I still remember being frustrated at having to spend $150 on a college textbook that I would look at for a few months and then never open it again. After doing this a couple semesters, I finally realized that I could resell them on Amazon and make a bit of my money back. But renting textbooks – now that’s an idea!
I just found out about this site called Chegg.com which allows you to do just that.
How it works
Basically it works like this:
- You search their website for the textbooks you need
- They ship the books to you
- You use them for the semester
- You return the books back to Chegg
Features
A couple things that caught my eye about the whole Chegg plan…
- 30-day no questions asked money back guarantee.
- Ship Date Guarantee – just to make sure you get your book on time.
- Book Quality Guarantee – if it doesn’t meet your standards they will ship another one out to you.
- They have a pretty cool iPhone app that lets you scan barcodes and compare prices.
- Free return shipping – when you are done with your book you can ship it back free.
- They plant a tree for every rental.
Prices
From some of the books I saw listed on their site it seems like books rent (for a semester) for about 20%-40% of the books list price. For example the list price on Organic Chemistry below is $213.75, but it can be rented for $47.49.
Which is a pretty good deal for the people who normally buy their textbooks new and then let them rot on the shelf after school’s out.
Depending on the textbook you still might be able to come out ahead if you buy the book used and then immediately sell it after the semester is over, but Chegg.com would definitely be easier.
Have you tried renting textbooks before? Would you ever try it?
This article was originally published on August 12, 2010.
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
Overall I like the fact that they help save our world by planting a tree. Beyond that, it sounds like a good idea for college students.
That would have been great to know a couple years ago. When I was getting my graduate degree two years ago, I paid $249.00 for an International Business book. When I went to book store to sell it back after 6 weeks of use, they offered me $80.00. The book was in perfect condition, Im talking not a scratch on the thing, and they offered me $80.00. Pathetic.
Renting is great. In fact, when I was in my senior year at college this is how I made a living – renting out all the old textbooks I didn’t need anymore…
I like Chegg.
Another way to reduce the costs of textbooks: don’t buy them. Seriously, go to the class for a week or two first and find out if you really need the text for the class. I probably saved myself hundreds of dollars this way. Sometimes the instructor assigns the reading but never discusses or tests on it. Sometimes the instructor doesn’t even use the officially listed textbook for the class.
Other techniques I’ve used – sharing books with a study group, buying the older version, borrowing books from friends (math major long past Calc 1 but still hanging onto the book), checking out books from the campus library, and attending a college that trended towards a lot of hands on experiential participation!
I agree with Nikki’s advice and do my best to follow it. Last year I checked out a used book store and saved over $100 on one book. Many books I haven’t had to purchase at all.
I like the idea of renting a book. The bookstore on campus is offering this option for some books this year. It costs less, and I can’t sell it back, but I’m thinking that the price difference is more than they would give me when I tried to sell it back at the end of the semester.
Check http://www.gettextbooks.com (works for all books not just textbooks) before renting. Buying a used copy might still be cheaper. Good luck at school this year.
I love this idea too. I still have books from my days in college, most of which cost over $100 at the time. Now, they won’t sell for anything. I totally would’ve used this resource if it was around back then!
Better yet, you can get textbooks for free from your library. I take 7 week courses so I can check out the book I need and then just renew it once or twice to make sure I have it for the full time I need it. If my local library doesn’t have the book on hand they can order it from any other library in the state using their online system. I remember when I mentioned this to some other students who were complaining about the high cost of their books. When I told them I get most of mine for free from the library you should have seen their faces
I rent textbooks from Chegg and save a lot of money every semester.
I have also used Bookrenters.com. They are similar to Chegg, but sometimes their rental rates are a little cheaper and vice versa. Overall, renting through these companies has been a great experience. My college bookstore has also stated a rental program recently, but Chegg and Bookrenters’ prices are much better.
I just purchased textbooks for my first semester of college and i got half of them from Chegg. I had to get some books full price from my university’s book store but overall i saved $400 on the books i rented from Chegg and only spent $187 on 5 books from the website. Definitely worth it since the books i’ll be needing these first few semesters i won’t ever need after i’m done with the classes. it will also help me accomplish my goal of graduating debt free!
My daughter is going off to college here in a couple weeks. She rented most of her text books and it saved us so much money. Thanks for the tips, I am enjoying your blogging site. I am learning how to blog myself now and your site is teaching me.
We’ve had an excellent experience with Neebo, as well.
I think renting textbooks is a great idea today, but I hope that in the next 5-10 years, everything will be available via digital download.