Which Vinyl Records Have Value And How To Sell Them
Looking to declutter your space and make some extra cash? Look no further than We Buy Records Chicago! Sell your old records effortlessly and turn your vinyl treasures into instant money! We strongly feel that selling your old records to a trusted local record store like us is your best option. And we make house calls!
Which types of records have value? What kinds of records do you want to buy?
Rock (1950s-present)
Jazz (mid 1950s-present)
R&B / Soul
Heavy Metal
Punk / New Wave
Alternative / Underground
Dance Music (Disco / House / Techno)
Hip Hop / Rap
World Music such as Reggae, Latin and African
Which types of records do not have value?
While there are some exceptions to most of these, in general these genres are not in demand.
Big Band / Swing
Most classical (50s/60s UK and audiophile pressings excluded)
Most country (earlier 50s/60s titles excluded)
Polka
Easy Listening
Crooner (Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Sammy Davis Jr, etc.)
Readers Digest Sets
Kids
Christmas
78s - almost 99.9% of 78RPMs do not have value. The most common exceptions are some black blues artists and Elvis on Sun. 78s are the thick, shellac 10” records from the early to mid 20th Century.
What types of records do I have? Here is a simple guide!
LPs*
LP stands for Long Play or Long Playing. LPs are widely known as “albums”. They’re also known as “33s,” because they play at 33 revolutions per minute. LPs are usually 12” in diameter, have a several songs on each side, and are typically packaged inside cardboard covers showcasing the band’s album artwork.
*LPs need to be in sleeves for consideration of value
45s (7”)
45s feature one song on each side and were famously played in jukeboxes across America. 45s are 7” in diameter and were typically originally sold with a plain paper sleeve.
12” Singles
12″ singles are the same size as LPs, but have only one song on each side - often called an A-side and B-side. A-sides typically had one popular song from an album or single. The B-side was used for alternate songs from the album, remixes or live recordings. These were made for DJs and often came in plain or generic sleeves.
Unusual size, color or shape
Records aren’t always round, and they’re not always black. In fact, vinyl records have been printed in different sizes, shapes and even colors and pictures printed in them. If you have something unusual to share with us, don’t hesitate to bring it along!
Do Record and Sleeve Conditions Affect Value?
The short answer is yes! Very much so. Click here for a quick guide on how to tell general conditions of records. A record can only have it’s full value if it is very clean inside and out. This said, most collections that we see are not in perfect condition and many still have good value. A record that may sell for $20 if it’s mint will still be worth $5-10 in medium condition. Multiply that times your whole collection and you could still be looking at a great payout offer!