(MONEY Magazine) -- Some tips on how you or your child can save up to 97% on a typical college textbook.
Book: "Campbell Biology "
BUY NEW (AND SELL LATER)
Price: $196.35
Resale price: $54
Net cost: $142.35
Where to buy and sell: College bookstore
Take note: Buy-back prices shift often, based on seasonal supply and demand. Stores pay up to 50% of list price for the first texts repurchased at semester
BUY USED
Price: $147.39
Resale price: $54
Net cost: $93.39
Where to buy and sell: College bookstore
Take note: Resale price can be the same as a newer copy's, but book must be near-pristine. Is the text not on next year's syllabus? You may be offered only 10% of the price.
E-BOOK
Net cost: $81.10 (for 360 days)
Where to buy: CourseSmart.com for preset time periods, or Amazon.com, which lets you pick subscription length
Take note: E-textbooks often limit printing and saving annotations.
RENT
Net cost: $77.14 (for 125 days)
Where to rent: Online companies such as BookRenter.com and some college stores
Take note: Rates rise in the busy season. So rent in early August, not the first week of classes.
BUY NEW ONLINE
Price: $150.53
Resale price: $111.10
Net cost: $39.43
Where to buy: Amazon.com
Where to sell: BookRenter.com
Take note: Beware of what sound like incredible deals. They may be study guides or instructors' manuals.
Send The Help Desk your questions about saving for college.
BUY USED ONLINE
Price: $118
Resale price: $111.10
Net cost: $6.90
Where to buy and sell: Search for buyers, sellers, and coupons with DirectTextbook.com.
Take note: If a text you ship for resale isn't up to a buyer's posted standards, the firm will reject it.
*Prices are actual quotes for one of the U.S.'s best selling textbooks, "Campbell Biology" (Ninth Edition), on July 13, 2011. 
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