Living sustainably on a budget: textbooks

I got my first textbook in the mail today. Nothing says your summer is almost over like the arrival of a textbook. I know it’s summer and one of the last things anyone wants to think about is school, but with a little planning you can save money and decrease your carbon footprint before next quarter or semester starts.

One of the most important parts of buying books for most college students is the price. We will do just about anything we can to make sure its as low as possible. And yet somehow people seem to forget to look for their books online instead of paying ridiculous prices through university bookstores.

Don’t know where to start? There are a ton of places online that offer used books (and don’t forget you can sell them back at the end of the year and get some money back : ) ) Amazon.com (my personal favorite. It’s easy to find something cheap, and Amazon will back you up if anything goes wrong with your order for any reason), textbooks.com, buyusedtextbooks.com, half.com, and cash4books all offer used books. You can also search your book by ISBN or title and edition in a search engine. If you do not mind being ripped off, you can also buy used through your university bookstore.

If you have an e-reader and don’t mind settling in to study with electronics, e-books are another great way to save on resources and cash. The only downside is that you cannot buy used or return them at the end of the course.

Planning ahead will not only save you money and the stress of finding the best deal possible, but it will also be incredibly sustainable instead of wasting the resources for a new book.