Half Price Books

This bookstore is a great find on San Antonio. Great selection of books, cd’s and videos at low prices.

The staff was rude. No one greeted me when I came in, even though I heard other people who came in after me receive greetings. The cashier was in conversation with someone when I walked up to checkout, and she didn’t even acknowledge me. I had to ask if her register was open for her to even take care of me, and at that she didn’t even answer me, she just scanned my items and told me the price. I paid and she bagged my items and handed them to me without looking at me, and still said nothing to me. I said thank you, still no response, she just went right back to the conversation she was having. It was midday and there weren’t many people there, she just chose to ignore me. I’m glad I didn’t buy much because I’ll never come back here again. I don’t like being treated badly for no reason.

Today was the very first time I have ever stepped into Half Priced Books and I had a very awesome pleasant experience here. My purpose was to drop off old college textbooks and books that were just lying around and weren’t going to be used. I called before hand to get some information on their buy backs and the employee was very informative and nice. So I packed my books and on my way to Half Price I go! It was pretty crowded for a Saturday afternoon but the buy back area was empty when I arrived. I had about 10 – 15 books and it took about 10 – 15 minutes before they made the final offer. While I was waiting I came to the children’s section to check out their books. I was very impressed with the selection and how they group the books. After they called my name. They took all my books and I did get a good amount of money for it. I am definitely coming back here to buy children’s books for my classroom!

good prices for most books

Funny how people complain about selling their «valuable» books here. Hello, the name of the store is HALF PRICE BOOKS. This is not an upscale boutique bookstore. If a book retails for $ 20 originally then they are selling it for $ 10 so that means they are going to buy it from you for no more than $ 5 (and that’s if it’s a hot book that’s gonna sell fast).
Other factors that go into what you will get for your book besides it’s condition is popularity and availability. If they have 30 copies of the book you are trying to sell them or it’s going to sit on the shelf for a year, then expect to get virtually nothing for it.
When I «sell» my books to HPB I get statsifcation out if knowing that someone else will be able to enjoy the book at a reasonable price. I’m not selling my books to make money.

Selling to them get’s you maybe 1% of what they’ll price it at. Just put on your recycling, green hat and realize your stuff will go to someone else, maybe. Goodwill is a better choice, quicker and less insulting.

I have been Cingular here since they opened years ago. As nice as the staff is it does not excuse hoe they jip the customer when buying books from the customer. Almost 5 cents on the dollar no matter how good the condition is.
I can’t say they that inexpensive on the
retail price.
This is why is have them only 3 stars.

DO NOT SALE your books here. I’ve sold them my books numerous times over the years since they opened, and I’m used to them ripping me off. You’re never going to get anything over $ 5 no matter how many items you sale to them, what condition they’re in, or even what you’re selling. They will always jip you. But this last time took the cake.
I’m overseas and I’m selling everything I own. Intermittently over the past two months I’ve probably made 6 or so trips to Half Price because as much as I love my books I can’t take them with me. The last visit I had someone drop off 5 books. They offered $ 2 for two books citing that 3 of the books were water damaged and they couldn’t sell them. When the person selling my books said fine I’ll keep those books and take $ 2, they said oh you can’t have them back because that changes the value of what we can give you. If they’re water damaged and you can’t sell them why are you factoring them in? The person who took them in foolishly accepted.
Do not let them play you. They’ll give you something or other about how your books are worthless but go in there in the next few days and I’ll bet you’ll see your «worthless» books sitting on their shelf going for over $ 5.
After that trip I’ll never sell or buy from Half Price. I’ll stick with Amazon. I love a bookstore as much as anyone who loves books can but when you see something like this going down, it’s no wonder Barnes and Noble and Amazon are taking over. Who wants to deal with such a shady company?

Every time I come here, I always get more books than I originally planned. Sigh, =)

Like all Half Price Books, this is a solid location. This is a store that I love to just get lost in. I don’t think this is a good as some of the others around the state. Austin and Houston both have better, and San Antonio might have better elsewhere as well.
A decent selection of vinyl records, and of coarse books. A good selection, but not as extensive as I have seen at other spots. All at the same good prices. I did notice some of the records are a bit more beat up than at other locations. They also had a few old/​used turntables on the cheap. Not the best set ups, but good and solid. Not much more to say, if you have been to one, than you know what to expect here. I did see a sign at the coffee shop next door that said half off if you bring in your receipt from here. Which is cool.

Good place to stroll through and look at the different classics.

Quite honestly, if you’ve been to one Half Price, you’ve been to all of them… in the sense that you understand how the buy-​back works and what to expect. This location is surprisingly clean and organized, and consistently so.
Employees here are also among the friendliest– it’s subtle though. They won’t harass you with their helpfulness, but they will greet you upon entry, help you find what you’re looking for if you ask nicely, and if you’re really lucky, they’ll even go look in the back for something too. And maybe, just maybe, you’ll be looking for a book that just came in and an employee set it aside for themselves to take home– and they’ll let you take it instead, knowing that it’ll inevitably come in again in the next week or so.
It’s the little things. :)

What’s there to say about this place that hasn’t already been said? It’s the best alternative to Barnes and Nobles, that sells their stuff at muy high prices!!! Given that like The Smiths said, «some bookstores are bigger than others», and some are better than other others. While the Half-​Priced book by Northstar Mall is a nightmare, the one on Huebner Road is the way to go.

For my buck, I like going somewhere that is organized and open-​spaced. At this particular location you can walk freely and not feel like you are gonna bump into someone. At the one by Northstar Mall it’s a Mark Twain mosh pit. What is so cool about this location is that the staff are knowledgeable and ask if you need any help locating something or anything. At other locations, especially the aforementioned, the clerks act more Book Wormy Than Thou.
As for the selection they have a healthy amount of literature, hard to find vinyl (Yes, I spotted the 1^st record of Pantera here, when they were a Glam-​rock outfit.), Cd’s, DVDs, you name it they probably have it here. On this day I bought a copy of «Canterbury Tales» at an El Cheapo price. What I like about this place is the service. The lines don’t get too long here and the clerks are always courteous and get you in and out relatively quickly.
If your looking for a good read or your trying to impress a potential mate with a bigger vocabulary check this location out. Afterwards, you can go to the Flying Saucer next door, grab a brew and chat about wizards, Shakespeare or whatever bookworms do these days.

I don’t like to read, but I do like to check out Half Price Books every so often to look at recipe books or when I take my toddler to go and shop for new books. This is the absolute perfect place to go on a Friday evening. Lots of people mingering around either from Brindles or The Flying Saucer. It’s just really cool.
Inside the shop, it’s ginormous. Lots and lots and lots of books. It’s very well organized and you can find pretty much anything yourself but the people behind the counter are always so accomodating and friendly, if you ever need help — ask them! The shop also has a huge selection of DVD’s, VHS, CD’s and records. Also, the child book area is so well organized and cute. The prices are ridiculous, if I ever need anything for school or any sort of book, if I think I can get it at HPB, I ALWAYS check it out before buying it brand new. You really can not argue with the prices that HPB is giving on these books.
My mom who is the ultimate bookworm LOVES HPB and probably would be a bigger advocate then myself and would definitely give this place a whopping ten stars if she could. She could spend hours in here. Lots of chairs and places to sit. There’s free coffee usually and the bathrooms are tremendously clean which is a bonus!
The only downside, is never sell your books here. I did it once and thoroughly regret it. I had probably three large boxes full of paperback and hardcover books, quite a few Harry Potter and Twilight books, Guiness Book of World Records back to 1990’s and they gave me like $ 13. Totally not worth it and would’ve much preferred trying to sell them myself or going to donate them for free at Goodwill.
Also, this place doesn’t like to give out bags when you buy your book. They will ask you if you need a bag. Sometimes I feel really guilty when I say yes, but carrying a toddler and six books all at the same time can be a FAIL. Bring your own bags FYI!
All-​in-​all, a great place to find books!

What happens when you want to sell lots of books to Half Price, but in order to do so you will have to wait TWO hours? Go to the Huebner Rd. location!
Relative to other Half Price locations in town, it’s always been better for returning books without the long wait and hassle. Also, no hint of the typical disheveled disarray reminiscent of other locations.
Nothing but pleasant experiences and the extra cherry on top– some of SA’s best cupcakes, ice cream, coffee and beer joints are nice and close by!

Arrangement: Very spacious, well-​lit and some seating. Off to a great start.
Selection: Much larger than some other locations in a more affluent area, which means more mystery/​romance and literary fiction than other genres. I bought more than what I wanted: I found what I needed. They had very cheap hardcovers of some of the best young adult books. Great condition, though that is more a result of who they buy from. It looks like the turnover is pretty quick, as some of the older titles were not present, especially in the sci-​fi section.
Service: Wonderful. Personable, attentive staff with just the right level of chattiness. I can’t say they are all knowledgeable about all genres — I had to help out a girl looking for a particular type of young adult fiction — but that kind of interaction is heart-​warming and inspiring. A great experience that I’m sure won’t be singular.

This is a nice, clean, well kept bookstore that offers good deals on books. We were impressed with the size of the children’s area for the size of the store. The kiddo loved looking around. The aisles were easy to maneuver.
My hubby was having a nice time perusing the Sci-​fi section.
Overall: Recommend

Come on peeps
Half Price Books

We stumbled upon this place after going to dinner at the Flying Saucer and we were so pleasantly surprised.
The prices were so incredibly reasonable — most of the books were around $ 6 – 7 and they have every genre you could dream of. They have an «Old books» section which is full of leather bound books that I just fell in love with.
Aside from books, they have an extensive comics collection for about $ 1.50 each. They also have a great vinyl and CD music section as well. In addition, they also have a few walls full of DVDs that didn’t cost much and even had some DVD boxed sets for some TV shows. They had season 1 of the Office (the British version) for about $ 7. For the ladies, they had a couple seasons of Sex And The city for $ 9.
This place was so wonderful to browse and my bf and I each found some really interesting things we liked for a great price. We will most likely come back. I highly recommend it.

This Half Price Books really rocks. I suppose it encompasses everything a cool discounted book store should; a cool set up, warm staff, a neat selection of fun things like stationary, music, magazines and of course books. The prices are wonderful, even though the buy back offers are not…
I love that coffee is available, I can carry my dog in with me and the public can post ads and such on the cork board. I enjoy how the cashier booth is like 3ft off the ground as if the employees are some sort of book prophets.
I do wish there were an easier way to checking inventory, but if you require a specific book that bad I suppose try the Internet or a big box book retailer.
My most recent trip earlier this month included picking up a memoir and walking over to Flying Saucer to enjoy a glass of wine and a few chapters. Another bonus — this HPB is next to a bar.