Aberdeen, the granite city on Scotland's north-east coast, packs several second-hand book counters into the streets within two-thirds of a mile of the Castlegate. VSA's Mercat Bookshop trades on the Castlegate itself, Oxfam's books-and-music branch is tucked into Back Wynd, Books and Beans fills two floors on Belmont Street, and Somerville Books sits further west in Rosemount, a few minutes' walk from CLAN's charity shop on Rosemount Place. The Old Aberdeen Bookshop works from the Spital, about a mile away to the north-north-west, the Blue Door raises money for the Camphill Wellbeing Trust out in Bieldside, and Better Read trades beyond the city boundary in Ellon, an Aberdeenshire town. All money figures are in sterling.
Much of what you spend here goes to good causes. VSA says the Mercat's takings fund its services for vulnerable people across Aberdeen and the North-East, BookEnds on the university campus passes a large share of its income to charities picked by its student volunteers, and Oxfam's shop on Back Wynd feeds the charity's work against poverty. Somebody Cares, which runs its Megastore in Bridge of Don and a monthly sale in West Tullos, puts its proceeds back into free help for its clients.
Second-hand bookshopOld Aberdeen Bookshop
140 Spital, Aberdeen AB24 3JU
Out on the Spital in Old Aberdeen, this shop has been buying and selling second-hand books for more than 20 years by its own account, with academic titles, classics, modern, Scottish and local books at the core of a stock it puts above 7,000 volumes. The Wayback Machine's capture of its homepage on 9 August 2025 shows a mix of old and modern volumes, in hardback as well as paperback. Antiquarian, natural history, theology and military books are among the subjects it says it buys, and it offers valuations without obligation. Part of the stock can also be browsed through its AbeBooks seller page.
Hours: Mon–Fri 11:30am–5pm, Sat noon–4:30pmWebsite Charity bookshop (VSA)Mercat Bookshop
38 Castle Street, Aberdeen AB11 5YU
The Aberdeen charity VSA runs this volunteer-staffed shop right beside its own offices on the Castlegate, selling donated books across Scottish, travel, sport, history, crime, romance and children's shelves, plus maps, audiobooks, old magazines, vinyl, CDs and DVDs. A notice on the VSA website, updated on 22 May 2026, says the shop is closed on Saturdays until further notice while it keeps trading Monday to Friday. Donations are taken over the counter during opening times, but dictionaries and textbooks are turned away. VSA also uses the room for Mercat Moments, a programme of author talks, book discussions and poetry and writing workshops.
Hours: Mon–Fri 10am–3pmWebsite Oxfam Books & MusicOxfam Books & Music
5 Back Wynd, Aberdeen AB10 1JN
Oxfam's books-and-music branch for the city occupies a granite-fronted shop on Back Wynd, and on 22 September 2026 Oxfam Scotland ran a story about a local printmaker whose linocut of that façade went on sale in the shop as £10 A3 prints and tote bags, with postcards alongside. The branch's own Facebook page set out its regular week in a post of 19 December 2025 and, in January 2026, advertised a sale that took in books. Back Wynd is pedestrianised for much of the day, so the shop asks donors to ring 01224 642490 for a drop-off slot first.
Hours: Mon–Sat 9am–5pm, Sun noon–4pmWebsite Café and second-hand bookshopBooks and Beans
22 Belmont Street, Aberdeen AB10 1JH
A Fairtrade café on Belmont Street that doubles as a bookshop, with around 10,000 used and new books over its ground and first floors, running from Mr Men and the classics to graphic novels, poetry, politics, horror and crime. The Daily Record, writing it up on 9 August 2026, put the main book room upstairs and noted colour-coded prices pegged to condition and rarity, plus a 'map' that, in the paper's words, highlights all the books and prices. Closing time depends on whom you ask: the café's website gives 9:30am to 4pm every day, while the Daily Record printed 4:30pm, so aim for the earlier finish.
Where can I find cheap used books in Aberdeen?
For rock-bottom prices, the Somebody Cares monthly sale in West Tullos charges £1 at the door and starts its prices at 50p. In the centre, the Mercat Bookshop on the Castlegate sells nothing but donated stock, and the Daily Record found Books and Beans' colour-coded prices could drop to just a few pounds a book. Students and anyone after a textbook should try BookEnds on the university campus, which sells cheap course books alongside its fiction.
Where do I sell used books in Aberdeen?
Head for the Spital first, where the Old Aberdeen Bookshop says quality books are always wanted and gives valuations without obligation, with antiquarian, Scottish, natural history, theology and military subjects high on its list. BookEnds on campus has paused new consignments, so anything the Spital turns down can be auctioned on eBay.co.uk or put up at a fixed price through Vinted and Amazon.co.uk, and whatever won't sell makes a decent donation to VSA or Oxfam. BiblioScan earns its keep at this stage: snap the bookcase once, scan down the per-spine resale values it reports for every title it identifies, and keep only the standouts back for listing, letting everything else go to a charity drop-off.
Which charity shops have books in Aberdeen?
Two are book-led: VSA's Mercat Bookshop on Castle Street and Oxfam Books & Music on Back Wynd deal mainly in books and recorded music. Further out, CLAN's Rosemount Place shop flagged its children's books in February 2026, the Blue Door in Bieldside welcomes donated books, and Somebody Cares lists books at its Denmore Road Megastore and among the departments of its monthly West Tullos sale. The chains around Union Street may carry a shelf, but none of their branch pages goes beyond the chain-wide wording.
Which day is best for book hunting in Aberdeen?
Midweek wins: from Wednesday through Friday every one of the seven shops inside the city boundary has its doors open, since the Blue Door in Bieldside trades on those three days alone. The Mercat stays shut at weekends, Somerville rests on Mondays, and both the Old Aberdeen Bookshop and CLAN close on Sundays. Saturday still leaves five of them open, plus the Somebody Cares sale when one falls that day, and a Sunday trip narrows to Somerville, Books and Beans and the Oxfam branch.