Guides

(Simple, repeatable, and anyone can do it)

I'm going to keep this simple.

There are a million "how to make money online" videos out there. Most of them are either super vague or way too complicated.

This guide is for something very specific and very doable:

Go into a thrift store → Scan the book section → Buy the profitable ones → List them on eBay or Amazon → Ship them → Get Paid → Repeat.

You're basically looking for used books that you can buy cheap locally and sell for a lot more online.

You don't need a warehouse.

You don't need thousands of dollars.

You don't need to be "good at tech."

You just need:

• A phone
• An eBay account
• A few basic shipping supplies
• And a way to quickly check if a book is actually worth buying (I'll explain how)

We're focusing on books because:

• Thrift stores are overflowing with them
• They're dirt cheap (often $1–$3)
• Some books — especially textbooks, niche nonfiction, out-of-print titles — can sell for $20, $50, even $100+
• The market is massive and consistent

It might feel like everyone reads digitally now, but the opposite is happening:

• Tons of people prefer physical books
• Many titles go out-of-print and spike in value
• Students still buy textbooks
• Collectors love rare editions and certain genres (theology, military history, homesteading, medical books, etc.)

This guide will show you exactly how to find those hidden gems — even if you've never sold a book before.

Step 1: Set up your selling account

If you're brand new, you'll use eBay first (it's simpler). If you already sell on Amazon, great — books work amazingly there too.

Create an account

Go to eBay and sign up (a personal account is fine to start).

Add your name, address, and phone number.

Connect your bank account

eBay will walk you through this. This is where your money goes after a book sells.

Download the eBay app

Install it so you can:

• List books
• Set prices
• Sell your stuff
• Ship it to the buyers

Step 2: Basic gear you'll need

Books are incredibly easy to ship.

Must-have shipping supplies

For used books, all you need is:

• Poly mailers (9x12 or 10x13)
• Bubble wrap
• Packing tape

Under $15 in supplies is plenty to get started.

Nice to have

These aren't required, but they help:

• A printer (to print your labels)

If you don't have a printer, eBay gives you a QR code you can take to USPS. They'll print the label for you.

That's all you need.

Step 3: Why books still sell (and what to look for)

Books have a huge online resale market because:

• Many titles go out of print
• Certain nonfiction niches always sell
• Textbooks and study guides can be worth big money
• Self-help, business, medical, and academic books have consistent demand

A few categories that often produce winners:

• Textbooks
• Medical, nursing, psychology
• Computer programming
• Military history
• Homesteading, farming, survival
• Vintage religious books
• Niche nonfiction (aviation, theology, rare music books, etc.)

The problem is there are millions of books, and on your own, you won't to identify all of the books that could make you profit. Luckily, there are tools to make finding these profitable books easy.

Step 4: Go to a thrift store and find the book section

This is where the fun starts.

Good places:

• Goodwill
• Salvation Army
• Savers
• Local charity shops
• Library book sales
• Garage sales
• Facebook Marketplace bulk book lots

Head straight to the book aisles.

You're looking for simple price stickers like:

• "Books $1 each"
• "Paperback 99¢"
• "Hardcover $2.99"

What you're really trying to find is:

Books that sell online for at least 3–5× what you're paying and/or books that leave you at least $5 profit.

Traditionally, book flippers used:

• Amazon scanning apps
• eBay manual searches

That works — but it's slow and tedious.

Step 5: Using Flippr to scan entire shelves of books

Here's where technology gives you a huge advantage.

Flippr lets you scan an entire shelf of books in one photo.

It then shows you:

• What each book sells for on eBay
• Estimated profit after fees + shipping
• How often it sells
• Flippr score (a score that puts all the data together)

How it works:

1. Open Flippr
2. Take a photo of the book spines
3. Flippr identifies the titles
4. It shows you their estimated resale values and profit margins

Instead of scanning one book at a time, you get dozens of valuations instantly.

Why this matters:

Bookshelves can have hundreds of books. The faster you can search through books, the more money you will make.

Flippr also lets you enter your buy cost (like $1.99) and instantly calculates your profit after fees + shipping.

This removes guesswork entirely.

Step 6: Why I recommend Flippr (instead of doing it by hand)

You can do it manually:

• Look up a book on eBay
• Filter by Sold listings
• Check what it actually sells for
• Calculate the sell-through rate
• Estimate fees & shipping
• Do the math
• Repeat

That works, but you'll burn out fast, especially with books.

Books are unique because a single shelf might contain 200–300 titles.

Flippr condenses that into a few seconds.

A few details:

• Free to start
• 50 items/week on the free plan
• Paid plans start around $8/month (one good book flip pays for it)

You don't have to use Flippr — but if you want to move quickly, it helps a ton.

Step 7: Check condition before you buy

Condition matters a lot for books.

Before putting a book in your cart:

Check the cover

• No water damage
• No ripped dust jackets
• Minimal creasing

Check the binding

• No cracked spine
• No loose pages

Check the pages

• No highlighting
• No mold
• No stains

For textbooks or high-value nonfiction:

• Some highlighting is okay
• Heavy writing usually lowers value

That's really it — clean books sell best.

Step 8: Buy the good ones, leave the rest

After scanning your shelf and checking condition:

Put back:

• Low-profit books
• Ex-library books
• Books with water damage
• Outdated textbooks (especially old editions that no one buys)

Buy:

• Books with $5+ profit
• Textbooks with strong demand (More than 10 sold in the last 90 days)
• Niche nonfiction with consistent sales

Your first run might look like:

• 4–10 profitable books
• $6–$20 total spend

Perfect. That's exactly how most book flippers start.

Step 9: List your books online

Listing a book is simple.

1. Clean it up

Wipe off any dust or stickers.

2. Take honest photos

Pics to include:

• Front cover
• Back cover
• Inside pages
• Imperfections (if any)

Good lighting is more important than fancy photography.

3. Write your title

Include:

• Title
• Author
• Format (Paperback, Hardcover)
• Edition if relevant (4th Edition, Study Guide, etc.)

Example:

"Medical-Surgical Nursing (3rd Edition, Hardcover) – Good Condition"

4. Fill in item specifics

• Author
• Format
• Language
• ISBN (The code on the back of the book)
• Edition

5. Describe the condition

Be honest here. Being too generous on your condition could lead to unhappy buyers and bad reviews.

• Like New
• Very Good
• Good
• Acceptable

Add a small note like:

"Book has light shelf wear but pages are clean and intact. No writing or highlighting."

6. Set your price

Use the Flippr suggested price based on recent sales.

If Flippr shows:

Recent sales: $19.99

You can:

• List at $19.99
• Or list at $17.99 for a quicker sale

Step 10: Ship your books

Once your item sells, eBay will alert you and allow you to print a shipping label. Shipping books is super easy and super cheap.

Poly mailer → Bubble wrap → Tape → Done.

Buy the label through eBay

If you have a printer:

• Print
• Tape to the mailer
• Drop it off at a USPS drop off location

If not:

• Use the USPS QR code
• They'll print it for you

Tracking updates automatically.

Step 11: Get Paid → Repeat

Once the book is delivered, the money lands in your bank account.

Then you:

• Go back to thrifts
• Scan more shelves
• Pick good books
• List them
• Ship them
• Get paid
• Repeat

As you do this more:

• You'll recognize profitable categories instantly
• You'll build a steady flow of sales
• You'll find bigger wins (textbooks $50–$200)
• Your average shelf scan will produce more keepers

You're not trying to win the lottery. You're building a simple, repeatable little side business:

Find undervalued books → Use data to confirm → List them → Ship them → Get paid.

Do it consistently, and book flipping can easily turn into a few hundred dollars a month — or a lot more if you scale up.