Are your kids thinking about whether or not they will attend college soon? If they are a big part of their consideration should be the cost. The cost of college tuition and college textbooks is much more expensive than they were even 5 to 10 years ago, and in fact many people are unaware of just how expensive they are. For example when it comes to college textbooks you could be looking at spending a thousand dollars or more.

Any student that plans to attend college either part-time or full-time will need textbooks. There is no way around it.

Fortunately, there are ways to save money when buying college textbooks.

Let’s talk about how a student can spend less on college textbooks:

Buy College Textbooks Online

Some of the textbooks you need for college may be available online. Do some searching and see what you can find before you go to the college bookstore. You can also look for used textbooks online.

Pay attention to the shipping costs though, as books can be quite heavy.

All books have an International Standard Book Number (ISBN) code. Do your online searches based on the code instead of the title to ensure that you buy the correct textbooks. A great place to start is on Cash4Books.net.

Borrow College Textbooks

Save money by borrowing college textbooks. A great way to save money on college textbooks is to see if you can get them at the library. You know they will be in good condition and as long as you don’t write in them you should be fine.

Even if you can only find a few of the textbooks that you need in the library, you will still save money.

Buy Used Textbooks

Once you have a list of the textbooks you need go to the college bookstore and look in the used books section. Sometimes you can save up 70% by buying used books. Occasionally these books may be in rough shape, but many times they are much like new.

Also, try to find a student that just completed the college program that you are entering and see if you can buy all of their books.

This is a great way to spend less on textbooks.

Buy Older Versions

Older versions of the college textbooks may work well for you. Check the bookstores both online and offline for older versions of the textbooks that you require. This is a great way to save money as people are usually selling them for a discounted price.

Most times the information doesn’t change between each version of a textbook, although images may be smaller or larger, which may cause some of the information to be on different pages.

Speak to your college professor to see if there is any issue with you using an older version.

Rent College Textbooks

Consider renting your textbooks. Do some searching online and look for sites that rent college textbooks for less. At the end of the semester you simply return the textbooks. You can begin your search at Chegg.

Check for International Editions of the Textbooks That You Need

Many people do not realize that the price of books will vary from country to country.

Again, take a look online to see if your college textbooks are available in another country for a lower price, even after you factor in the exchange rate and shipping. Begin your search at AbeBooks.com.

By purchasing international versions of your textbooks online you can sometimes save up to 80%. Of course before you buy, make sure the textbooks you are looking at are in the language that you need.

Unfortunately the cost to attend college increases every year. Although you may not be able to save money on the cost of tuition, you can definitely save money on your textbooks by trying some of the above ideas.