Sending guide

How to send books to inmates through Amazon

The safest process is to verify first and order second. Amazon can handle payment and delivery, but the correctional facility—not Amazon or Inmate Book Shop—makes the final acceptance decision.

1. Confirm the person’s current facility

Use the correctional agency’s official inmate locator or facility directory. Transfers happen, and an address saved from a previous order may no longer be correct. Record the official facility name and publication-mailing address.

2. Read the current publication policy

Look for rules covering books, magazines, packages, approved sellers, formats, quantity limits, and prohibited content. State prisons, federal institutions, county jails, and private facilities can have different requirements.

3. Choose the exact edition carefully

One Amazon page may offer Kindle, hardcover, paperback, large-print, new, and used editions. Many facilities prefer or require a new paperback sent directly by a recognized bookseller. Verify the format and actual seller before paying.

4. Enter the recipient information exactly

Use the person’s full legal or committed name and inmate identification number exactly as the agency displays them. Follow the facility’s instructions for address lines; do not guess where the number belongs.

5. Keep the shipment simple

Avoid gift wrap, decorative messages, stickers, personal letters, or unrelated items unless the facility expressly permits them. A clean book-only shipment is easier for a mailroom to evaluate.

6. Save the order record

Keep the title, ISBN, seller, order number, tracking details, and delivery date. A carrier’s delivered scan means the institution received the package; internal screening may take additional time.

General information only. Rules change, and the receiving facility makes every final decision.