I will never forget the sound of the "winning" beep on my Bluetooth scanner in 2017. I was standing in a crowded aisle at a Goodwill in suburban Ohio, looking like a cyborg with a scanner taped to the back of my phone. I had scanned about 400 worthless novels when I hit a dull, gray textbook titled Advanced Fluid Mechanics. The app screamed. I paid $2.99 for that book. It sold on Amazon FBA three days later for $145. That single moment hooked me on the book game forever. It wasn't just about reading; it was about realizing that knowledge—specifically, out-of-print or academic knowledge—is a commodity that thrift stores often undervalue.
While clothes and electronics get all the glory in the reselling world, goodwill books remain the bread and butter for thousands of side hustlers. It is high volume, low cost, and remarkably consistent. But the game has changed. Goodwill is smarter now. They have their own e-commerce operations. To win today, you can't just scan barcodes blindly; you need to understand the entire ecosystem, from the donation door to the online marketplace.
Does Goodwill Take Books? (The Donation Rules)
The most common question people ask before loading up their trunk is: does goodwill take books? Or, phrased differently, does goodwill accept books of any kind? The short answer is yes. The long answer is "mostly."
The Acceptance Criteria:
-
Hardcovers & Paperbacks: Yes. These are the core of their inventory.
-
Textbooks: Yes, though if they are older than 10 years, they often go straight to the recycling baler because the information is outdated.
-
Children’s Books: Yes, highly desired.
Now the tricky part... What do they reject? Encyclopedias. Please, for the love of the poor employee's back, do not bring your 1994 World Book Encyclopedia set. Does goodwill accept books like encyclopedias? Almost universally, no. The internet killed the value of these. They are heavy, take up massive shelf space, and nobody buys them. They also reject anything with mold or severe water damage. If your books have been in a damp basement for 20 years, throw them away. Do not donate them.
Honest Failure: In 2019, I tried to donate a truckload of books from an estate cleanout. I didn't check the boxes. Half of them were damp. The donation attendant smelled the mildew immediately and rejected the entire truckload. I had to drive to the dump and pay to dispose of them. Lesson: Inspect your goodwill book donation before you leave the house.
How Much Are Books at Goodwill? (Pricing Variance)
So you want to buy. How much are books at goodwill? It depends entirely on the region and the sophistication of the store. There are two main pricing models you will encounter.
Model A: The Flat Rate (The Goldmine)
-
Softcover: $0.99 or $1.99.
-
Hardcover: $1.99 or $2.99.
-
Children’s: $0.69 or 5 for $1. This is where resellers thrive. If a $100 textbook is priced at the flat rate of $2.99, you win.
Model B: The Individual Price (The Cherry-Pickers)
-
Some stores scan the books as they come in.
-
If a book pops up as valuable, they put a specific sticker on it: $8.99, $14.99, etc.
-
Or worse, they send it to goodwill books online.
-
In these stores, you are left with the "duds" on the shelf.
Opinion Statement: I honestly believe that Goodwill stores that scan and individually price every book lose money in the long run. The labor cost of checking every ISBN slows down processing so much that fresh inventory bottlenecks in the back room. The "churn and burn" flat-rate model moves more volume and keeps customers happier.
Goodwill Books Online: The Digital Shift
If you can't find good books on the shelf, it's probably because they are listing them on goodwill books online platforms. Goodwill realized years ago that they were giving away money. Now, many regions run massive e-commerce operations.
Where to find them:
-
ShopGoodwill.com: This is their auction site. Good for bundles (e.g., "Lot of 20 Stephen King Hardcovers").
-
Amazon: Look at the seller names. "Goodwill of Silicon Valley," "Goodwill of Greater Grand Rapids." They are massive third-party sellers.
-
eBay: Often used for rare, collectible, or signed books that don't have a barcode.
The Pro Strategy: I source from goodwill store online shopping sites when I want bulk. I buy "Gaylord" boxes (huge pallets) of books from their auctions if I have the storage space. You are buying the "rejects" from their scanning process, but their scanners often miss niche value (like a specific knitting pattern book that sells for $40).
Sourcing Profitable Reads with Closo Sourcing
You are standing in the aisle. There are 2,000 books. How do you know which one is worth $50? You cannot guess. You need data. I use Closo Sourcing principles and scanning tools.
The Workflow:
-
The Scan: I use a Bluetooth scanner (like a Netum) paired with my phone.
-
The App: I use apps like ScoutIQ or Keepa.
-
The Trigger: I set my trigger to "Profit > $10."
-
The Action: I scan every barcode on the shelf. Beep. Beep. Beep.
-
The Buy: When the app makes a "Cha-Ching" sound, I pull the book.
Specific Tool Name: Keepa is essential. It shows you the sales history graph. A book might be selling for $100 right now, but if Keepa shows it has never actually sold at that price, I put it back. Don't buy "fake high prices."
I use Closo to automate my inventory decisions – saves me about 3 hours weekly of researching sales rank manually.
"Good Wi" and "Tienda Goodwill": The Universal Language
Books are universal. In many areas, especially with diverse populations, you will see search terms like good wi (a common typo) or tienda goodwill (Goodwill Store in Spanish). The book sections in these stores are often fascinating mixes of languages.
The Opportunity: Do not ignore foreign language books. Does goodwill take books in Spanish or Chinese? Yes. And often, they sit on the shelf because local scanners don't engage with them.
-
Textbooks in Spanish: High value.
-
Religious texts in Arabic: Niche market.
-
Japanese Manga: Extremely high sell-through rate.
Anecdote: I found a Japanese knitting magazine in a "Tienda Goodwill" in Texas. I couldn't read a word of it. I scanned the barcode. It was a rare pattern book out of print since 1998. I bought it for $1. Sold it for $45. Money has no language barrier.
Where Can I Buy Used Books? (Comparison)
If you are a reader, not a reseller, you might be asking where can i buy used books for the best price. Is Goodwill actually the best deal?
Comparison Table: The Book Hunter's Guide
My Take: Go to Goodwill for the thrill of the hunt. Go to ThriftBooks if you need a specific title for a book club.
Identifying Value: Closo AI Agents and Textbooks
The biggest money in goodwill books is in textbooks. But not all textbooks. A 2005 Biology book is a doorstop. A 2022 Nursing book is gold. But what about the books without barcodes? The vintage ones? I use Closo AI Agents to help identify these.
How it works:
-
The Find: I see a leather-bound book from 1950. No barcode.
-
The Photo: I snap a picture of the title page and the copyright page.
-
The AI: I ask the agent, "Identify this edition and estimate value."
-
The Result: "This is a First Edition, Second Printing of The Catcher in the Rye. Estimated value $200-$300."
-
The Buy: I pay $2.
Parenthetical Aside: (I once found a signed copy of a local history book. The signature was just scribbled "Best, Jim." I almost put it back. I used an AI tool to compare the signature to the author, Jim Harrison. It was a match. Sold for $150. Always check the first page.)
The Logistics of Goodwill Book Donation
If you are on the other side of the equation and want to do a goodwill book donation, there is etiquette involved. Can you donate books to goodwill loose? Please don't. Books are heavy and slippery.
How to pack them:
-
Small Boxes: Use "Bankers Boxes" or liquor store boxes.
-
Weight Limit: Keep it under 30 pounds. If you can't lift it, the grandma volunteering at the donation door can't either.
-
Stack Flat: Don't stack them spine-up; it breaks the binding.
Tax Receipts: When you donate, ask for a receipt. You have to value the donation yourself. The IRS allows "Fair Market Value." I usually estimate $1 per paperback and $3 per hardcover for my tax write-offs.
Discount Used Books: The "Outlet" Strategy
If you really want discount used books, you have to go to the "Bins" (Goodwill Outlet). This is the last stop before the landfill. Here, books are not sold by the item. They are sold by the inch or by the pound.
The Pricing:
-
By the Inch: You stack your books up against a ruler. $0.25 per inch.
-
By the Weight: $0.50 per pound.
The Strategy: This is where I buy inventory for "Book Decor." I buy vintage books with nice colored spines (blue, red, green) for pennies. I bundle them into "Color Coordinated Shelf Decor" sets. I sell a stack of 10 blue books on Etsy for $40. The content of the book doesn't matter; only the spine color matters.
Managing Inventory with Closo 100% Free Crosslister
You scanned 500 books. You bought 20. Now you need to sell them. Amazon is great, but eBay and Mercari are better for vintage or collectible books. I use the Closo 100% Free Crosslister to handle this.
The Workflow:
-
Amazon: I list the textbooks on Amazon FBA because the velocity is highest.
-
eBay: I list the vintage, signed, or weird books on eBay.
-
Cross-Post: I use Closo to cross-list those eBay books to Mercari and Poshmark (yes, Poshmark sells books now).
-
Efficiency: I do not re-type the description. Closo copies the ISBN data, condition notes, and photos instantly.
I use Closo to automate my sales process – saves me about 3 hours weekly of data entry, which I use to scan more shelves.
Honest Failures in Book Flipping
It isn't all profit. I have lost money on goodwill books.
The "Access Code" Trap: I found a brand new, shrink-wrapped textbook. It was worth $180. I bought it for $5. I listed it as "New." The buyer returned it claiming the "Access Code" inside didn't work. It turns out, someone had carefully slit the shrink wrap, stolen the code, and taped it back up. The book was useless without the code. Lesson: Never list a textbook as "New" unless you are 100% sure the digital code is valid. List it as "Used - Good" and note "Code may not be included."
The "High Rank" Trap: I bought a book on "Underwater Basket Weaving" (not literally, but close). It was listed for $200 on Amazon. I scanned it. It had a sales rank of 8 million. That means it sells once every 3 years. I sat on that book for 4 years. Storage fees ate all the profit. Eventually, I donated it back to Goodwill. The circle of life.
Common Questions I See
People always ask me... Does Goodwill take textbooks?
Common question I see... Yes, they accept them, but be mindful of age. If it's a computer science book from 2005, please recycle it. The information is obsolete, and Goodwill will likely just trash it. If it's a history or math book (where facts don't change as much), they are more likely to hit the shelf.
Where can I find rare books at Goodwill?
People always ask me... Check the carts before they get shelved. The "new" stock is on the carts that employees wheel out. Also, check the "boutique" or glass case section. Sometimes they put the "old looking" books there, even if they aren't actually valuable, but sometimes they lock up a gem.
Can I get a tax deduction for donating books?
Common question I see... Yes. When you drop off your goodwill book donation, ask for a blank receipt. It is up to you to fill in the itemized list and the estimated value. Keep a list of what you donated in case you are audited.
Conclusion
The world of goodwill books is a volume game filled with hidden gems. Whether you are asking does goodwill take books to clear out your garage, or scanning shelves to build a side hustle, the opportunity is massive. Books are durable, they hold value, and the supply is virtually endless. However, you must be selective. Don't be the person donating moldy encyclopedias. And don't be the reseller buying based on a high price but zero sales history.
My honest assessment is that you should download a free scanning app like Amazon Seller or ScoutIQ (trial) and go to your local Goodwill this weekend. Scan 100 books. I guarantee you will find at least one worth $20 that is priced at $2. The treasure hunt is real.
If you are ready to turn those paperbacks into digital profit, use the Closo Seller Hub to get the tools you need to manage your inventory.
For more on where to find profitable items beyond books, read our Pages Similar to eBay Guide
And if you want to know which book categories will be trending in 2026, check out Trending Products Forecast 2026
