How to run a library book sale
A working playbook for Friends of the Library groups, library staff, and PTA volunteers putting on a used book sale. Free to use, adapt, and share with your board — libraries and Friends groups are welcome to link to this page from their own sites.
1.Set the date and reserve the space
Pick your dates 4–6 months out, avoiding local holidays and competing community events. Reserve the meeting room, gym, or tent and confirm table and chair counts in writing.
2.Open donation intake with clear limits
Publish what you accept and what you don't (textbooks, encyclopedias, moldy or water-damaged books). Set drop-off hours and a storage plan so intake doesn't overwhelm your volunteers.
3.Sort as donations arrive
Sort into broad, shopper-friendly categories — fiction, mystery, kids, cookbooks, history, hobbies — and box by category with the category written on every side of the box.
4.Set a simple pricing table
Flat prices by format beat pricing individual titles: one price for hardcovers, one for trade paperbacks, one for mass market, one for kids' books. Pull genuinely collectible items aside for separate handling.
5.Recruit and schedule volunteers
Staff four roles: setup and restock, floor help, cashiers, and teardown. Schedule short shifts, and always have at least two people on money.
6.Plan the room layout
Wide aisles, kids' books away from the entry crush, checkout near the exit with a queue line taped on the floor, and a bag or box station at the door.
7.Promote the sale
Post the dates on your library's calendar and social pages, send them to local news and community calendars, hang flyers in the library, and list the sale in free national book sale directories.
8.Run preview night and bag day
A members-only preview drives memberships; a final bag or box day clears inventory so you aren't storing leftovers until next year.
9.Close out and plan disposal
Arrange in advance where unsold books go — a bulk buyer, a literacy nonprofit, Little Free Libraries, or recycling — and record what sold so next year's sorting is smarter.
Get your sale listed for free
We list library, Friends of the Library, and charity book sales across the United States at no cost, and we never charge libraries to appear. Send us the dates, venue, and a link to your sale page and we'll add it to the directory and to your city page.
Submit your library book sale · See national book sale statistics · Share the shopper's guide with your attendees