I discussed in a previous post about why I was weary about purchasing textbooks for the full retail price. As you know, I’m extremely stringent on quality. But what happens when quality cannot be reached because it’s just too darn expensive?

Now there is a solution. You can have your textbook and for a considerably cheaper price. I’d like to introduce Chegg to you.

Why YOU will LOVE the site?

• You can rent a text book or buy a used textbook.
• They have a ‘Any reason’ 30 Day guarantee.
• Choose between three time periods: 60 days, one quarter or semester.
• Use their advanced textbook search to find any book you’re looking for.
• Don’t pay for return shipping charges
• Sell your old or used textbooks to make a bit of extra cash
• Every time you rent a text book, they plant a tree.

As you know, I’m committed to bringing you quality websites and products that will enhance your life while not breaking the bank. After getting multiple emails from students regarding my last post on textbooks, I decided to do a bit of research and find out where to rent text books online.

Chegg supplied the answer

What attracted me to them was the their easy-to-use interface. You can search for the text book by the authors name, the title of the textbook or the ISBN number. Once you’ve found the book you’re looking for, you can pick a certain time length to keep the books. The longest is a semester and is usually the most expensive option. If you book your textbooks ahead of time, you can choose the CHEAPEST shipping mode which is around $4.00. Next day delivery costs up to $15.00.

Environmentally Aware Company

One of the big reasons I decided to share this company is because they’re not only affordable, they are also environmentally aware. Every time you rent a book, they’ll plant a tree. Considering how many books are rented out every year, this is making a huge impact in our world! What a positive way to benefit our environment!

Super for frugal students who don’t want to waste their money on revised textbooks that cost an arm and leg.

Any students want to share their experiences with Chegg?

When I was a student, I hated buying text books. For me, it just seemed like such a ripoff. Every single year, a newly revised edition of a text book would come out. This textbook is generally between 1-5% more expensive then the last edition. I decided to go against the system, so I printed all of my books.

It was certainly not the right thing but it was the cheap alternative. Instead of paying $50-$100 per book, I was spending 1/10th of that amount. I would photocopy each chapter we were using and place it in a folder. So what are a few alternatives to buying the fully-priced textbooks?

1. Your School Library

   At my Universities library, they had each textbook available for borrowing. You were not allowed to take it out of the library, but if you were studying you could take it out for three hours at a time. Perfect for someone who wants to get study work done without buying the textbook.

2. Purchase Second Hand Textbooks

   Some textbooks can be used second hand. Generally there are extremely small changes in the book, that you can just scratch out or add on. If there are a few pages difference, photocopy the new pages and just add it into your second hand book. You can find second hand textbooks on Craigslist or eBay.

3. Rent textbooks online

   There are websites that rent out your textbooks for you. With a saving of between 40% and 70% you can’t go wrong with this option. You can rent out the books for an entire semester, one quarter or sixty days.

4. Print your books

   If you want to be naughty like me, just photocopy your textbook. You can either do it chapter by chapter (as you work) or get it all done at the beginning of the year. I would print out chapter by chapter because occasionally we would be told to leave out entire sections. I would not print out these pages (saving paper!)

5. Find the ebook

   A few really considerate students are scanning in their textbooks and providing an online version of it. Some publishers are even offering the eBook for a fraction of the price of the actual hard-cover version of the text book. See if you can find an ebook version of your textbook to save space and money.

You don’t NEED to purchase your textbooks. Save money by looking for an alternative solution for your textbook needs.