The 10 Best Online Vinyl Stores

Looking to get started with buying records online? Want to get the inside scoop on where exactly to direct your attention so that you can get the most out of an online vinyl store?

Well, come on in as we explore the ins and outs of buying records online, where to look for the best deals and information, as well as some examples of sites dedicated to specific genres.

Table of Contents

• 1. Discogs
• 2. Amoeba
• 3. Presto Classical
• 4. DustyGroove
• 5. Boomkat
• 6. Experience Vinyl
• 7. EIL
• 8. eBay
• 9. Turntable Lab
• 10. VNYL
• Final Tones
• FAQs Online Vinyl Store

1. Discogs

Nowadays, Discogs is an institution unto itself, but this has not always been so. Indeed, Discogs has not always been one of the best online vinyl stores. Their place in the popular cultural landscape is a direct result of considered and pragmatic marketing. As well as word of mouth.

This is just about the most extensive record collection available on the market. Discogs may not necessarily have what you are looking for. However, they will certainly have all the necessary information that you would need to go on and find it elsewhere. This can be anything from the year of issue to the differences in inner sleeve art between pressings.

This is an unbeatable and extensive database that should be on the hot bar of any vinyl record collector. Though with an inimitable local record store feel as a result of the hive-mind of admins.

This is a place where music lovers could easily lose whole months in. The stock is to the brim with information and wit. For both buyer and seller, Discogs is difficult to beat.

2. Amoeba

Still, if independent record stores are more your flavor, then Amoeba Music in Berkeley is the largest and most successful in the whole world.

Of course, what with the age of the internet, you do not have to be in California to reap the benefits of local record stores. Their database is incredibly extensive, and their stock is replete with goodies to explore.

The benefit of a company like Amoeba is that it is technically still a record store. So you are getting a cultivated pick of records when you explore it rather than a database of all the records available.

Vinyl collectors ought to take note, then, and follow where their ears take them next.

3. Presto Classical

Of course, if classical music is more your thing and you want to stay abreast of all the new releases of your favorite symphonies, then Presto Classical has you covered.

This is an invaluable resource if you are looking to search far and wide for your favorite composers.

Modern streaming services do not cater to the authorship inherent in classical music. In this genre, a composer creates music that continues to be performed and recorded for centuries.

The same goes for online vinyl stores. This may be a difficult area to navigate. But thankfully, Presto has designed its whole website with this inherent authorship and reproduction in mind.

4. DustyGroove

Narrowing our scope even further, we can look deep into the crate of the internet and find DustyGroove, another popular online vinyl store. This is a service that offers up some of the latest choices in funk, soul, reggae, and jazz for your record player.

If you are anything like me, then you will be an esteemed fan of that warm vinyl sound. Especially when it is being used as a vessel for deep and bassy music.

This is, after all, kind of what vinyl does best. Its frequencies are incredibly bottom-heavy (in a way that we are thankful for).

DustyGroove does other genres, of course. But its real specialties lie in this area of the vinyl pantheon, where each vinyl enthusiast is truly tested.

Of particular note is the discount and bargain section on the site. Very often, this is simply used as a vehicle to sell LPs that would otherwise not have been sold. But here, it seems well-curated and deserving of attention.

5. Boomkat

For the inner hoarder and DJ within us all, Boomkat offers a righteous service as an online vinyl store where you can find particularly rare cuts for competitive prices.

This is the kind of outlet that is going to especially sate the collector who thinks they have heard it all already. Places like Boomkat are where you go when you want to hear something you truly have not heard before.

Whether it be hip-hop, electronic, classical, avant-garde, or anything in between, Boomkat have you covered. This outlet does tend to veer towards more recent releases, so do be warned.

6. Experience Vinyl

If you were reading through the Amoeba section and liked the idea of a curated selection of music for you to choose from, then maybe Experience Vinyl is an online vinyl store worthy of your attention.

This company offers an esteemed service of curation. A record club that cultivates a collection of records without the need to subscribe on a monthly subscription.

The company presses releases that it deems interesting and/or rare each month (which you are under no obligation to buy).

Previous releases have included a 500-disc limited pressing of Elliott Smith’s unfinished final album From a Basement on the Hill. In addition to a blue pressing of Leon Russel’s self-titled LP and a limited red vinyl pressing of Sly & the Family Stone’s Fresh.

The list goes on and is incredibly varied each month. Much like the price range, going anywhere from around $25 to hundreds upon hundreds.

7. EIL

Much has been made of just how dated the website of this online vinyl store looks. But who can complain when the goodies it offers are truly exclusive?

The EIL website itself even states: ‘Yes, we know the design of our website looks a little bit dated to some, but others think its cool retro looks match the records we sell, and we focus our time on buying and selling mint condition records, not design.’

This is a haven for physical media. It offers forth a suppository of rare vinyl and other media must-haves that can scarcely go wrong.

This is an especially useful resource for collectors in the States who want to get their hands on a lot of the rare and interesting songs that have not been exported there.

Thus, EIL is an especially essential source of new music for those who are particularly bent toward European cuts.

8. eBay

This is not an online vinyl store that is exclusively designed for the buying and selling of media like vinyl. But owing to years of trial and error has become a great place to buy and sell all things.

And vinyl is no exception. I have personally found some real steals on eBay over the years. The main caveat with eBay, at least for me, is the fact that it is not entirely dedicated to selling records and the like.

This makes navigating it a little more difficult than, say, Discogs or Amoeba, whose entire interface is geared toward providing each user with information regarding the releases.

On eBay, this is left up to the sellers. So, if you happen to be buying from a seller who knows their stuff or is at least willing to pass on the information, then you will find it in the description. If not, though, you might have to do some research yourself.

9. Turntable Lab

Right here is another great online vinyl store for those who like their selections to be curated in a certain way. Turntable Lab is a thoroughly modern service of this kind that caters to the modern vinyl collector. Whether they be novices in the field or are altogether more experienced.

The most exceptional thing about this brand is its sleek website which is very easy to navigate even for the less tech-savvy. We are not pointing any fingers. But there are certainly some here arrayed who could learn a thing or two about constructing a navigable website from these guys.

Also, much as with eBay, this is a service that not only allows you to buy vinyl but also other things. Indeed, here you can purchase everything you need to start collecting and listening to records. Including speakers, turntables, amplifiers, stands, etc. Above all, it is a company dedicated to informing its public as much as possible.

10. VNYL

VNYL is indeed a vinyl subscription service. Though I would encourage you to at least hear it out before shrugging your shoulders and walking off. This ought to resonate with those looking for gifts for vinyl lovers at this time of year.

This is a method that has been tried and tested by some of our staff with pretty impressive results. Instead of offering the same records to all of its consumers, the service instead attempts to cater to the music taste of each individual member.

Thus, they send three records to subscribers each month that they will hopefully enjoy and continue to listen to. While this is not for everybody, we would certainly encourage you to give it a try.

This can be a service for the jaded and disillusioned adult who can no longer enjoy the magic of Xmas, for example. And Christmas vinyl records are not doing it for you. This is a way to replicate the surprise of not knowing what you will be receiving as a gift to yourself.

Final Tones

So, there you have it! Hopefully, you are feeling a little more able to navigate the darned and often-overwhelming world of the online vinyl store. Go forth unto the world wide web and explore to your heart’s content.

FAQs Online Vinyl Store