Kindle Best Sellers – Go for the Free Category
Each category on the Kindle best sellers has the 25 top free downloads for that day.
Scouring through here will lead to a few duds but overall you will find several professional books for free. From novels to reference there are often a lot of really nice quality downloads. The best categories tend to be the young adult fiction, erotica, crime-thriller and sci-fi. I enjoy biography and history so the options are usually sparse. But occasionally there’s a great gem for me!
Please keep in mind though, the free books category is rife with examples of people gaming the system. They copy and paste text from elsewhere or hire a ghost writer who can’t even write English properly! That said, they are free. One out of every five tends to be pretty good.
Free Audible Book – You Can Easily get Two or More
It’s a no-brainer to sign up for the free month with Audible.com. They are owned by Amazon so all you need to do is sign in with your Amazon account. For one month you get access to the members section and you get one free credit, which accounts for one free download.
The download can go to your computer, tablet or phone. Even better, it stays in the cloud, even after you cancel your membership. You can still log into your account, without actually having an account. Just use your Amazon username and password on the Audible website. There you will find all of your downloads.
And if you have a significant other or a spouse with a different credit card in your house (if you’re still living with your parents that will work too) sign up with their credit card and their separate Amazon.com account. When you get your free download don’t forget to cancel at the end of the month or your helper will be charged.
If you’re like me though you’ll probably be so happy with the subscription that you’ll want to get more and more. Right now I’m hooked on biographies of Abraham Lincoln.
Don’t forget to sign up for the Audible Daily Deal on your email. You will get a new email each morning with a different audiobook that is $5 or less.
Libraries are Still Great – Ebook Library Lending
Many people don’t know about this but a growing number of libraries offer ebook lending for those that have an account. The best part is you don’t have to be living near that library or even in the same state.
I still have an old library card and have since moved out of the country. Yet, I can still freely check out books and audiobooks to my Kindle, with free wireless delivery. There’s no excuse not to take advantage of this program and save some cash!
I don’t know if there’s any more reason they need to talk you into go into the free library! Small towns and communities are full of hidden gems. Plus their libraries offer great opportunities for volunteering and arranging events or get-togethers. Large city and regional libraries keep adding to their immense collections and have countless events from author signings, presentations, workshops, etc.
Magazines are Cheaper than Ever Before!
Financial bloggers have been advocating cutting magazine subscriptions for years as a way to save money each year. But if you still enjoy reading a physical magazine and value having one around the house for times that you just want to relax, a lot of major magazine subscriptions are $15 a year or less.
I remember as a kid, they could be as high as $40-50. Some niche topics still are but, most popular topics are pretty cheap. As a bonus you’ll often get digital subscription as well.
Check out Amazon.com because a lot of their magazines are on sale for only $5 a year! It’s not a gimmick, the magazines make all of their money off of advertising. The other thing they might do is charge $5 per year, but something higher for the second year. Just make a note on your calendar of when your renewal comes up and cancel before then. Pretty simple stuff.
If you’re having trouble finding them, search under magazines and then change from ‘featured’ or ‘most popular’ or ‘relevant’ to ‘lowest price.’ Daily deals often have them for $5 too. This is probably the best link for $5 magazine subscriptions I have found.
