Is Half Price Books a good company to work for?

Half Price Books has an overall rating of 3.7 out of 5, based on over 759 reviews left anonymously by employees. This rating has decreased by 1% over the last 12 months. 70% of employees would recommend working at Half Price Books to a friend and 55% have a positive outlook for the business. The best reviews about Half Price Books have been left by employees working as Cashier , Assistant Manager and Shift Leader .

Does Half Price Books pay their employees well?

According to anonymously submitted Glassdoor reviews, Half Price Books employees rate their compensation and benefits as 3.6 out of 5. Find out more about salaries and benefits at Half Price Books. This rating has decreased by 3% over the last 12 months.

How satisfied are employees working at Half Price Books?

70% of Half Price Books employees would recommend working there to a friend based on Glassdoor reviews . Employees also rated Half Price Books 3.7 out of 5 for work life balance, 3.7 for culture and values and 3.2 for career opportunities.

What are the top reviewed jobs at Half Price Books?

Bookseller (313) , Shift Leader (43) , Book Seller (17) , Assistant Manager (14) , Book Seller I (14) , Sales Associate (14) , Cashier (10) , Store Manager (9) , Bookseller II (8) , Bookseller and Cashier (8) , Part Time Book Seller (8) , Shift Lead (7) , Customer Service Representative (6) , Shift Leader/Manager (5) , Assistant Store Manager (4)

What are the pros of working at Half Price Books according to real employee reviews?

"Great benefits and extras." ((in 96 reviews)); "This seems to be a running theme in the majority of these reviews: great coworkers." ((in 62 reviews)); "The people I worked with were great and I made some lifelong friends." ((in 51 reviews)); "Quarterly bonuses and other bonuses" ((in 24 reviews)); "for retail, good insurance & PTO/sick plans" ((in 18 reviews))

What are the cons of working at Half Price Books according to real employee reviews?

"As always in retail the pay is low but it''s made up for in benefits." ((in 93 reviews)); "Lots of micromanagement, poor management, and lack of/poor communication." ((in 60 reviews)); "Poor Upper Management Leadership experiences" ((in 28 reviews)); "While store management receives training just as the booksellers do, it doesn't always seem to be consistent or uniform, and some of the managers have been there so long that they may not have received any kind of "management" training at all." ((in 28 reviews)); "Raises are minimal." ((in 14 reviews))

What are employees saying about Half Price Books layoffs in 2026?

Explore Glassdoor’s employee reviews to understand what current and former employees are saying about Half Price Books layoffs and their outlook for job security at Half Price Books in 2026.

What are the top reviewed Half Price Books locations?

Dallas , Austin , Houston , San Antonio , Columbus , Louisville , Cincinnati , Seattle , Madison , Fort Worth , Chicago , Indianapolis , Decatur , Niles , Oklahoma City , Tacoma , Lexington-Fayette , Plano , Kansas City , Minneapolis , Cleveland , Dublin , Pittsburgh , Saint Louis , Appleton , Milwaukee , Florence , Corpus Christi , Pearland , Saint Paul

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Half Price Books

Half Price Books reviews

3.7

70% would recommend to a friend

(718 total reviews)

Sharon Anderson Wright

64% approve of CEO

55% positive business outlook

Ratings by category

3.9

Diversity & inclusion

3.7

Culture & values

3.7

Work/Life balance

3.6

Compensation and benefits

3.2

Career opportunities

3.1

Senior management

Half Price Books has an employee rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars, based on 718 company reviews on Glassdoor which indicates that most employees have a good working experience there. The Half Price Books employee rating is in line with the average (within 1 standard deviation) for employers within the Retail & Wholesale industry (3.5 stars).

Ratings by demographic groups

Race / Ethnicity

Gender

Sexual orientation

Disability

Parent or family caregiver

Veteran status

Reviews by job title

718 reviews

3.0

Jul 18, 2013

Half Price Books employment is

Anonymous employee

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

I enjoyed working with books and learning more about the publishing industry. Great benefits as far as medical insurance... paid time off which includes sick time

Cons

I did not like the fact that the actual hands-on training varied from trainer to trainer-- there was no set standard when it came to buying books. Everyone seemed to have their own preference.

3.0

Mar 1, 2013

Higher demands, lower pay

Book seller i

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Amazing discounts, interesting people, access to endless knowledge and entertainment. Moderate paid vacation accumulation.

Cons

Low salary. Employees lack motivation due to recent raise reductions and increase in expectations. Using paid sick time is a benefit you are punished for using. No cost of living pay increases for long-term employees.

4.0

Aug 13, 2012

Could have been the best job I'd ever had...

Shift leader

Recommend

CEO approval

Business Outlook

Pros

Employee discount is fantastic, insurance is good (used to be outstanding),, an hour PAID lunch (tell me where you find that nowadays), each store feels like it's independently run even though they're not.

Cons

The workload (especially during the summer when it seems like EVERYBODY'S selling their books) can seem overwhelming, especially if co-workers aren't pulling their own weight. Evaluating someone's books and then giving them a cash offer for said books can be stressful.

Viewing 226 - 228 of 718 Reviews

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Jobs at Half Price Books