We pride ourselves on networking throughout the United States to have the most used books available. Used books save you 25%. If a new biology book costs $140, you save $35 (25%) by buying used. Better yet, we mark every book's price (including the used book discount) right inside the cover. We don't expect you to read bar codes or guess at your total bill. When you get to the register, you pay the price written in the book. Nothing more, nothing less. And because we mark the discounts on the books, it's easy to tell if a book is used, so you can judge whether it's the best deal for you.

SBX has been serving BGSU students and the Bowling Green community for almost 50 years, and we're not about to stop now. Our knowledgable, friendly staff works hard to stay up-to-date with the latest changes in the textbook world. If it's out there, odds are good that we can find it for you, whether it's for a class or not. We even offer a textbook reservation service, where you send us your classes and section numbers, and we set the books aside. All you need to do is come in and pick them up!

Remember that you don't have to buy your books from the university store, so shop around to get the best deal you can. Become an informed consumer.

At SBX, we pay cash for used books year round. For most of the year, though, we buy them back at wholesale prices, the prices our used book distributors offer us. Wholesale prices are comparatively low, and you're better off waiting until that magical time known as Buyback. At the end of every semester, we ratchet up the prices we pay you for your books, depending on whether or not they're being used the following semester. We'd much rather pay you cash for books at the end of the semester than have to order more copies from our wholesalers. You'll get the most money for your books during finals week or just before. To beat the crowds, try coming in in the mornings.

There are a few things to keep in mind when selling your books. First, it doesn't matter whether you bought it from us, and we pay the same price for a book whether you bought it used or new. This is even more incentive to buy your books used in the first place. Second, we won't buy back books with water damage (if the pages get wavy, we can't buy the book) nor will we buy books with missing or badly damaged covers. We do not particularly care about highlighting. We do, though, care about CDs. Textbooks often have significantly more value if you have the CDs that came with them. Last, but certainly not least, publishers and textbook authors are creating new editions at an ever-increasing pace. We don't like it any more than you do, but when a book comes out in a new edition, the old editions quickly become worthless. (This is one of the things you should be particularly careful of when buying books on the internet, where the steepest discounts are most often on old editions.)

In short, to get the most cash for your books, keep them dry and in one piece, and bring them back with any CDs at the beginning of finals week.

We cannot quote buyback prices over the phone.

The City Bucks Program started after considerable pressure (including pending legislation before the State Senate in Columbus, Ohio) was put on BGSU and other State Universities to extend their university charge card programs to off-campus merchants. Students, Faculty and Staff can prepay money into the City Bucks account and then use their BGSU ID as a Debit Card at participating merchants off-campus.

This program gives you, the student, more choices. You can shop for the best deals on textbooks, supplies and BGSU merchandise and you have more food service options because you can use it off-campus. Parents benefit, too. They can help keep their student on a budget because money can be added to the account at any time. You, or a parent, or even a generous grandparent, can deposit money into your debit account by phone, mail or online using a credit card.

So what then is the BiG Card? The BiG Card or BiG Charge may only be used on campus at the University Bookstore and at University Dining Services. Using BiG Charge adds your purchases to the bursar bill you or your parents receive each month. In addition to textbooks and educational supplies, a student may use BiG Charge to buy items such as Sony Playstations, XBoxes, Gamecubes, games, DVDs, Ipods or Digital Cameras--anything that the University Bookstore sells. There is a $550 limit at the University Bookstore and you must pay that balance off in full at the end of each month.

SBX is continuing its fight to get the BiG Charge off campus and into the community. Read articles on the issue from the BG News.