books · Alberta

Where to donate books, records and media in Edmonton

3 organizations in and around Edmonton that take donated books — what each one accepts, what it turns away, and which will come and collect it.

Verified 2026-09-24 from each organization's own website. We are not affiliated with anyone listed here, nobody pays to be included, and we receive nothing if you donate to them.

How to tell what you have got

Before you call anyone, two minutes with the object settles most of it. None of this needs an expert — it needs a flashlight and a look at the back.

  • LPs in almost any genre except classical, opera and overstocked easy listeningLook up the exact pressing's completed sales on Discogs, not its asking prices. Audiopile says it reads the median price rather than the highest, also looks at the "Wants" count to judge sellability, and warns that online prices do not necessarily reflect the local market. Pressing origin matters — it pays more for Japanese, UK and other imports — so read the catalogue and matrix numbers on the label and in the run-out groove, not just the artist.
  • Records you were about to throw out because they look roughPut the visibly damaged records in a separate box and take them along anyway rather than sorting them into the bin.
  • Antiquarian books, modern firsts, fine bindings and local historyLook for a dust jacket present and intact, a date on the title page matching the copyright page with no later printing line, and an author signature. With none of those it is probably an ordinary secondhand book — but anything pre-1900, finely bound, or local history should be seen by a dealer before you decide.
  • Books published in the last five years, and classics in new editionsCheck the copyright page. If the newest date is more than five years old and the book is nonfiction, Halifax is not the stop for it — and its cap is 20 items per household in any case.
  • Children's and teen books printed since 2000, in gift conditionIt specifically wants board and baby books, preschool titles, popular series, graphic novels, non-fiction on nature, animals and space, and books with diverse characters. Its refusal list is short and exact: textbooks, encyclopedias, workbooks, library books, self-published books and damaged books.
  • CDs with no scratches, with their original linersA disc in a wallet or binder that still has its liner meets Halifax's rule. Discs stripped of their artwork are the hard ones to place.
  • Cassettes, where they are collectible rather than commonAudiopile's distinction is between common commercial tapes and collectible ones; a tape recorded or dubbed at home is neither. Sealed or small-run commercial releases are the ones worth asking about.

What this list turns away

Counted from what each place says on its own site, not from what is generally true. Most refusals are about condition and completeness rather than category.

  • 2 of 3 will not take car seats and cribsBissell Thrift Shop (Bissell Centre), Goodwill Industries of Alberta
  • 2 of 3 will not take anything damaged or stainedEdmonton Public Library, Goodwill Industries of Alberta

Rarely worth anything

Not a rule, and not a reason to bin something without asking. These are the things people most often expect to be worth money and find are not.

  • General mass-market paperbacks
  • Reader's Digest Condensed Books and other book-club condensed editions
  • Encyclopedia sets
  • Ex-library books and library discards
  • Outdated textbooks and computer manuals
  • Travel guides
  • Magazines, including long runs of National Geographic
  • Classical and opera LPs
  • Easy-listening and middle-of-the-road LPs
  • VHS tapes and ordinary audio cassettes
  • Used DVDs and Blu-rays, as a sale
  • Anything mouldy, musty, water-damaged, yellowed or heavily highlighted
  • Self-published books and workbooks
  • Hardcovers and spiral-bound books, as a prison donation
Prison book programs take softcovers only, and screen the content Canada — correctional institutions, via Books to Prisoners BC (Vancouver)

Books to Prisoners BC says that most prisons in Canada do not accept hardcover books, so it prefers that you do not donate them; it adds that hardcovers weigh more and cost more to ship. Spiral-bound books are also on its not-accepted list, along with damaged books, pornography, anything explaining how to immobilize a person, Canadian true crime about people currently incarcerated, and books critical of Canadian police and prison systems. Do not mail books to a prisoner directly on the assumption they will arrive.

Read the rule →
Hardcover books must be taken apart before the parts go in the carts City of Calgary, Alberta

Calgary instructs residents to remove cardboard hard covers and spines and recycle them as separate items from the pages, and to put coverless and loose pages into the recycling. Leather, canvas and plastic book covers go in the black cart as garbage. Old and unusable paper books may go in the blue cart or a community recycling depot.

Read the rule →
Discs and tapes that cannot be reused are garbage; only the paper parts are recyclable City of Calgary, Alberta

Calgary directs old and broken discs and tapes — vinyl records, CDs, DVDs and video tapes — to the black cart as garbage, while paper covers, music liners and record sleeves go in the blue cart. Its first advice is to pass usable media on to family and friends, sell it, or donate it to a local charity.

Read the rule →
Tapes, CDs, DVDs and records that cannot be reused go in the garbage; cases and inserts go in recycling Peel Region (Mississauga, Brampton, Caledon), Ontario

Peel Region states that video and audio tapes, CDs, DVDs and records that cannot be re-used may be placed in the garbage for disposal, and that empty cassette or video boxes, printed paper sleeves and inserts go in the recycling cart or a clear or blue transparent plastic bag. Reusable items in good condition may be donated at some Community Recycling Centre locations, where staff have the right to refuse items on inspection.

Read the rule →
Cassettes, CDs and DVDs are not accepted in the Blue Bin City of Toronto, Ontario

Toronto's Blue Bin page names cassettes, CDs and DVDs under other plastics that do not belong in the bin. Books are not listed on either the accepted or the not-accepted side — they appear only in a photo caption of paper items — and the page tells residents to check the Waste Wizard tool when they are unsure, which is the only authoritative answer for books in Toronto.

Read the rule →

3 places in Edmonton that take books

Bissell Thrift Shop (Bissell Centre)

Not stated - ask them
TakesGently used and new clothing, Workwear, Footwear and accessories, Bedding, Hygiene products, Electronics, Kitchenware, Furniture, Books, Toys, Sports equipment
Won't takeLarge appliances, Mattresses, Car seats, Cribs, Strollers, Expired products, Paint and chemicals, Pianos, Gas-powered items, Firearms, Building supplies, Food, Materials promoting hate and violence
CollectionPickup is not mentioned anywhere on their website that I could read - not on the home, donate, or locations pages, and the FAQ page is currently a dead link. Treat this as drop-off only unless you phone (780) 471-6644 and arrange otherwise. Do not assume a pickup exists.
Where8818 118 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T5B 0T4
Visit their site →(780) 471-6644

Edmonton Public Library

Drop off only
TakesGently used books - paperbacks and hardcovers, Comic books and graphic novels, CDs, DVDs and audiobooks in their original packaging, Recent video games in their original packaging, Textbooks published within the last four years, Vinyl records in good condition with minimal scratches
Won't takeBooks in poor condition - yellowed, worn, torn or smelly, CDs, DVDs, audiobooks or video games without their original packaging, Encyclopedias, magazines, specialized journals or outdated textbooks, Cassettes, VHS tapes, and burned CDs or DVDs, eBooks and computer software
CollectionDrop-off only. Accepted at most EPL branches but NOT at eplGO locations (McConachie and West Henday Promenade). Contact the branch ahead for a sizable donation - branches have limited storage.
WhereMost EPL branches across Edmonton accept donations; eplGO locations do not. No general phone number is published on their donations page - contact give@epl.ca with questions.
Visit their site →

Goodwill Industries of Alberta

Drop off only
TakesClothing - shirts, pants, socks, underwear, footwear (washed and dried, new or gently used), Housewares, Linens and towels, Furniture, Sporting equipment, Artwork, Collectibles, Jewelry, Toys and games, Books
Won't takeDamaged, stained or dirty items, Children's sleepwear, Clothing with drawstrings, Baby safety equipment including car seats, cribs and strollers
CollectionTheir own site states: "Unfortunately, Goodwill does not have a pick-up service." They note a partnership with College H.U.N.K.S. Hauling for donation pickup in some areas - that is a paid hauling company, not a free charity pickup, so ask about cost before booking.
WhereGoodwill's own site states 14 donation centres in Edmonton, part of 23+ across Alberta. Use their location finder at https://www.goodwill.ab.ca/donate/ rather than relying on a fixed list.
Visit their site →1-866-927-1414

Not sure what you have got?

Photograph it and we will tell you what it is and what it is worth — including when the honest answer is that it is worth nothing.

See what it's worth Sell it instead → Everything in Edmonton →

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Books in other cities

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