ASU Bookstore vs ASU List vs Amazon: Textbook Price Showdown

Three Options, Very Different Prices

Every semester, ASU students spend hundreds of dollars on textbooks that they'll use for four months and then try desperately to sell back. The bookstore is the path of least resistance — it's on campus, they have what you need, and it's easy. It's also consistently the most expensive option by a significant margin.

Here's a real comparison of all three sources.

The Price Reality by Source

For a typical required textbook — let's say an introductory science text retailing new for $220:

ASU Bookstore (new): $220. Some textbooks are bundled with required access codes that you must buy new anyway, making the bundle price unavoidable. Bookstore new = list price.

ASU Bookstore (used): $165. The bookstore's used copies are typically 25% off new. Better than new, still not great. And the supply of used copies at the bookstore is limited — late shoppers often find only new copies available.

ASU Bookstore (rental): $80–$110. Rental is the bookstore's most competitive offering. If you don't plan to keep the book and the course doesn't require you to keep it, rental from the bookstore can make sense. Just don't miss the return deadline.

Amazon (new): $190–$220. Amazon's new price often matches or comes close to the retail price. Sometimes marginally less.

Amazon (used): $90–$140 depending on condition. This is where Amazon gets competitive. Good or acceptable condition copies can be significantly cheaper. Factor in shipping if you don't have Prime.

Amazon (rental): $30–$60 for a semester. Amazon rental is often the cheapest single-course option if you just need the book for one semester and will definitely return it.

ASU List: $50–$100. Students price to sell, not to maximize margin. They know the Amazon price and the buyback price, and they'll meet somewhere in between — often closer to the bottom of that range when it's early semester and they want the cash.

When Access Codes Ruin Everything

This is the most important variable in the textbook equation: does your professor require an access code for an online platform (MyLab, MindTap, McGraw-Hill Connect, etc.)?

If yes, you may have no choice but to buy new. Access codes are single-use. They can't be transferred to a used buyer, can't be bought secondhand in usable form, and often aren't available separately for less than $60–$80 anyway.

Before you buy anything used — from ASU List, Amazon, or anyone — confirm with your professor whether the access code is required or if an older edition without one is acceptable.

What the Comparison Actually Tells You

For buying: ASU List wins on price for most common textbooks, especially at the start of semester when students from previous semesters are actively selling. Amazon rental wins for "I just need this for four months and nothing else."

For selling: Never sell back to the bookstore if you can avoid it. Bookstore buyback offers 10–30% of what you paid. Selling directly to another student via ASU List will get you 40–60% of the current Amazon used price. That's a real difference.

The Buyback Math

If you bought a book for $100 and the bookstore offers $15 buyback versus selling it on ASU List for $55, that's a $40 difference. Multiplied across three or four books, you're talking about $100–$150 more in your pocket just from choosing where to sell.

Practical Strategy

First day of class: Get the syllabus, confirm whether an access code is required, and confirm which edition
Same day: Check ASU List for used copies
Within the first week: If not on ASU List, check Amazon used with delivery time in mind
Consider rentals for required books you definitely won't need after the course ends
At the end of the semester: Sell on ASU List before the bookstore buyback even enters the conversation

The bookstore is convenient. That's the only honest argument for it. On price, it loses to every other option on this list.