sometimes a lot.

To make sure this doesn’t happen to you, here are four common problems with book condition that should make you think twice before you try and sell them online for cash.

Water Damage

Ugh! These are the most common defects in used books. Sometimes the previous owner spilled a drink in his or her book, making the pages stain, stick and/or warp.

Obviously these books will be rejected by all buyback websites – the problem is sometimes it’s not easy to spot water damage at first glance.

Get in the habit of flipping through a book’s pages before you put it in your cart to buy. If you notice any warped, wrinkled, or discolored pages – put it back!

Broken Binding

Books with deep wrinkles running down its spine may have a broken spine where the pages are starting to separate from the cover.

Sometimes, broken binding is hard to spot (especially in hardback books) since the cover might look fine and hide any internal damage. Naturally, buyback websites won’t buy these books.

The same test you use for water damage can help here – books with broken bindings usually reveal their weak spots when you flip through the pages.

Marked Up or Missing Pages

Textbooks and workbooks can fetch a high price on buyback websites – especially if they’re recent editions.

But before you throw that book in your cart, check to see if the book has any quiz questions or fill-in-the-blank pages.

If you spot any writing, circling, or filled-in multiple choice slots, put the book back! Likewise, if you find any pages missing, put the book back! Buyback websites will not buy those books for cash!

Books that have a little highlighting, underlining, or even notes in the margins are a unique case. As long as the book only has a few markings (usually on less than 25% of its pages) and the text is easy to read, some buyback websites – including Textbooks.com, Cash 4 Books, Chegg, TextbookRush, and Valore – will buy these books.

But be careful! Study the book condition guidelines provided by these buyback websites before you send them anything, and be careful not to send them anything that might make it difficult to resell (like filled in quiz questions)

Missing Supplemental Materials

These days when you buy a book, you’re not always just buying a book – you’re buying a multimedia experience thanks to the CDs, DVDs, computer codes, and/or CD-ROMs that come with the book.

Make sure all these supplemental materials are in the book – buyback websites will not pay for a book that doesn’t have all its extra materials. Does the cover advertise a CD? Check the inside covers to make sure it’s in its plastic sleeve (and free of scratches).

Have the computer codes in the book been torn out or opened? Then you probably can’t sell the books for cash to a buyback website.

Other Problems with Book Condition

If you make sure to check for the four common book condition defects listed above, you should be able to make significantly more extra money selling books online.

That said, there are still other qualities that you should keep in mind when assessing book condition that will affect whether or not you can sell the book online for cash.

If you buy a lot of books at library sales, for instance, you should find out first if the buyback website you want to sell the book to accepts ex-library books (some buyback websites pay a lot of money for ex-library books, others will reject them, and still others will only pay half their quoted buyback price for them).

Because of this, it’s always a good idea to review each buyback website’s policies on book condition before sending your books to them for cash. Trust me – you’ll make more money this way and save yourself a lot of frustration.

Once you know your textbooks and/or other books are in acceptable condition for the buyback website you want to sell to, it’s time to cash in! Find out where you can sell your books for the most money in Best Books to Sell Online to Buyback Companies and The Best Places to Sell Textbooks Online Besides Amazon Part 1.

And – as always – remember to subscribe to my blog to receive updates on more tools and tricks to make more money selling books for cash online!