Where the concierge points people first
- Perdu Bookstore — A poetry and small-press shop on the Kloveniersburgwal that doubles as a reading room. If you want to see what Dutch literature is doing right now, and not what it did in translation twenty years ago, this is the counter to stand at. (52.3689, 4.8963)
- Lambiek — Founded in 1968 and one of the oldest comic shops anywhere. Dutch and Belgian albums, international graphic novels, and staff who have been answering obscure questions for decades. (52.3625, 4.8963)
- Het Fort van Sjakoo — A political and alternative bookshop on the Jodenbreestraat with its roots in the squatting movement. Pamphlets, radical history and zines, many of them in English. (52.3692, 4.9019)
- Xantippe Unlimited — On the Prinsengracht, started as a women's bookshop and now one of the strongest general stocks of English-language fiction and non-fiction in the canal belt. (52.3704, 4.8824)
- Kookboekhandel — A shop that sells nothing but cookbooks and food writing, on the Haarlemmerdijk. Good for a present, dangerous for luggage allowance. (52.3835, 4.8853)
- Evenaar Literaire Reisboekhandel — Travel writing rather than travel guides, on the Singel. The place to find something to read on the way to wherever you are going next. (52.3703, 4.8877)
The rest of the bookshops in Amsterdam — every one we hold
- A La Carte Reisboekhandel (52.3617, 4.8989)
- Ako (52.3391, 4.8734)
- Ako (52.3890, 4.8384)
- AKO Amsterdam Beethovenstraat (52.3489, 4.8769)
- Amsterdam Bookshelf (52.3608, 4.8233)
- Antiquariaat Lont (52.3773, 4.8883)
- Antiquarian Bookshop Hieronymus Bosch (52.3798, 4.8312)
- Artibooks (52.3804, 4.8868)
- Athenaeum Boekhandel Roeterseiland (52.3623, 4.9115)
- Au Bout Du Monde (52.3704, 4.8887)
- Bestseller Amsterdam (52.3513, 4.8562)
- Bestseller Amsterdam (52.3471, 4.9051)
- Bestseller Amsterdam (52.3646, 4.8627)
- Black and White Bookstore (52.3612, 4.8994)
- Boekenstal Albert Cuyp (52.3552, 4.8918)
- BoekenVoordeel 106 (52.3989, 4.9369)
- Boekhandel de Dolfijn (52.3829, 4.8869)
- Boekhandel De Slegte (52.3657, 4.8932)
- Boekhandel Jimmink (52.3449, 4.9008)
- Boekhandel Mulder (52.3555, 4.8708)
- Boekhandel Schimmelpennink (52.3597, 4.8926)
- Boekhandel Van Pampus (52.3772, 4.9396)
- Boekhandel Van Rossum (52.3494, 4.8773)
- Boekhandel Veenstra (52.3654, 4.8975)
- Boekmanstichting (52.3676, 4.8874)
- Books 4 Life (52.3694, 4.8957)
- Booksbooks (52.3689, 4.9002)
- Bruna (52.3512, 4.8507)
- Bruna (52.3466, 4.9055)
- Bruna (52.3805, 4.8227)
- Bruna (52.3581, 4.9132)
- Bruna (52.3626, 4.9292)
- Bruna (52.3647, 4.8840)
- Bruna (52.3660, 4.8685)
- Bruna (52.3755, 4.8950)
- Bruna (52.3981, 4.9383)
- Bruna Amsterdam (52.3570, 4.9286)
- Bruna Diemen (52.3421, 4.9628)
- Casperle Kinder- en jeugdboekwinkel (52.3555, 4.8983)
- Comfyboston (52.3721, 4.8979)
- De Boeken van Wouter (52.3948, 4.9583)
- De Herkansing (52.3631, 4.8560)
- De Kinderboekwinkel (52.3691, 4.8891)
- De Kinderboekwinkel (52.3737, 4.8815)
- De Terechte Kronkel (52.3544, 4.9006)
- Dennis Buist (52.3631, 4.8832)
- Dilara Boekhandel (52.3789, 4.8460)
- EduCulture (52.3621, 4.9254)
- El Rincon Del Libro (52.3637, 4.8781)
- En Soi (52.3533, 4.8479)
- Erasmus Bookstore (52.3682, 4.9383)
- Exalto in Boeken (52.3695, 4.8896)
- Helden & Boeven Kinderboeken (52.3656, 4.8767)
- Het Leeshuis (52.3842, 4.9055)
- Het Martyrium (52.3533, 4.8816)
- Himalaya (52.3757, 4.8972)
- Idea Books (52.3958, 4.8674)
- ILM Books (52.3549, 4.8118)
- Kaftwerk (52.3734, 4.9048)
- Kok Antiquariaat A (52.3713, 4.8974)
- L.J. Harri Nautische Instrumenten en Zeekaarten (52.3764, 4.9023)
- Lezen op School (52.3989, 4.9366)
- Libris (52.3350, 4.8677)
- Libris (52.3494, 4.8774)
- Libris (52.3449, 4.9008)
- Libris (52.3555, 4.8708)
- Libris (52.3548, 4.8787)
- Libris (52.3663, 4.8690)
- Libris (52.3689, 4.8891)
- Libris (52.3721, 4.8934)
- Libris (52.3788, 4.8859)
- Libris (52.3789, 4.9002)
- Libris (52.3699, 4.9005)
- Libris (52.3829, 4.8869)
- Libris (52.3989, 4.9366)
- Mendo (52.3703, 4.8838)
- Pantheon Boekhandel (52.3700, 4.9006)
- Pegasus Uitgeverij en Boekhandel (52.3692, 4.8882)
- Photobook store (52.3676, 4.8850)
- Pied a terre (52.3620, 4.8731)
- Plantage Overtoom (52.3638, 4.8782)
- Reisboekhandel A LA CARTE (52.3700, 4.9006)
- Robert Premsela Bookstore (52.3572, 4.8789)
- Rvkcosta (52.3431, 4.8252)
- Stadsboekwinkel Amsterdam (52.3643, 4.8924)
- TASCHEN Store Amsterdam (52.3608, 4.8823)
- Tennis Club Bookshop (52.3601, 4.8656)
- The Book Nook (52.3772, 4.8918)
- The House of Books (52.3327, 4.9190)
- Uitgeverij & Boekhandel Bas Lubberhuizen (52.3688, 4.8883)
- V/h Polk Amsterdam (52.3506, 4.9083)
- Van Pampus Boekhandel (52.3730, 4.9387)
- Volkswarenhuis (52.3712, 4.8975)
- Willy Demacker Books (52.3532, 4.9006)
Dutch books cost the same everywhere, English ones do not
The Netherlands has a fixed book price law, the vaste boekenprijs: a new Dutch-language book sells at the price the publisher sets, whether you buy it at a chain branch or a tiny independent. The law does not cover English-language books, so those prices are set by each shop and can differ noticeably between two streets. For second-hand, the Friday book market on the Spui is the long-standing answer — stalls of old and used titles, many in English, a few steps from the independent shops around the square.
Questions people ask
How many bookshops are there in Amsterdam?
Num's directory maps 100 bookshops in Amsterdam, including chain branches (the Libris and Bruna names account for many of them) and a long tail of independents and specialists.
Where can I buy English books in Amsterdam?
Most general bookshops carry an English section, and Xantippe Unlimited has a particularly deep one. Prices for English titles are not fixed by law, so they vary from shop to shop.
Where is the second-hand book market in Amsterdam?
On the Spui, on Fridays. The antiquarian shops in the directory are another route if you are after something specific.
Ask Num which Amsterdam bookshop stocks the book you are after
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