Sell Us Your Books

Download Buy Back Form

Finished with your textbooks? Sell them back to us at the industry's best prices and recoup some of your school expenses.

We've heard you, and we've changed our system based on your feedback! Unlike some other bookstores, we don't take books back on consignment. We always give you money back for your books.

Sell your books for credit and offset the price of next year's books. Graduated or not, going back to school next year? No problem. We can refund your money on credit or debit. 

For more information on our buyback policies and guidlines, click here.

School Buyback Days

On school buyback days, we visit your school to buy your surplus textbooks for up to 50% of the used price.

Don't worry if you miss us on your school's buyback day, because you can visit our store and sell your books for up to 40% of the used price.

Want to set up an Alpha Textbooks buyback day at your school?

Use your account to track everything

Thanks to your online account with Alpha Textbooks, keeping track of the credits you've earned is care-free.

If you have any questions about buybacks, you can send your enquires to info@alphatextbooks.com, or you can call us at (416) 461-3542.

Buyback Policy

We buy new or used textbooks, teacher resources, novels, and reference books. We accept elementary, middle and high school books. On occasion, we’ll take back a non-course-specific college book – i.e. it isn’t a textbook designed for a college course only.

The best way to get all the answers you need about your specific books is to come into the store and bring your books with you. This way we can tell you if we are purchasing the title and assess the book's condition on the spot.

We like to make it easy for you, so we hold regular buyback sessions at various schools between semesters and after course completions. Send us an email and find out when we’re coming to your school!

We refund on VISA, MasterCard or debit. Sorry, there is no cash on buybacks. For more information and book condition standards or other buyback info, check out our buyback policy below.

Selling Books Back to Alpha Textbooks

You can easily sell in-demand books by bringing them in to our store. You can also email us with a list of books (we'll need the ISBN's, titles and authors) to ensure we will buy them back.

You can also call us. Please note that during busy periods we will not be able to check more than two titles over the phone.

We can only give a rough estimate of the price for these requests since the condition of the book can only be properly assessed in-person.

Disclaimer: Some books have no value. Please see Book Quotes for more information.

Condition Standards

When you are selling books to Alpha Textbooks, please follow these guidelines:

Acceptable Textbooks

• Typical wear and tear
• Torn/taped/repaired pages if all of the printed sections are readable
• Creased pages
• Highlighting provided it is done neatly and in a light colour permitting easy reading
• Notes and underlining in reasonable amounts
• Cover has 1-2 frayed corners with cardboard showing
• Neatly laminated cover
• Spine is intact, not cracked or split
• Cover has bent corners
• Small amount of exterior writing
• Small amount of discoloring or faded cover
• Book block is solid
• Rebound Books
• Books with damaged covers may be rebound if contents are suitable

Unacceptable Textbooks

• Missing pages or cover
• Any profanity that cannot be erased or repaired
• Water damage
• Mould infested pages
• Excessive writing or highlighting
• A Broken spine
• Torn or damaged binding
• Wrongfully acquired or where ownership may be in question

* Depending on the situation, books that do not qualify may be discarded, donated or returned to the proper owner.

CDs with Textbooks

Books that were sold with an accompanying CD-ROM will be discounted or not accepted at all if the CD does not return with the text.

Book Quotes

There is no guaranteed value for a textbook. We quote book values based on condition, edition, and supply and demand. Book values may change quickly. Some books may have no value at all, because they are no longer used by schools, the edition is too old, etc. 

During our peak season, we can only provide a maximum of two book quotes over the phone. No amount is guaranteed until the book condition is assessed by a store associate.

Payment

We do not pay cash. You can choose to have your payout put on your credit card, debit card, or credited to your store account.