Saving Money in College

College is expensive.  And one of the things I really hated spending money on was textbooks.  Why did textbooks have to be so much money?  And why was I going to pay so much for something I may not even read?  

I admit it, I didn't read all the required textbooks in school, but that's how I survived to get all my work done and still have a social life.  

I usually spent between $250 and $400 on textbooks every semester.  I tried every way I could to save money on my textbooks and then on my husbands when we got married.  I felt like I got pretty good at it.  I had a lot of experience from billing people for books when I worked at the BYU library.  But sometimes, books are just expensive no matter how you try to get around it.  

But a great option I just came across is Campus Book Rentals.  So if you're in college right now, this is awesome info you need to know!

Campus Book Rentals lets you rent textbooks for 40-90% off bookstore prices!  And one of the best perks is that shipping is absolutely free both ways!  You can highlight in the books all you want (which is nice when other people have highlighted before you because they've done some of the hard part already ;-) ).  

They also have flexible renting periods so if you need the book a little longer, no problem!  And if you need the book now, they even have next day shipping.  This is awesome if you've changed classes last minute or just saw that a professor added another book to your required list and school starts tomorrow...it happens.

Here's an example.  Some of Alan's most expensive books were his chemistry books.  

Currently, Chemistry: the Central Science is listed for $107 and is $58 new on Amazon.  The used are cheaper, but you never know what you're going to get.  I've gotten books that have been pretty damaged.  New on half.com is about $80 and used is similar to Amazon.  But you can rent it from Campus Book Rentals for $45.71 for a semester and then send it right back when you're done!  No hassles at all.  

So head over to their website and check it out!  

They also donate to Operation Smile with every textbook rented.  So you're helping a great cause while saving money!  Could there be a better combination?