They are INEPT!!! Why oh why did I do an online order? I should've learned my lesson from last time. Why does it take them 3 weeks to fill a simple order? Because they're lazy/stupid/incompetent/and just don't care. The last email they sent me said that only 1 of 3 items was ready for pickup. So I called today to check the status and the guy says all items are there. Why didn't they notify me??? Their system (if they even have one) and/or the employees should be ashamed of being affiliated with a fine university like Stanford. Do yourself a favor and NEVER order anything from them.! Or you'll be sorry. read more

This is a grand and beautiful bookstore. They had an array of school paraphernalia available from apparel, shoes, blankets, cups and books (of course) authored by alumni. After taking some time to peruse their offerings, I opted to purchase a hat, jacket, clear handle bag, and a cup. The staff at the registers moved the line efficiently and were extremely pleasant during my interactions with them. read more

I don't do negative reviews but my experience with Stanford Bookstore has been nothing short of the WORST. I ordered a Swim & Dive team sweatshirt on 12/1/2025 for a gift for grandson who follows their swim team. I have tried relentlessly to get details on my order - they had several when I called to check after 2 weeks and had no update on "process". Left msgs, sent manager emails, when I did finally speak with someone was promised to have manager call, NOTHING. Now...1/18/2026 get a cancelled ordered email. HORRIBLE communication skill. HORRIBLE customer service. I have been patient, understanding and gave grace - but NOTHING absolutely NOTHING. Sad Stanford...you can support your Swim & Dive supporters better. read more

Not a great experience on the website. I thought dealing with a great university wouldn't have these issues but I did. Never again. I purchased two items and returned the higher price item and they credited me for the lower price item that I hadn't sent back. read more

It took a 3-4 extra weeks, but all ordered products made it to their destination and in good shape.

Very friendly staffs here~~~ A cafe inside of the store. Good location, close to the living community. read more

What a great space! We visited with the intention to start the process to inquire about university options!

Big, beautiful bookstore! I love how there's 3 different levels with big signs to help differentiate. It seems like employees are also on the floor working and switching things up. Downstairs wasn't complete, but there is the clearance section. Scored a long sleeve T-shirt regularly $45 for $16! Employees are kind. There's also a cafe upstairs. Saw a gnat enclosed where the pastries were but my veggie samosa was amazingggggggg. Seating outside and upstairs by the cafe, but there's also some comfy chairs by the children's section. read more

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Look I love bookstores. There is something about them that appeals to me. Like hardware stores, stationary stores, Hallmark stores, there is an irresistible draw that pulls me inside and keeps me there milling about. The Stanford Bookstore is in many way just like any other book store you would find on a major University Campus. The ground floor has some books, and a giant Stanford logo shop with everything from Steins to underwear adorned with the University name or mascot. No doubt many a proud parent has dropped serious coin to garner a bit of swag to take home. The top floor has a small cafe, a book store, and the technology store. The tech store is noteworthy because if you work at the university or are a student they will give you academic pricing on Apple products. Its not a huge discount mind you but every bit helps. The book store is an old school type with tons of books organized by category and there is ample seating to browse a potential new acquisition. The lower levels contain volumes of textbooks and the like and I seldom venture down there as I am not a student here. The book store makes an excellent stop as part of any walking tour of the campus. It is close to many eateries, outdoor art installations, and a Starbucks so it makes a perfect resting stop. read more

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All the stores for the employees of the Stanford bookstore. Endlessly friendly and welcoming of any and all questions. I felt bad asking for them to see if there were Mediums of many things. Docked a couple stars for various reasons listed below: - The quality and design of the clothes just feels a little tacky - There are literally no mediums of anything - They discontinued Patagonia branded clothes - They offer no discount for students - The place is understaffed -- I feel bad for the limited staff I ended buying a shirt and tank for $60 total. One of them is Nike branded. I'm wearing it today it feels ok quality wise. read more

Got me some affordable shirts here ... like $12.99. But this is after I went to the back of the store, it's tucked by the window. Now that that's out of the way... let us proceed. The place is impressive with a huge array of Stanford merchandise for the big and small. Second floor is all about books, textbooks and others where you can also stay for some reading. They also have knick knacks, books and snacks for students and visitors to buy. It's a treat to visit when you come here, buy your (pricey) souvenir and do a bit of people watching. read more

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Nice place for window shopping at Stanford University. Everything is just overpriced even in the clearance section. The upper floor has a large area for kids and gifts, and I really like it. It's a nice place to take a break for visitors. read more

Stanford Bookstore - Bookstores Near Me - Stanford, California

I love this bookstore. It's a wholesome stores from books, electronics, accessories and etc. High quality materials products and items

This is probably the best college bookstore I've been to! Everyone here is so nice and helpful, one of the store employees Serena helped me look for a specific shirt design. This store has a delicious cafe and is pretty dang clean for a college. All in all it was a smooth experience with a lot of cool people that work there. read more

Pretty huge Bookstore- similar layout as CSULBs. Clothing, school supplies, tech, eats, tons in this bookstore to browse and buy. Standford campus is huge however the bookstore isn't that difficult to find. Really nice naturalistic campus surrounded by local retail and eats. Plenty to check out in the book store for School Pride gear. During the summer and on a weekday the store was pretty busy. read more

Great bookstore in the middle of campus. Stairs are in the middle of the floor plan with a lot of great inventory for all ages. Very nice gifts and student Stanford items. read more

I ordered an item online for pick up at the store. When I arrived the item was not ready for pick up and I spent 45 minutes waiting for customer service to find the item for me . I prepaid for 30 minutes of parking, so my wait time exceeded my parking time. Management needs to address the poor customer service . Only one person was on the front lines helping customers an the other staff were just chatting while we waited in line. Definitely there is room for improvement read more

The Stanford Bookstore is one of my favourite places to visit as an alumna. Yes, things are more expensive here than at Target or another store, but you are paying for convenience. This was always the reason for me as an undergraduate when the Marguerite was so unreliable and before Stanford and Palo Alto became more gentrified than it already had been 10 years ago. Anyhow, I enjoy shopping for memorabilia and custom Hello Kitty items here, and then wearing them at Stanford events in Southern California. I also enjoy collecting the glassware and checking out the sales they have from time to time. If you are a Stanford Alumni Association member, let the cashier know to get an additional 15% (I think this is the number) off! read more

Come for the cows! Each and every December, the folks here have been offering free stuffed Stanford cows, cute and cuddly, to those who plop down $100 in merchandise and marked-down books. It's a great marketing gimmick, to be sure, but it makes for something of a tradition around these parts. And whenever you can invent a tradition like this, you have a real winner. You don't need Eric Hobsbawm and Terence Ranger to tell you! The annual cow auction is SO much better than the idiotic and utterly cruel practice of impaling a hapless Oski on the Claw fountain nearby before the Stanford/Cal football game each fall. This year, the senseless student boosters even lynched some extra Oskis for good measure, a wantonly cruel (and historically offensive) act that led the pigskin gods to punish the Cardinal and bestow Berkeley with the gridiron victory. Stop killing stuffed animals, Stanford people! You are so not helping your karma. And the bloody Claw looks terrible, even after the "bearial" has faded into memory. Oski does not forget! read more

Stanford Bookstore - Stanford cows 2008 & 2009 - Bookstores Near Me - Stanford, California

I was in great need of some very specific mangas , running pretty low on hope. thankfully on a whim a very nice book clerk named Chrystal or Krystal came to the rescue! Thanks to their help I was able to find the My Hero Acadamia Manga and even things like my favorite chainsaw man! If you need help looking for any manga come here! ask for Chrystal with a K for any manga related inquiries!!!! read more

The Stanford Bookstore is not, I suppose, a perfect bookstore. It's giant, with a sort of corporate feel, the atmosphere a bit lacking in character. That said, it is a university bookstore serving a giant campus that is said, unfairly, I believe, to resemble an enormous Taco Bell. I spent some happy years at Stanford, and during that time, I visited this bookstore on a very regular basis. Like most students, I spent most of my money here downstairs, on textbooks. I actually loved buying my books every quarter. The books were separated by department, and I never bought my English books without browsing the reading for other classes. I ended up buying off syllabi for classes I found interesting but never took, and this was a great way to supplement my literary education. Other departments offered less interesting browsing, but textbooks were readily available and easy to find, usually with used options. The main floor of the bookstore offers a full selection of fiction and non-fiction, with what I'd guess is a wider range than your average local bookstore, whether chain or independent. I loved browsing the fiction shelves during my time here, and I bought quite a few books from the display tables and among the many tall shelves. The back of the main floor and the third floor of the bookstore serve a different purpose altogether. There, you can buy Stanford gear, from tree paraphernalia to license plate frames to neckties. I'm wearing a pair of Stanford pajama shorts right now. I've had them since college, and they've held up just fine. The third floor also holds a small electronics store and a coffee shop, both of which I frequented a couple times over the years. Service is great - there are always a number of cashiers working, and they move things along quick and friendly. When I was a student, there was a low-tech stamp card sort of deal for non-textbook book purchases. I think every ten purchases got you $10 off, or something like that. I don't know if the bookstore still does this, but that was nice. Since I graduated, I've found a few independent bookstores I love dearly. I have a neighborhood bookstore where the people know me and my dog by name. The Stanford Bookstore is not that kind of store. Still, I feel a great amount of affection for this place. I will never visit campus without stopping in for a browse, at least for old times' sake. read more

Like every school, they have a bookstore. Stanford's bookstore is located in a pretty central location on campus, near the main quad and the student center. When you first walk up the steps there are occasional outdoor tents with massive sales (50-75% off)). There is a large assortment of apparel and gear. There are three floors. Main floor: The main floor has stanford branded apparel, general books like you'd find in a bookstore, as well as stanford souvenirs and trinkets. Pretty standard stuff. Bottom floor: The bottom floor contains all of the school supplies you need for class, as well as the books for each class at Stanford. Top floor: The top floor contains a cafe, more books of various subjects (geared towards adults and specialized learning), and a technology center. The technology center has special discounts for students and stanford affiliates on laptops, electronics, and other tech products. Expert tip: Don't forget to bring your own bags because they charge .10/bag. read more

Stanford Bookstore - View from coffee shop on 2nd floor - Bookstores Near Me - Stanford, California

The bookstore is overpriced, as are all bookstores on every single college campus. I was surprised at how big the bookstore was. Once I got onto the 2nd floor, I was surprised to see more and more aisles of books! There is a cafe on the 2nd floor that's great for studying and grabbing a quick bite. I'm not from NorCal, so I forgot that you get charged extra for bags. So when they asked if I wanted a bag or not during checkout, I got charged. Oh well, lesson learned. read more

Stanford Bookstore - Bookstores Near Me - Stanford, California

Just discovered another minus-- like most university bookstores, their textbooks are overpriced. But unlike most university bookstores, they're pretty awful at listing which titles you'll need online. AND at having everything you'll need in stock. Plus, wifi isn't available on the textbook floor. Pretty inconvenient if you're trying to compare prices! read more

I love going to the Stanford Bookstore. Very topical and thought provoking book selection, as you might expect. Good customer service. Wide selection of unexpected items, interesting to explore. Know before you go: Parking can be challenging. If driving, the Tresidder garage is your best bet. The Marguerite shuttle can take you there directly from the Palo Alto California Caltran station, check the schedule https://transportation.stanford.edu/marguerite read more

I'm giving this place 3 stars because I paid $10 for literally one deck of cards. That is a little unreal -- I don't care if they're a Stanford Set or whatever, $10 for a single deck of cards is ridiculous and I'll never be a fan of places that overprice for the sake of "prestige" or whatever. It was nothing special. Anyway I did think the place was huge! It was really beautiful to walk in and see all the things that a bookstore could hold. There was a whole clothes section on the bottom floor and a cafe on the second. Books everywhere! It was so hard for me not to get distracted on my goal for what I needed to buy in the first place. All the staff was nice in helping me find what I needed (even the girl at the cafe helped me out!) and I was quick in and out with everything. Great for new visitors and people who are students because there's so many places to sit and read or relax. In the heart of campus too the location was great! I don't think I'll be back again anytime soon since I have no reason to, but it was a cool experience. read more

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Buying a few onesies and hooded sweatshirt on sale. My boyfriend also got himself an adjustable baseball cap. There is a dressing room in the back. I tried to buy another shirt online but they use FedEx, so the delivery was returned instead of going to my P. O. Box. They ignored my email request for a refund. read more

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Nice bookstore. Lots of t-shirts and souvenirs. Downside is that it's hard to find because there's not a lot of maps around. Also, some of the apparel is overpriced, but we still found a great deal in the clearance section. Bookstore is modern and clean, but not a lot of employees to help with questions. Definitely worth a stop if you visit the beautiful campus. read more

Fully functional bookstore. I meant if I was a Stanford student I probably would grab some useful textbook from here. Just maybe. As a tourist and first time the only thing that would expect from here is some sort of souvenir that worth this once in a lifetime memory. I searched the whole store but found nothing SPECIAL. Same sort of souvenir you bought else where instead here has some "Stanford" emblem. That's is. read more

Stanford Bookstore - This is where our journey of Stanford began. - Bookstores Near Me - Stanford, California

It is nice to get Stanford goods for friends back home. I don't buy Stanford pencils for me but bought running pants here. It is nice because people talk to me friendly while I am running with them. I also bought Macbook here. Nothing very special to buy here, but it's nice to buy computer close by. read more

Finally writing a review of this place. I've worked on campus for over 6 years and definitely took this place for granted. They consistently provide friendly service, clean store, and knowledgable staff. They were absolutely stellar last week though. Every year, Stanford Bookstore provides a "Faculty and Staff Appreciation Event" in which everything is sold to faculty and staff at 20% off. Of course, I want to take advantage of that. I finished up my Xmas shopping for family at a nice discount. That's not all! They also provided free gift wrapping and super friendly service no matter how busy they were. They, just like every place on this campus, aims to be the best at what they do. I will always appreciate their great customer service and will not take them for granted again. Cheers Stanford Bookstore! read more

Stanford Bookstore - Xmas shopping DONE! - Bookstores Near Me - Stanford, California

Not sure why they call this a bookstore. It is a gift shop, mainly for tourists. Very strange!

I had to stop by Stanford since I was in the area! The bookstore was awesome. They had a bunch of hoodies & t-shirts on clearance so I had to get me one! Yea I'm faking the funk but whatever! It'll be a social experiment to see if I get treated differently. LOL They get an extra star for introducing me to the most hilarious book I have bought in a long time, "I Hope They Serve Beer In Hell" read more

The Stanford Bookstore is *EPIC.* It's got textbooks, Stanford paraphenalia, even a coffee shop. It's a bookstore with EVERYTHING. It's centrally located on the campus, and not that far from the famous Chapel. It makes for a pleasant afternoon. The religion/philosophy sections are okay, but all in all it makes a fun afternoon. read more

Came by last month, browsed around, used the upstairs restroom, and was reminded of how lucky I am to have gone to the school that bleeds blue & gold instead. :) read more

Surprisingly, given my overall high opinion of Stanford, this bookstore has the RUDEST and most unhelpful people working for it. I bought a book as a gift for my sister, and needed to return it (it wasn't the one she wanted) I didn't have my receipt but had the credit card I purchased it on as well as my bank statement showing the purchase and when I tried to speak to the manager her response was to not look at me, say no and walk away. In all fairness, she's allowed to say no if store policy requires it-- I get that (oh and by the way, all I wanted was some store credit) but the fact that she was so blatantly rude about it, tells me all I need to know about whether I make future purchases there or not. (in my opinon rudeness is just not acceptable in any situation) Plus the prices here just aren't all that great. RUDE MANAGERS and HIGH PRICES.... heck, enjoy the sunshine of Stanford campus, eat at the yummy cafe's, daydream all you want about someday attending but when you're done and good and need to pick up a couple of books, head downtown to the cheaper, customer friendly Borders on University Ave. read more

Many years ago, I visited Stanford via a high school class field trip. Being the book lover that I am, I was bummed at not being able to visit one of the largest university bookstores in the country. I finally got to go in today because we brought our Sunday youth class here on a field trip. While the amount of Stanford gear is understandable, it just takes away from the bookstore experience. Harvard has a better book store, in my opinion--four floors of books! The number, and selection, of books of the Stanford bookstore can be improved. But, at least it is better than a lot of other university bookstores (and other bookstores, for that matter). read more

I was surprised at the sight of the bookstore when I first walked in, the bottom floor is literally only clothing, souvenirs, all sorts of items with the words Stanford, on them. Mostly T-shrts,, and sweatshirts. Candy and holiday related items were also very popular in the store. The have a nice area on the second floor for electronics. Only the newest devices stay here. The Apple products and the WIndows products were separated, from the opposite side, the Apple products were on the left and the Windows products were on the right . They had a lot of cool gadgets such as the new iPad mini, Mac book pros, the IdeaPad, and the HP Envy 3115M . They had really cool keyboard covers with the word Stanford Imprinted on top of the whole keyboard. They also sold some computer bags, and cases. DESK JET HP 3050A printers where all over the place. The Café was directly across from the electronics area, they sold hot cocoa, coffee, ice cream, Popsicles, candy, gum, mints, juice, water, chips, and all sorts of other junk food. I was disappointed when I saw that they were short on pastries! But what helped recover from that major sink, was the fact that, if you brought your own mug to the café, they promised to give your coffee for only 50 cents! Last but not least, the books! They were placed on the second floor in between The books varied just like a normal book store would. At the time that I came they had the Stanford books out on a special stand at the front of the entrance to where the books were. Parking is complicated. I prefer biking or walking to this area. From the outside, the store seems like a seriously quiet place. But on the inside, it was a warm, and welcoming store with the noise level just at the right place where you could feel like you could still talk without having a lady tap you to say that you were too loud, and yet you weren't in an isolated and dead-silent library. Overall, a great place to hang out with your friends, kids, colleges, relatives... ;] read more

The school is such a gorgeous place to visit and walk around if you are in the San Francisco area. I love visiting schools just to see the type of students it accepts and the campus itself, and the whole vibe of the school. Of course I had to get a souvenir from the bookstore! Trevor at the bookstore had such excellent customer service. He stayed open later and even help us to find exactly what we were looking for! read more

Ah, the Stanford Bookstore. Anytime I have friends or family who visit, I can guarantee that they'll want to come to the bookstore and buy something with "STANFORD" on it. I guess it's not such a big deal when you see it everyday but it's a nice place to grab some coffee, grab a (last minute) textbook or browse computer stuff. I did happen to pick up a nice (past season) Macbook Pro and AppleCare for less than what I would at the actual Apple Store or online. They sometimes will have specials and bundle computers with printers. Overall it's a nice place to have on campus. read more