Where to Purchase Pre-Loved Books in the Philippines

By: Chesca Rama

An exciting new adventure for a bookworm could be buying a new book. The whole experience of going to the bookstore to look through aisles of different book categories to finally finding the perfect book for you could be exciting.

However, you have probably experienced the unfortunate event of buying a book that you ended up not liking. Or perhaps reading a book but only using it for a little while.

Instead of risking wasting your money on a new book that would not be put into good use, a good alternative to this would be purchasing pre-loved books. Pre-loved books are more affordable, so if ever you buy a book you end up not liking, at least you did not have to pay the full price for it. In addition to this, if it’s something that you will only be needing for a short time, you probably don’t need a book that is in pristine condition. A book that is slightly pre-loved could probably be decent enough for you to enjoy.

Want to know where you can purchase pre-loved books? Here are some online bookstores to choose from:

1. Books for Less

Books for Less is an online bookstore that offers pre-loved books at good quality. In addition to this, they also have book sales that can go up to 50%. The type of book categories that they offer are business, children’s books, classics, fiction, inspirational, religion & spirituality, vintage, young adult.

Other Special offers that they have include:

• Books by the box (bulk books at 50% off, box is labelled by type of books)
• Free book bundle (2 books for the price of 1)

You can check out Books for Less through their website here.

2. Porch Reader Philippines

Porch Reader Philippines is a local online bookstore that sells both old and new books. Their mission is to promote literacy and love of reading in the country by building free little libraries that can be accessible for all. The types of book categories that they offer include children, classics, fiction, comics, self-published, and non-Fiction.

You can check out Porch Reader Philippines through their website here.

3. Book Duke

Book Duke is an online bookstore based in Davao that sells both new and used books at deducted prices. They post release dates on when and which books they will release. To get a book, you must comment “mine” on the post of the book that you would want to have reserved for you.

You can check out Book Duke through their Facebook Page here.

4. Avalon

Avalon is an online shop that has been in business since 1999. They have a wide variety of books that include fiction, non-fiction, Philippine publications, comics, fashion and even signed and rare books. Other than books, they also offer moleskin notebooks and other gift items. They’re prices range from 200 and below to over 1,000 pesos.

You can check out Avalon through their website here.

5. Book Fellas

Book Fellas is an independent secondhand book store that is located in Diliman, Quezon City. They are open evrey Saturday from 2-6 PM. On their Facebook, page they post the book cover along with a description and other important information of the book of the book on their posts. They also have some book promos such as Get 3 for 500 pesos from specific book bundles.

You can check out Book Fellas through their Facebook Page here.

6. iRent Mo

iRent mo now have book sellers who sell their pre-loved books. It could be anything from fiction to non-fiction, academic, manga, novels, textbooks, and etc. These books are also available for rent. Get the books delivered right to your doorstep.

Check out our Facebook page here

If you are a bookworm, buying a new book could be an exciting moment for you. However, it could be worth considering purchasing a pre-loved book instead. It allows books to be circulated around the economy plus you get to own books that you want at a more affordable price. There is also something remarkable about owning a book that someone else has owned. Sometimes, previous book owners highlight their favorite lines or write notes in their books that could be interesting to you.

In addition to this, it is worth considering donating your books after use, especially the ones that you do not have an emotional attachment to. Books can be of great help to someone else. It is better to put them to good use again through donating.

In general, buying things could be exciting, but we should remember that there are better and more affordable ways to do so such as through purchasing pre-loved.