Why is AbeBooks so cheap?

[ChrisGreaves]

I went looking on abebooks this evening for a second-hand copy of Ed Yourdon's Death March and was/am surprised to see copies at $1.00 plus S&H of about $5.
That's for copies being sold from the US and shipped to Canada.
When I switch to Canada ("Support your local economy ...") I see 3 copies at around $20-40, plus S&H.

So, OK. Maybe We Canadians are rapacious, but the dictum is "If something is too good to be true, it usually means it is too good to be true".

I have previously purchased about a dozen books via internet over the past five years, and have always been happy with the deals.

But $1 per book from the U.S.A. seems so radically different from, say $42 from Canada.
(For overseas loungers, last time I looked the $cdn=$us)

[BobH]

I've noticed that books sold by UK booksellers via abebooks are a great deal more expensive than the same books sold by American booksellers. To find that the same is true in Canada is strange to me because abebooks is HQ'd in Vancouver, BC.

I've bought a lot of books from abebooks booksellers and never had a problem and always got good prices and books delivered in the condition advertised or even better.

HTH

[John Gray]

I didn't know that anyone bought books other than from Amazon! Or from the few remaining physical bookshops...

[Bowlie]

Don't forget that sites in the UK, and in Europe as well, will quote prices inclusive of VAT. 17.5% in the UK at the moment, going up to 20% in January. If shipped outside the EU the VAT should be deducted.

This doesn't explain the difference in prices Canada/US that Chris saw - as both quotes are likely exclusive of State sales tax (US) or PST/GST/HST

[BobH]

I didn't know that anyone bought books other than from Amazon! Or from the few remaining physical bookshops...

The booksellers on abebooks are all independent booksellers. Abebooks.com is just a place where they can have their wares included in the searches done by those seeking a particular title.

These booksellers mostly - probably - all deal in used books. I think Amazon, Barnes and Noble and the other one make it virtually impossible for sellers of new books to compete.

I find abebooks.com great for finding copies of older titles that generally aren't available elsewhere. They allow one to search a very, very large inventory of booksellers from all over.

I'd be curious to know how you find the prices in the UK compared to Amazon and how you find availability of older editions there compared to Amazon.

[BobH]

Don't forget that sites in the UK, and in Europe as well, will quote prices inclusive of VAT. 17.5% in the UK at the moment, going up to 20% in January. If shipped outside the EU the VAT should be deducted.

This doesn't explain the difference in prices Canada/US that Chris saw - as both quotes are likely exclusive of State sales tax (US) or PST/GST/HST

On books sold for $5.00 US a VAT of 20% would only be a dollar US. I suppose the GBP equivalent would be the same 5£ plus 20% VAT would be 1£ for a total of 6£.

That doesn't explain the great difference in prices.

Whatever the cause, please . . . let's not examine it too closely lest the price rise for the colonials.

[PaulB]

May be too late: If you look at the last search result in the link Chris provides, you'll see that one American vendor is selling the book for $719 plus shipping.

Makes one wonder...

[Bowlie]

On books sold for $5.00 US a VAT of 20% would only be a dollar US. I suppose the GBP equivalent would be the same 5£ plus 20% VAT would be 1£ for a total of 6£.

Actually the price is inclusive of the VAT. For a $5.00 book including 20% VAT the amount nett of taxes is $4.17 (actually $4.167). The tax is $0.83, but only pedants and those married to compulsive shoppers who expect a larger de-tax when exporting their goodies, actually care.

Here have a tax-free or

[Cellmate]

Let's not forget the obvious: this is America, people. We don't read books. we wait for it to appear on the tv!

simple supply and demand. Canada wants one, ok, here, we got lots. I'll take a buck for it....easy

Cellmate