Where to currently buy Genki at a more affordable price?

Japanese Language Resources
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So I’ve been trying to get back into my Japanese learning as life has thankfully stabilised a bit now…

I really want to get Genki 1 in physical form (I have it digitally, but I think having it physically would be so much better, psychologically speaking).

I just did some searching, and I honestly wasn’t expecting such prices. £40, £50, some even more. I also want to get the workbook, and apparently that’s pretty much another £20 on top…

Sadly that’s a bit much for my budget, so I was wondering if anyone knew of a site or place where you can buy them a bit… Ehm, cheaper? (And oh, I’m in the UK)

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Unfortunately, this is pretty standard textbook pricing. If you want to save money on a physical copy, you’ve got some options:

  1. Skip the physical workbook and answer key.
  2. Buy a used copy.
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Yep, check secondhand sites. Genki is a very popular textbook so it should be readily available in used condition.

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I thought that would be the case :sob:

I have a little OCD, but I’ll see what I can find anyways!

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Also check for the 2nd edition which might be cheaper than the current 3rd edition.

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Can’t believe I haven’t thought of that. Do you know if the two editions have any important differences? Or are they pretty much the same?

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Anecdotally, I learned Genki I and Genki II using the 2nd edition, then took a class last year that covered the back half of Genki II again using the 3rd edition.

The main differences I can see between my 2nd and 3rd editions of Genki II are updates to terminology and culture notes (ie ソフトの使い方 became アプリの使い方). The reading sections at the back are mostly the same, but I did notice some extra readings in the third edition. According to the 3rd edition textbook itself, the grammar explanations are supposed to be easier and they have more exercises where you look things up on your own.

Other differences are mostly just logistics. The 2nd edition came with a CD of the audio so you’ll need a disc drive to listen to them, but the 3rd edition uses the Oto Navi app instead. The page numbers of the textbooks are a little out of sync as well, but this is only an issue if you’re taking a class and need them to be consistent.

Since you already have the 3rd edition digitally, I think it would be totally fine to use the physical 2nd edition and use the digital 3rd edition as a backup if you’re ever confused.

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Thank you very much for the time you spent on this detailed answer. It is much appreciated :pleading_face::pray:

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Actually fyi the Oto Navi app has all the audio for the 2nd edition which is really nice

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I’ve had some luck on ThriftBooks. It’s US-based, but offers reasonable international shipping rates. For example, after international shipping it looks like this listing would come out to about £25
I haven’t used international shipping from them myself, but when I added to cart and selected international shipping it used a flat rate of $8, and dropping that total in a currency converter came out to about £25.

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I got mine from here, not much cheaper than you’ve seen quoted but it’s all legit and new if that’s route you need to go

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Oh wow, these prices are so much better than what I’ve been seeing! Thank you so much pempem!!!

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Check Amazon Japan, if you haven’t already. When i bought Genki I 2nd Edition a few years ago, it was cheaper than any local option, even after accounting for shipping.