Half Price Books

Love love love it!
Great place to pick up some books. I would say about 70% of the books are in pristine condition. Check this place out before buying textbooks!
You can literally find any kind of book in here. They also sell movies and other small items. Could spend hours in here.

Though this particular location is not as large as many in the area, they have a great selection to choose from. Obviously you may not find all new releases in stock, but you know the drill — browse and you will definitely find something interesting. Yeah, being located in Berkeley is a good thing!
As many of you know that I still listen to vinyl, so no surprise that I make a beeline to the record area! This store’s section isn’t really big — just a small bin area (think small office cubicle), but I’ve found some good stuff here over the years!
SHATTUCK AVENUE
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X = HALF PRICE BOOKS

I usually come here to buy my children ‘s book. It’s organized and great price. I love !

What a place! Because they’re so close to such a great university, they have all of the collegiate books you could want! Their hard science sections are to die for. Their fiction selection is good, but not what I come here for, though I’m an avid fiction reader. They have a lot of how-​to books, too. Baking, knitting, that sort of thing. A great children’s selection and magazines, too. I also noticed a huge selection of paranormal romance, which I don’t read but is popular and probably a good reason to come here, too.
Check your bags, shop till you drop, sit down with a few books and find your faves, then get one of their free bookmarks at the register, and enjoy your new best friends.

At last, we’ve come to Half-​Price.
The stock is a mixture of remaindered and new books, and for the most part the pricing is quite good. The selection is pretty good too; the subject array is comparable with Moe’s, but it lacks Moe’s depth. In addition to books, they also sell DVDs, games, CDs and vinyl. The DVD section is fairly good as is the games (both board and electronic) section, but CDs and vinyl are skippable.
On the down side, knuckleheads run the store. If you need help, forget it. They can’t supply anything beyond the most basic assistance. More, their pricing is strictly perfected through internet consultation, meaning that if you sell, they’ll low-​ball you based on not-​so-​nearly comparable finds on Amazon and the like, then charge 3 – 5 times more. True, that’s the book business and it’s also true that they aren’t as selective as the other stores, but still there’s something really insulting about having some punk offer you $ 2 for a decent book in good condition they’ll turn around and sell for $ 8-​$ 10.
This sort of self-​indulgent incompetence cuts both ways, though. Due diligence is not their forte: to date I’ve found a $ 20 bill and a 4 leaf clover tucked inside books (I purchased both books, incidentally, for a net profit of eight dollars and change, a groovy four-​leaf clover, and two books I was likely to purchase anyhow), but I don’t regularly go spelunking here. I’m sure there’s more. Also, the internet doesn’t help with a lack of attention or ignorance. I scored a super clean copy of Deities and demi-​gods, 1^st editon, second printing for $ 6. No kidding, an $ 80 book for $ 6.
Another negative is that it’s downtown Berkeley. Be prepared for aggressive panhandlers.

This bookstore is one of mg favorite in downtown Berkeley. If you’re either a student at UC Berkeley, or Berkeley City College, check out this bookstore for your textbooks, even if they don’t have them online. I walked in and found some of my books, one which was $ 49 new on Amazon and $ 37 used, but I bought it like new for $ 8.99 here. Such a gem! Go go!
Ps: sign up for their emails for a 10% off coupon.

Stumbled upon this place with my husband And we loved it, all the variety they have from books to video games and amazing prices… I’ll definitely come back here

Half Price Books, in Berkeley and in elsewhere, is an extremely fun place to shop. You can find all kinds of books, movies, video games, magazines and more. Many will be new discoveries found as a result of visiting here. Their clearance section is humongous.
This was not the first time that I had been here. Their selection of video games was once out of this world. I saw things such as a dollar Wyoming guide, a book on how Bart Simpson approaches the world and a book on how Americans became foodies. Their speakers reminded me of the old song that goes like «what a terrible thing to lose». I got a San Juan Island guide for a dollar.
Half Price Books puts other bookstores to shame.

Can’t help but compare this one to the Dublin location. Limited selection and choices for all genres because of its small store size. Workers are not always helpful nor friendly due to busyness of store as well. This store rarely holds location sales. Clearance section don’t always have good books and sometimes I wonder if I’m getting a good deal at all.

Stopped in here randomly because I saw a huge sign that read «Half Price Books.» I went inside and was surprised to see their small but great collection of comics! They are a great price compared to the prices at my usual comic stores. Not to mention the cashier I had was extremely friendly and I found out they are soon coming to Citrus Heights soon! :D Definitely worth a stop!

Books & stuff
Affordable books, both new & used. I come here during the holidays to splurge on family gifts, usually I end up spending less than $ 10 & their children’s selection is pretty extensive.
If you’re looking for gifts and books at an afforable price, this is a great place for you.
For the holidays I purchased ALL my gifts here. Some awesome stuff I’ve bought:
— interactive books for kids
— origami kit fod kids
— Buddha cards (kinna like Goddess cards)
— picture books of the Bay (Got my older sis a great SF photo/​counter top book)
— coloring books for kids
— classic novels for my younger cousins
I’m so over people buying meaningless stuff. This bookstore is filled with gifts for everyone and at an affordable price.
Love the Earth,
Renee Rises– The Filipina Recycler, Reuser, Reducer

Probably my favourite bookstore in the Bay Area (I wish I had one closer, but this one in Berkeley is almost next to the BART station, which is pretty convenient if you ask me). The selection is huge and I always seem to leave with a full bag of new books to read. :)
It’s a bit difficult to navigate at first, but once you get used to the place it gets easier. They have a ton of different books, hardbacks and paperbacks. You can even sell your own books in the back, if you have nowhere to put them. You might search for a certain author/​book and they don’t have it, don’t worry, they will check with other stores and have it delivered here, so you can pick it up next time. And even if not, I’m sure it won’t take long for the book to show up eventually (if it’s not a very old artifact). Did I mention the staff is really friendly? :)
The books come (as the name says) half priced (or at least cheaper than in the usual bookstores). And if you have time you can sit down and read there already. There always seems to be quite a lot of people immersed in their books.
I’ve also noticed the movies/​series just before the cashiers. Also some calendars and other stationery if you’re into that.
Come, look, read, buy, come again. :)

One of my favorite places to go to in Berkeley! This is one of the biggest Half Price Books that I know of with plenty of things to see! They have a huge DVD selection, graphic novels section, and simply tons and tons of books in a variety of subject matters. The employees are really helpful and seem like generally good people! I can literally be their for hours and there are hidden gems everywhere if you spend the time to look for them. Occasionally they’ll have random 40% off one item deals just because so you just might get lucky when you visit! Overall a fun bookstore to spend browsing and finding treasures!

This is my favorite bookstore in Berkeley. Their staff is incredibly nice, and very helpful. Whenever I am looking for a specific book, I always call with the ISBN number and check if they have it in stock. I’ve even had some books even shipped to me from different locations.
It is a great place to browse and find a new gem, they have a nice organization system, and it really promotes looking outside the normal «fiction» «non-​fiction» genres. I never leave empty handed.

Berkeley is so lucky to have a variety of book stores within the city.
Half Price Books has a HUGE selection/​variety of books… not only that but this one also sells used records, video games from various consoles and movies!
They always have interesting books displayed that I didn’t even know existed and coincidentally peak my interest. I got lucky and have found books that were at the top of my list here. one have over 30 translations and they had one left of the exact one that I wanted. Was the last one too, how lucky was I?!
Prices are a steal. Yeah they’re used books but it’s kind of a gamble on whether or not you’ll find what you’re looking for! If you do you normally pay about the quarter of the price you would brand new.
Workers are nice, store can get a little busy but there’s usually still room for everyone to comfortably browse.

I wandered in here with a little spare time, and wowza, is there a lot to see! As a former New Yorker perpetually nostalgic for the Strand, this store seems to be nearly as big, and features all the categories of books I could probably ever be interested in (I bought a vegan bean cookbook). I also just love used books (for the prices and for knowing that someone has engaged their pages!, though hopefully not in a weird way), and love them even more in abundance. Will try to sell some next time and report back.

I am fortunate to have this bookstore in Berkeley. I read constantly and I am one of those old fashioned people who has to read an actual book. This place is great since all of their books are very cheap and once you finish reading you can resell your books.
I am also fortunate since my books are usually in stock. The few times they weren’t I just came back a day or two later. You can also get books transferred in from other stores if your book isn’t in stock.
I highly recommend this place if you like to read and even more so if you have trouble parting with or reselling your books when you are done reading them.

Out of all the half price books we visited in the bay area this past weekend this one was probably the most disappointing for what we were looking for. It was very picked through and we really didn’t walk out with much. On top of that we had to pay $ 5 for parking in the parking garage. Wish the parking situation would have been better, but overall still great prices on everything.

Half Price Books to me is like a dealer to an addict. I cannot get enough of it. Every time I come back to Berkeley I can feel it pulling me in no matter how hard I try to stay away. A lot of the time, I refuse to go inside with friends because I know I’ll be there for way too long and buy more books than I need (true, there are worse things to collect).
The low-​down:
–Awesome book selection at a lower price than a bookstore. I’m often confused if most of the books are used because they look brand-​new.
–Definitely check out the clearance section in the back! It’s basically three huge bookshelves full of books that are around $ 2. The most I’ve ever seen them listed at is $ 3 but that’s a steal when a book is normally around $ 17! They even have a fantastic selection of fictional best-​sellers in the clearance section.
I love Half Price Books more than I thought it was possible to love a bookstore. They buy back books too!

A great place to pick up some new reads. This location is very organized and I love the large selection of books, most are used but they also carry new titles. As the name suggests, everything is quite affordable and you can find some great deals in the clearance section as well.
I also love that they:
— Have in-​store WiFi
— Offer chairs for customers to lounge in
— Are open late
— Keep everything organized. Books are easy to locate.
— Send you emails about coupons and deals (just sign up for their book club!)