Skip to content
Creasy Spines

“Every crease is a story.”

The Bookshop Atlas

Bookshops in Canada

832 independent bookshops in 264 towns, 102 of them selling secondhand.

Unfolding the map…

SecondhandAntiquarianNewCharity

Worth the pilgrimage

Featured in Canada

Independent bookshop in Montreal, Canada

The Mile End shop of the comics publisher, opened in 2007.

Comics

Antiquarian in Montreal, Canada · since 2004

A Notre-Dame-de-Grâce neighbourhood favourite since 2004, part bookshop and part record shop, with used fiction, non-fiction, comics and children's books upstairs from a deep crate of vinyl.

General stockRecordsRare editions

Secondhand in Montreal, Canada · since 1975

A tiny secondhand shop in a nineteenth-century brick house steps from McGill, open since 1975. The founders started it in their own apartment; today its shelves are curated for serious readers of literature, philosophy and poetry, and it still pays in cash and keeps its old-fashioned charm.

LiteraturePhilosophyPoetry

Independent bookshop in Toronto, Canada

A Black-owned Annex shop for literature of the Global South and the African and Caribbean diaspora.

Independent bookshop in Toronto, Canada

A Roncesvalles shop focused on equity, diversity and social justice since 1987.

Step-free access

Secondhand in Toronto, Canada

A multi-level Annex shop of used and remaindered books, popular with students and good for art books and fiction at modest prices.

RemaindersGeneral stockArtStep-free access

Independent bookshop in Toronto, Canada

A science-fiction and fantasy specialist, among the oldest of its kind.

Antiquarian in Toronto, Canada

A College Street fixture bursting at the seams with used and antiquarian books, especially art, photography, design, cooking and fiction, with plenty of rare and unusual hardcovers. Creaking hardwood floors and hidden corners make it easy to lose an hour.

Art & designPhotographyFictionRare books

Towns and cities, A–Z

Page 1 of 2. Each has its own guide with a map and, where the shops are close enough, a walking route.

Towns and cities

Finding bookshops in Canada

How many bookshops are listed in Canada?

The Atlas currently lists 832 active bookshops across 264 towns and cities in Canada. This is the number in our directory, not a claim that every shop in the area has been recorded.

Can I find secondhand bookshops in Canada?

102 listed shops are categorised as selling secondhand books. Stock changes frequently; ask a shop directly if you need a particular book.

Are the opening hours and accessibility details checked?

The Atlas displays available source information. A listing without opening hours or access details is incomplete, not necessarily closed or inaccessible. Check each shop's website and confirm anything essential before travelling.

Can I add a shop or correct a listing?

Yes. Send the shop's name, location and a reliable website or other source. Suggestions and corrections are reviewed before changing the Atlas.

Suggest a shop

Shop data © OpenStreetMap contributors, available under the Open Database Licence, with descriptions of featured shops by Creasy Spines. Opening hours change — check before a long journey. Suggest an edit