Where to buy CDs online

Building your CD collection in the age of streaming isn’t as weird as it used to be. Lots of people still collect CDs, and even most major artists still release their music on physical discs because of how tried-and-true the endlessly useful medium is. CDs have incredible quality audio, and can be useful in many situations where you don’t have (or don’t want) internet access. Plus, when you own a CD, it’s yours forever — unlike streaming.

If you’re looking to buy CDs online and build your collection, there are, thankfully, a lot of great places to buy them both new and used. Some are more expensive or ethical than others, so you can be discerning when it comes to where you source your CDs.

1 Discogs has nearly every CD you can imagine

From pricey mint-condition albums to well-loved ones

Buying used CDs off Discogs is an easy way to source CDs from anywhere in the world, with varying levels of rarity and condition, as well as specificity when it comes to issues and reissues. You can find the most specific things on there, and sellers are often really detailed when it comes to all the features and quirks of the CDs they’re selling.

I recommend Discogs as your first place to look because not only is it often more budget-friendly, but buying secondhand is always the better choice. You’re not contributing to any excess waste or overproduction when you buy secondhand, and you’re giving money to regular people or small record stores a lot of the time when you buy CDs off Discogs.

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2 Search through eBay

A classic place to buy secondhand items, eBay has a ton of CDs

You can find a lot of gems on eBay, and similar to Discogs, sellers are often quite specific about the details and features of the CDs they’re selling down to the year and location they were released, as well as current specific conditions. You can find a lot of affordable CDs on eBay, and being able to bid on them can keep your purchases even more budget-friendly.

Be careful of exorbitant shipping costs, since that can happen a lot on eBay. Frequently, sellers will list an album for an extremely low cost, but the shipping will be $20. It also depends on your location and the general cost of shipping in your locale.

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3 Buy from your favorites on Bandcamp

It has everything from international pop bands to niche local ones

If you want to buy a new CD from an artist, especially smaller artists and independent artists, Bandcamp is a fantastic place to buy albums from. Bandcamp takes only 10% of profits off merchandise sales, including physical CDs, from artists. This makes Bandcamp a great way to support your favorite artists while giving them a good share of profits with transparency. Additionally, Bandcamp occasionally has an event called “Bandcamp Friday” in which 100% of the profits from sales go directly to artists and labels.

Most local and independent artists will have a page on Bandcamp, so if you’re looking to buy CDs from more niche artists, you’re very likely to find them there. A lot of physical CDs bought on Bandcamp also come with a digital copy, which is quite convenient and offers the best bang for your buck.

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4 Buy CDs directly from labels

Smaller labels tend to sell CDs through artists’ online merch stores

Many music labels have their own online stores where you can purchase merchandise, including CDs, directly from them. This is usually the case with smaller independent labels, or subsidiary labels of bigger ones. But if you like a variety of artists that are all signed to the same label, it’s worth checking if they have an online store where you can purchase CDs, so you can get a variety of them all at once.

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5 Amazon is an option, but not always the best

I’d recommend one of the above before Amazon, but you can find a lot on there

You can buy nearly every CD under the sun on Amazon. While you can find a lot on the site — and often get free, convenient shipping alongside it — it’s not necessarily going to be the most morally or ethically fulfilling online CD shopping option.

I’d recommend Amazon as a last resort when shopping for CDs online, since you’ll probably want to support your favorite artists more directly if you’re buying new CDs, or source high quality used ones from marketplaces more specifically geared toward selling quality secondhand CDs. If you can’t find the CD you’re looking for anywhere else though, Amazon is a fine option.

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