Books on a Budget! 10 Ways to get FREE or almost-free books!

free books

I frequently post free & cheap book lists, and I have a big list of ongoing free Christian books that I update weekly. Several people have asked me about where/how to find free or cheap books. The obvious answer (used bookstores, goodwill) doesn’t work for me because I’m in a very small, rural town without access to those types of places–though I do love to hit up Goodwill when I visit relatives who have one!

So, I decided to put together a list for you all. This post contains affiliate links. At no cost to you, if you click and make a purchase, I might get a small percentage.

Also, this list seems to just keep growing, so ignore the number in the graphic ;)

1. Amazon.com (FREE)

Most of my freebies are found directly from Amazon’s website. These are found easily by visiting the Kindle Bestseller’s Page. On this page, you can find the top 100 paid and the top 100 Free books. On the left side of the screen, you can also choose which categories you’d like to view, and there are tons of them.

If you have a bit more time and patience, you can also search amazon for free/inexpensive books by searching for your favorite genre in the Kindle eBooks store and then sorting by price lowest-highest.

You can also see some of the free Christian books I’ve posted here and here.

2. Tyndale Rewards (FREE Print book)

I love Tyndale House publishers, and you can sign up for Tyndale Rewards to earn free print books. So far the program has been pretty simple. If you sign up through this link, you’ll receive 25 bonus points to start out with. I completed a couple of surveys, signed up for a newsletter subscription (you can choose from several devotionals), added my bday, and a couple more simple tasks and within a few moments had acquired enough points for a free book. Update: I have now earned 9 free books through the program–all completely free!

Update: I have now created a how-to post to detail exactly what you can do to earn a completely free book.

3. Usborne (FREE & Cheap)

I love Usborne Books. They are both fun and educational–perfect for the homeschool mom or pretty much anyone with school-aged children in their lives, whether they are homeschooled or not.

Cheap: Usborne has some great internet specials that are updated every 2 weeks. These books are 50-70% off (most under $5 each). I can also offer you $15 in FREE books if you spend $85, and FREE shipping if you spend $100.

Free: You can host an eshow (conducted on facebook) to get FREE books. I love this because right now I can offer you DOUBLE rewards with just $250 in sales. That means that if your show reaches just $250 in sales, you can get $80 in free books! And, the rewards increase from there.

4. Blogs (FREE)

If you are looking for focused, self-published information, signing up for blogger newsletters can be a great help. You can find books on everything from blogging, parenting, healthy living, cookbooks, printables, homeschooling, money saving, time management, etc. My friend, KM Logan has put together a list of websites that offer free book downloads. Also, many blogs publish lists of free books (like mine).

5. PaperBack Swap (Cheap)

I LOVE paperback swap! Basically you can trade books with other members. There are tons of books listed, and you can get even more by adding to your wishlist–you’ll get an email notification when your book becomes available. You get 2 free credits upon signing up and listing 10 books of your own. After that, you will receive a credit to spend for every book that you mail out and is marked received by the requester. I’ve found some great books there, including Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, which I was going to pay nearly $20 for at the time on Amazon. You can visit my guest post over at Money Saving Mom to see how I get even better deals there.

6. ChristianBook.Com (FREE & Cheap)

I just recently discovered this site, and WOW! They have some freebie kindle books similar to Amazon. However, they have a HUGE selection of greatly discounted books, and great sales online as well. They nearly always have a few bestsellers marked down to $5 for promotions. They also have great clearance sales, and an Under $1 section for real, physical books (not that eBooks aren’t real books, but I do love my print books!). There, you will find over 600 books priced at $1 or less! They often offer free shipping deals with a $35 purchase also!

7. Audible (2 FREE audio books)

If you sign up for a free trial of audible, you can get 2 audio books completely free. You can continue the service for a monthly fee, or cancel the service before your trial is up to avoid being charged. They offer a HUGE selection to choose from, including my all time favorite devotional, My Utmost for His Highest.

8. Amazon Prime (FREE with membership)

Many people don’t know about these perks for Amazon Prime, but there are a couple of ways to read books for free through them.

  • Kindle Lending Program–borrow one book each month. Choose from thousands of options, including my book Intentional Marriage.
  • Earn Credits with No-Rush Shipping–When you choose free No-rush shipping instead of 2-day shipping, Amazon will often give you a credit toward digital purchases! I have gotten many, many free $.99 books by doing this, and also sometimes save up these credits for other books I’m wanting. They do expire, so you’ll want to keep an eye on it, but it’s a great way to earn some free books for your kindle. (See exactly how this credit works)

Try Amazon Prime FREE for 30 days!

9. Dover Rewards

Many retailers offer rewards programs where you can earn points toward free books when you make a purchase and Dover rewards is one of the more generous that I’ve seen. (Note: Some have reported not receiving their 30 free points when using mobile, so use a desktop or laptop to ensure you get your points). They start you off with 30 points, and you only need 65 points for a $10 egift certificate.

Sign up today.

10. Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library

If you live in a participating area, you can sign up your child (under 5 years old) to receive a free book delivered to them each month from Dolly’s Imagination Library. I don’t have personal experience with this program because I found out about it when we were not eligible. However, I have purchased a couple of the books second-hand and they seem to be high-quality books.

Bonus: Free Books For Bloggers/Reviewers

Okay, so these aren’t really free, but if you enjoy reading/reviewing books anyway, it’s well-worth the effort to participate in publishers’ blogger programs. If you are accepted into their programs, you can request books that you are interested in, with the agreement that you will review the book on your blog. Just a few of these programs: NetGalley, Blogging For Books, and Book Sneeze. You can also work directly with publishers like Tyndale and Bethany House.

So, there you have it. That is mostly how we find free/cheap books. We do occasionally find things at goodwill, when we’re visiting my in-laws, or at yard sales when we get lucky. And, we utilize the local library a LOT for checking out books and family-friendly DVD’s.

What would you add? Where do you find free or cheap books?

Continue reading here: 5 ways for Moms to Save Money

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