Hey, Where’d Those Scholastic Dollar Books Go? Try These Affordable Alternatives

Luckily, there are still places to get a good deal on books.

Multiple books for different age ranges span out on a light blue background.
We Are Teachers

Teachers everywhere are bemoaning the demise of the perennially favorite holiday gifts for students: Scholastic dollar books. Because what more perfect gift from a teacher, naturally, than a good read? Yet just as important, we all know teachers aren’t made of money (obvi). Well no worries, your tradition doesn’t have to come to a halt. We’ve done the research and pulled together this list of alternatives to Scholastic dollar books for you to check out.

(Note: WeAreTeachers may collect a share of sales from the links on this page. We only recommend items our team loves!)

1. Dollar Days

dollar books children board books collection

Dollar Days offers wholesale children’s books for as little as 95 cents per book. Buy books individually or in sets that you can divvy up, like the one pictured above.

Shop for books like these here: Dollar Days

2. Oriental Trading

Hand holding a stack of word family readers dollar books from Oriental Trading

Oriental Trading doesn’t sell individual books. But they have quite a few book sets that you can divide up, like this set of word family readers, which includes 20 books for $19.99. Look for more ideas in their “Customers Also Bought” section.

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Shop for books like these here: Oriental Trading

3. Dollar Tree

dollar books from the dollar tree

If you shop in person, Dollar Tree stores offers books for $1.25 each. However, if you buy a set of 24, you can get them online. There are a few book sets you can snag for just $30.

Shop for books like these here: Dollar Tree

4. The Reading Warehouse

Life Cycles Bamboo childrens book Don't Say Poop Cinco de Mayo children's book

On the Reading Warehouse website, you’ll find a Bargain Bin with dollar books, fiction, and nonfiction for kids of all ages, including many Spanish titles.

Shop for books like these here: Reading Warehouse

5. Books by the Bushel

Hand holding dollar books from Books by the Bushel including Linus Gets Glasses and two Disney princess easy reader books.

Books by the Bushel also has a good number of books for only $1. To find them, go to the “$2 and Under” section and sort by price. This site features lots of fun kids’ titles from authors kids love like Todd Parr, Charles Schultz, Disney, and Scholastic.

Shop for books like these here: Books by the Bushel

6. Kid Books

dollar book Read Something Else dollar book Spy School

Kidbooks.com offers “Cheap Bestselling Books for Kids” starting at $1.26. Find classic series favorites, from Danny and the Dinosaur and Little Critter to the Berenstain Bears and more. Also check out their clearance titles.

Shop for books like these here: Kidbooks.com

7. Book Outlet

Little Bear's Friend

Book Outlet, boasting “read-iculously low prices,” features books, flash cards, activity books, and more for kids and young adults. Choose your age group, then sort by price to find something for every individual in your class. There are plenty of options starting at around $1.50 per book.

Shop for books like these here: Book Outlet

8. Half Price Books

The Scarlet Letter  dollar books Linus Gets Glasses

Half Price Books offers a huge selection of gently used books, many starting at $3. Find titles for kids of all ages and across genres.

Shop for books like these here: Half Price Books

9. Books-a-Million

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Books-a-Million offers bargain books for as low as $2.97. Choose from juvenile fiction by authors like Judy Blume, Tomie dePaola, Margaret Peterson Haddix, and more. Or check out juvenile nonfiction, including titles from the popular “Who Was” series, puzzles, jokes, animals, and more.

Shop for books like these here: Books-a-Million

10. Amazon

dollar books what to doodledollar books I can yell louder

Did you know that Amazon started out as a book-selling site? Today they offer a huge inventory. Though usually time-consuming and difficult to navigate, we searched for “Children’s Books” and “clearance” and found a wide variety of lower-priced books from $2 to $10.

Shop for books like these here: Amazon

11. Scholastic

dollar books- Fly Guy Presents Dogs Dollar books Ralph S. Mouse Dollar books Nat Geo Kids

And if you’re partial to the OG, you can still find a healthy collection of books at Scholastic for under $5 (the lowest we could find was $2.63). Also, check out their value packs. For example, you can get a pack of 10 Snowy Day–themed readers for $20, which works out to $2 per book.

Shop for books like these here: Scholastic Book Club

Get our free printable bookmarks, perfect as a companion gift to books.

Plus, check out these Inexpensive Gift Ideas for Students That Won’t Break the Bank.

Looking for dollar books to give as gifts or fill your shelves? We did the research and pulled together this list of alternatives.