Question 1

Where is the best place to buy manga? (U.S. only)

Accepted Answer

For new releases, pre-orders and in-print manga, RightStuf Anime was my go-to. Now that RSA has merged into Crunchyroll, only time will tell how CR will compare to the prices, service and user experience that we became accustomed to with RightStuf. So far in Jan. 2024...it's okay. The biggest drawback is CR's customer service, which has been extremely delayed in my experience.

Crunchyroll Prices
With a free account, manga is discounted at 20% by default. With a paid membership, you'll get an additional 15% off that price, just like RightStuf used to have. Outside of that additional discount, the best benefit to a paid membership when it comes to buying manga is the $15 coupon you'll get every quarter (4 times a year) with a Mega fan membership, or a $25 coupon every quarter with the Ultimate fan membership.

For easy math, the standard $11.99 price point of Shonen Jump / Shojo Beat titles is discounted to $9.59 with no membership, and that same volume is $8.15 with a paid membership.

CR's memberships are significantly more expensive than RightStuf's (really missing the $18 / year), with the Ultimate fan membership coming in at $14.99 / month or $179.88 / year. But, considering you get $100 each year with that quarterly $25 coupon, that "reimburses" the cost by $100, given you spend that much on manga regularly. These memberships also have numerous other perks for their anime library, in-person events, and more. You can browse the different membership tiers and perks on Crunchyroll's website.

I am not endorsed or affiliated with Crunchyroll in any way - this is just information I gathered from their website and personal experience.

For out of print and hard to find manga, I usually just scour the internet for anyone that's selling volumes at a reasonable price. Make sure to check out eBay, AbeBooks, Half Price Books, Better World Books, Thrift Books, and there are many many other retailers. eBay is great because you can edit your search to look at the price history of specific volumes. HPB often has popular new releases at half price, like new volumes of My Hero Academia.

I haven't had the best results with condition of volumes from Better World Books (their good is my fair, and I'm not that picky), but they are transparent about whether or not the volumes are ex-library copies. Expect a book in "fair" condition to have folds, creases, indentations, yellowing, and more imperfections, but I assume this also varies by who evaluated a specific book.

ThriftBooks and AbeBooks have a neat feature that allows you to set up notifications when a volume you're looking for becomes available.

This content is not reviewed or sponsored by any of the stores listed above - this is just my personal experience using these retailers.

*If you're outside of the U.S., these stores may not be available to you. If you have recommendations for where to buy new and used manga outside of the U.S., send me a message!

Question 2

What do you use to bag your manga, and why?

Accepted Answer

I use manga sleeves / bags from the brand BCW for my library. I don't bag all of my manga - I reserve the protectors for the most expensive volumes and the oldest and secondhand volumes that maybe weren't in the best condition when I got them. Check out my Complete Guide to Bagging Manga for a list of all the sizes I use and where I buy them, along with examples of what bags are best for the different sized manga in your collection.

I bag manga to keep them in the best condition possible by slowing yellowing and protecting them from general wear and tear. Make sure to read through my Manga Preservation Guide too for more detailed information and resources, including references from libraries and researchers that have done studies on book preservation and longevity.

Question 3

What do you use to keep track of your library?

Accepted Answer

Primarily I use Libib for tracking the volumes I have. This app is free to use and is absolutely fantastic! I've been using Libib for more than 10 years to keep tabs on every single volume in my collection, which has drastically reduced the amount of duplicate volumes I used to buy on accident. If I find a book in store I'm considering buying, I always pull up the app and do a quick search to make sure I don't have it yet.

I use this app every time I buy new volumes by either scanning the barcode on the volume itself (no, you don't need a fancy hand scanner, you can just use your phone's camera) or copy/pasting the ISBN number when I make pre-orders to be sure I don't buy another copy in person.

The biggest feature I think would benefit Libib is a grouping element, where for example you would be able to select "Naruto" and it would then show all 72 volumes of the series, rather than showing all 72 covers by default with no option to minimize for quicker scrolling.

You can use Libib for manga, novels, movies and other media. You can also set up multiple "libraries" so your DVDs aren't grouped together with your manga.

I also have a Google Sheets document where I track other relevant information, such as the status of all my series (ongoing, completed, on hiatus or cancelled). I've set up many formulas to have it automatically count for me how many series I have that are ongoing, how many I still need to complete, etc. I also have the authors and publishers listed on this sheet so I can see how many works I have by the same author, how many series I have that were published by Kodansha, and more fun facts. Work smarter, not harder!

*I am not sponsored by Libib, this is just an account of my personal experience using their app.

Question 4

Do you collect [series name]?

Accepted Answer

Take a browse through my Virtual Library!

Frequently asked questions

Where is the best place to buy manga? (U.S. only)

What do you use to bag your manga, and why?

What do you use to keep track of your library?

Do you collect [series name]?

Questions or suggestions?