Most universities will have a bookshop on campus which they are in alliance with. Shop around before you buy from them - they are unlikely to be the cheapest. Bookstores out-with of campus, are not likely to have the academic books available all year round, they may have to be ordered specifically for you, but they often have discount days reducing the cost.

Most universities will have notice boards with students trying to sell their books from the previous year; as long as the editions match up this can be an inexpensive way to get the books for your course.  Books exchanged this way may be annotated and highlighted but this will just save you from doing it – take advantage. There are some good websites which act as “virtual notice boards” for student book exchanges – sellstudentbooks.com and studentbooks.co.uk.

Your union may also have a second hand book exchange and charity shops near a university may have old academic books – have a look at Oxfam.org.uk/shop~.  Greeenmetropolis.com is an online retailer selling all used books at a fixed price with free delivery.