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Vinyl, paperbacks, and rare printed matter. The complete guide to finding the best books & records at Brooklyn thrift and vintage stores.
The Brooklyn Guide
Brooklyn's secondhand book and vinyl scenes are quietly excellent, scattered across the thrift ecosystem rather than concentrated in dedicated shops. Housing Works, Out of the Closet, and Salvation Army locations across the borough maintain strong book sections fed by the reading-intensive populations of brownstone Brooklyn. For vinyl, a handful of shops — Installation Brooklyn in Bed-Stuy, Open Invite in Red Hook — carry curated LP selections alongside clothing, and the Brooklyn Flea at DUMBO brings dedicated vinyl dealers together every weekend.
For books, the Housing Works locations consistently outperform — Brooklyn Heights gets exceptional donations from long-tenured residents with extensive personal libraries. First editions, design books, art photography monographs, and quality fiction surface regularly at prices that feel anachronistic. For records, the market has gotten more competitive as vinyl has recovered, but Brooklyn still offers better prices than Manhattan for patient shoppers. Installation Brooklyn's LP selection has a clear curatorial sensibility — soul, jazz, and rare funk are strengths. The Brooklyn Flea vinyl dealers are more mixed but cover more ground, and the outdoor setting on a clear weekend makes it one of the more enjoyable record-hunting experiences in the city.
Housing Works, Salvation Army
Housing Works, Life Boutique Thrift
Installation Brooklyn, Brooklyn Flea dealers
Best For
Collectors, readers, music enthusiasts, students, and anyone building a home library or record collection.
Curated Picks
6 stores with strong books & records inventory — verified hours and addresses.
williamsburg
A Williamsburg institution since the 1990s, stocking a deep selection of vintage clothing from the 1940s through the 1990s.
williamsburg
Curated vintage boutique known for its color-organized racks, Y2K staples, and accessible prices in the heart of Williamsburg.
williamsburg
Buy/sell/trade shop with a curated mix of contemporary secondhand and designer labels, popular for selling your wardrobe as much as shopping.
williamsburg
National buy/sell/trade chain with a large Williamsburg outpost stocking a broad mix of vintage and current-season secondhand for men and women.
williamsburg
Budget-friendly vintage named for the L subway line, with enormous rotating stock priced $6–$25 in South Williamsburg.
williamsburg
Family-owned vintage shop in South Williamsburg specializing in 1940s–1990s American clothing, denim, outerwear, and vintage sneakers.