I Tried Book Outlet and It’s A Book Lover’s Dream

DISCLAIMER: This post is not sponsored, paid for, or in any way an ad for Book Outlet or any other companies. This is just the happy ramblings of a major book lover who wants to share a great service with my fellow bookworms.

One thing everyone knows (or should know) about me is I’m a massive bookworm. I’ve been a bibliophile since roughly day 1 — little me memorized the books my parents read aloud word for word (much to their chagrin), and whenever I was at someone’s house, I would toddle right towards the bookshelf.

I saw a few ads a while back on YouTube for Book Outlet, a book webstore with super-discounted books of all genres. As someone who loves books and saving money, I was curious.

So, what is Book Outlet?

Book Outlet is a discount online book store dedicated to providing book lovers everywhere with “read-iculously low prices” (their pun, not mine). They aren’t kidding, either — I saw some books priced as low as $1.50, and most of the books I checked out were between $2-9 each.

The store offers two versions of books:

1. Bargain Books — books bought directly from publishers, usually excess inventory or store returns. These are in practically perfect condition, with only a small dot or line on most books’ edges that indicate a discounted book.
2. Scratch and Dent Books — also excess inventory or store returns bought from publishers, with a little more wear and tear but still perfectly readable. Typically cheaper/deeper discounts than Bargain Books, but do know books labeled “S” are final sale.

Thoughts?

I wasn’t 100% if the site was legit at first. So I did some research on their social media, checked some reviews. Nothing shady popped up and I wasn’t finding anything negative (not that that always means a company is reputable, but anyways). So I figured, why not?

I think I might be in love.

First, I do not kid when I say these books are CHEAP. I got 10 books for $53: the most expensive one was $9.17, and the cheapest was $2.16. YES, JUST 2 DOLLARS. Most of the books I got were actually in the $2-4 range, both paperback and hardcover!

Second, Book Outlet offers free shipping on purchases of $35+. That’s considerably low compared to other sites — and like I said, the books are really cheap, so you can get a good amount of books for just $35. Let’s be real: if given the choice between paying for shipping or getting free shipping on a pricier purchase, we’d probably all go for the latter since the money is actually going to something you want, not shipping charges.

Third, the books were all in great condition. You’d think books that cheap would be in lesser or bad condition, but everything in my order was crisp and in good condition — and smelled wonderful. Aaah, the smell of a new book…. Only one hardcover had a rip on the spine of the jacket, and that was the only damage to it. *Note, they were all Bargain Books.

Fourth, they shipped pretty quickly, especially considering the current environment. Book Outlet’s typical shipping time frame is 3-15 days; mine came in 14! I particularly appreciated that they use USPS for shipping and you can sign up for delivery status updates. Who doesn’t like knowing exactly where their package is? (Lookin’ at you, Amazon.)

Fifth, Book Outlet has great stock! I almost exclusively read YA books (yes, even at almost 23), and Book Outlet had a ton of books on my (borderline hilariously long) TBR list. I typically get all my books at the library instead of spending money — again, I’m cheap/like to save money…and also, I love the library — but considering libraries are still closed, I jumped at the chance to get books I was interested in for super cheap.

Lastly, they have a points system where you get a point for every $2 spent, which can be turned into money off future purchases at every 100 points. I’m always down for a good rewards system, and Book Outlet’s is solid and has easy-to-reach goals!

Final verdict:

I will most likely purchase books from Book Outlet again. The selection was expansive, the prices practically unbeatable, and the shipping surprisingly fast in our pandemic world.

Bookworms, rejoice: we can make it through this pandemic insanity with new reads throughout, courtesy of Book Outlet.

Want to check it out AND get some money off your first order? Use this referral link HERE and you’ll get $10 off your first order of $25+.

BONUS: My haul