Book Stores

The 2,570 Book store firms in the US primarily sell books, magazines, and other types of reading materials. Major revenue categories include trade books; text books; CDs, records, and related audio products; religious books; mass market paperbacks; and magazines and newspapers. Book stores also sell meals, snacks, non-alcoholic beverages, souvenirs, novelty items, and stationery products. The industry is concentrated; the top four companies account for 62% of industry revenue.

Challenges of eBooks

Electronic books and their proprietary formats have been a challenge for independent book stores.

Competition from Alternative Sources

Book stores compete with a variety of alternative sources, including online retailers, traditional retailers, electronic distributors, publishers, and libraries.

Sep 11, 2026 - Store Openings Remain Strong

• The number of American Booksellers Association members has increased to 3,400 in 2026 from fewer than 2,000 five years earlier, according to the association. The trade group counted more than 600 new independent bookstore openings nationwide in 2025, the most since the 1990s. Marketplace calls it a striking reversal for an industry that, a decade ago, appeared to be in terminal decline, squeezed first by large chains, then by Amazon, then e-books, which some feared would empty brick-and-mortar shelves entirely. "Sometimes, a good year would be 60 new bookstores, or we only lost 30," John Mutter, co-founder of the trade newsletter Shelf Awareness, told Marketplace. Now Mutter's publication runs so many opening stories that he must space them out just to give each one its moment.
• Interest in opening and operating independent bookstores remains strong, according to CO, the US Chamber of Commerce news site for small businesses. Membership in the American Booksellers Association (ABA), which supports independent bookstore owners, stands at 2,433 in mid-2025, up 255 from the prior year. Around 192 additional bookstores plan to open in the next few years, the ABA said in its annual report. Print sales increased in 2024 and 2025 after two years of decreases, with unit sales of print books up 0.3% in 2025 to 762.4 million, according to Publisher’s Weekly.
• Publishers are printing fewer nonfiction paperbacks, according to Jeffrey Trachtenberg, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal who covers book publishing and media. New adult nonfiction paperback titles have decreased 42% in the past five years, primarily because new books are typically published first in hardcover, e-book, and audiobook format. Consumers who don’t want to pay $32 for a new nonfiction hardcover book can immediately buy the $15 e-book or you could listen to it on audio, and audiobooks are the fastest-growing segment of book publishing, according to Trachtenberg.
• Book store industry employment decreased slightly and average wages for nonsupervisory employees increased slightly during the first seven months of 2026, according to the BLS. Book store sales are forecast to decrease at a 1.45% compounded annual rate from 2026 to 2030, slower than the growth of the overall economy.

Industry size & Structure

The average independent book store operates out of two locations, employs 26 workers and generates $3.1 million annually.

• The book store industry is comprised of 2,570 firms that operate 5,683 stores, employ 65,800 workers and generate $8 billion in annual revenue.
• The industry is concentrated; the top four companies account for 62% of industry revenue.
• Large companies include Barnes & Noble, Follett Corporation, Books-a-Million, and Family Christian Stores.
• The average per-student materials expenditure is about $39 per course or $341 per academic year, according to the National Association for College Stores (NACS).