You don’t need to be an author to make money off of books!
If you’re an avid reader, you probably have lots of books hanging around the house. Sure, you could donate them to Goodwill, but with a little more effort and time, you can get some of your money back by selling them.
Here are 3 ways to make some spare cash from your unwanted books. FYI, you’re not getting rich doing this; it’s more just a way to make some spare cash to help supplement your book-buying habit.
Sell your used books to local bookstores.
Many small bookstores will offer cash for your used books, especially if they include popular releases. If the cash option isn’t high enough for you, ask if they offer in-store credit instead. Often, a store will give you more in credit than they will in cash so if you plan on visiting the bookstore again, credit might be worth it.
Sell rare or special copies on eBay.
If you want to sell a rare or special copy of a book, check on eBay to see what you could potentially sell it for. For example, many book subscription boxes offer special edition copies of popular releases (think colored edges or a special cover.) Many readers will pay to get their hands on one of these.
Sell your lightly read new releases on Facebook Marketplace.
FB Marketplace can be a bit of a hail mary so I list this last. I’ve seen some people have success selling books over Marketplace if they read a new release super quickly and then offer it at a steep discount compared to its current Amazon price. It seems to work best for brand-new and popular releases.
And there you go! Good luck!
Cailin Riley 