Waterstones

1643 reviews

Manchester Arndale, Market St, Manchester M4 3AQ, United Kingdom

www.waterstones.com

+441618328563

About

Waterstones is a Book store located at Manchester Arndale, Market St, Manchester M4 3AQ, United Kingdom. It has received 1643 reviews with an average rating of 4.6 stars.

Photos

Hours

Monday9AM-8PM
Tuesday9AM-8PM
Wednesday9AM-8PM
Thursday9AM-7PM
Friday11:30AM-5:30PM
Saturday9AM-8PM
Sunday9AM-8PM

F.A.Q

Frequently Asked Questions

  • The address of Waterstones: Manchester Arndale, Market St, Manchester M4 3AQ, United Kingdom

  • Waterstones has 4.6 stars from 1643 reviews

  • Book store

  • "Excellent Book Shop Staff Are Very Knowledgeable About Most Things And What They Aren't Certain About They Will Try Their Best To Find Out For You There Is A Massive Variety Of Books, Audio books, Gifts, Toys and Soft Toys They Have A Website That You Can Have Your Order Delivered In Store For Collection Waterstones Has A Loyalty Programme Which Is A Great Incentive To Try To Read More Or Encourage Those Around You To Read There Is Also A Cafe At The Back Of The Store (Ideally Situated Next To The Childrens Section So If Your A Parent/Guidean You Can Sit And Have A Drink While The Youngsters Choose A Book Then Your Able To Sit And Read The Book In-store To The Child The Cafe Seating Area Is Quite Big And Has A Quieter Area Away From The Children's Section Should You Want/Request It A Little Quiter The Is Great If Your Not Sure What Type Of Books You Or Your Child Is Into So Wish To Explore A Few Books From Different Genres To See Which Suits Better (I Think That The Cafe Is At About The Same Price Range As The Costa Downstairs) But Has The Bonus Of Quite And Lots And Lots Of Books One Of Our Kids Chose Their Teddy From Here It's A Jelly Cat Branded Teddy It's Absolutely Fantastic And Is Very Good Wearing She Loves It And It Literally Goes Everywhere With Us (Best Buy For Her Ever) She Called Him Albie After Albert Einstein"

    "This is an excellent bookstore, and one of the best Waterstones stores I have been too"

    "Great store"

    "You can pre order and collect books ordered here as well as pick up what's there of course"

    "Always friendly staff"

Reviews

  • TheDukSystem Qwakers

Excellent Book Shop Staff Are Very Knowledgeable About Most Things And What They Aren't Certain About They Will Try Their Best To Find Out For You There Is A Massive Variety Of Books, Audio books, Gifts, Toys and Soft Toys They Have A Website That You Can Have Your Order Delivered In Store For Collection Waterstones Has A Loyalty Programme Which Is A Great Incentive To Try To Read More Or Encourage Those Around You To Read There Is Also A Cafe At The Back Of The Store (Ideally Situated Next To The Childrens Section So If Your A Parent/Guidean You Can Sit And Have A Drink While The Youngsters Choose A Book Then Your Able To Sit And Read The Book In-store To The Child The Cafe Seating Area Is Quite Big And Has A Quieter Area Away From The Children's Section Should You Want/Request It A Little Quiter The Is Great If Your Not Sure What Type Of Books You Or Your Child Is Into So Wish To Explore A Few Books From Different Genres To See Which Suits Better (I Think That The Cafe Is At About The Same Price Range As The Costa Downstairs) But Has The Bonus Of Quite And Lots And Lots Of Books One Of Our Kids Chose Their Teddy From Here It's A Jelly Cat Branded Teddy It's Absolutely Fantastic And Is Very Good Wearing She Loves It And It Literally Goes Everywhere With Us (Best Buy For Her Ever) She Called Him Albie After Albert Einstein

  • Daniel Alexander

This is an excellent bookstore, and one of the best Waterstones stores I have been too. The book selection is good of course and im sure they will order you anything you need. But really this stores success is the atmosphere inside there is a coffee area and lots of places to just pick up a book and read... In.sure they would like you to buy, but it's not a requirement. They seem to stock the versions of books that are of highest quality and not use the basic paperback which Amazon would try to sell you first. So it's good for gift hunting too. Always like to pop in when in the arndale.

  • Adam Lynch

Great store. Staff are friendly, and happy to answer questions. If they've not the book you're after — ask them to check at the Deansgate branch. There's a Costa in-store, but it is currently closed. If you're in need of a coffee — head downstairs to either Costa or Starbucks. A good range of stationery products, books and other small gifts. The travel section is good, aswell as the non-fiction section. Each store has a different exieriebce, but you can also order via their website, and get it sent to your home address.

  • Daniel Willis

You can pre order and collect books ordered here as well as pick up what's there of course. The trouble with Waterstones is the selection. All of the "smart thinking" section qnd politics sectare heavily skewed towards left wing talking points and has a clear ideological bias. As with all Waterstones, it has an air of middle class, Guardian reading smugness that you have to be there to experience. Overall an OK bookship, Waterstones could be excellent if it didn't have the bias in its stock selections.

  • Juliana McKie

Always friendly staff. Saw us looking at the empty tills and intercepted us before we had a chance to go downstairs to pay. Staff are always attentive and always make pleasant conversion with us. I needed to purchase a practice test for UK citizenship and we were directed to the correct area and then had a lovely brief conversation with the staff member regarding the practice test. They very kind lady even wished me luck!

  • Alistair Gledhill

Waterstones is one of the best bookshops in the UK and this one is no exception.there is massive range of books covering fiction and non fiction.the staff are friendly and always helpful.i believe that if you can't find what you want then you can possibly order it in.the shop is located on the first floor of the Arndale centre and easy to get to.carparking facilities and public transport are close by.

  • Lorraine B.

Ok but stock geared towards new stuff/best-sellers... fairly limited otherwise. Also was far too hot and stuffy and I felt headachey after 15 mins inside. However the store is spacious with a cafe at the back so not too bad if they turned the heating down. As I understand there's a better stocked Waterstonea elsewhere in the city.

  • Paul Baldowski

Dependable, if uninspired, book store. I love books, but there is a staid lack of individuality in a chain store that demands a little extra effort and personality to life it up. A little too cluttered with displays at the front with a certain enclosed feel that combine to make it not quite as welcoming as it could be.

  • Jennifer Jones

first time I've visited this shop, was with a friend who goes regularly for a coffee/tea, had toasted cheese and caramelized onion sandwich followed by toasted tea cake (between us, wouldn't have managed a full portion) absolutely delicious, best I've ever eaten, shall most certainly visit again, and again and again.

  • john fawcett

I like wagamama good vegan menu although odd they make some they make some things look like meat. Good service can watch things being cooked. Only drawback for some no mixers at bar so no shandy no line and soda that sort of thing. Value not too bad but for me portions are a bit on the big side. Overall a nice place

  • Amelia Russell

The best Waterstones I’ve been to in the U.K. in terms of size, stock, offering and layout. I loved the added touch of having a display of the employees favourite books and then the top selling tiktok sensations and so many great genre displays. The whole shop had a modern yet cosy feel which I really appreciated

  • Heidi

Wanted a new book but had no idea what I wanted. Asked one of the staff members what her favourite book was and she was straight on it! Got me daisy Jones and the six, never even heard of it but I am completely hooked, definitely gonna be doing that more often and amazing suggestion from the staff! Thank you ❤️

  • Tom Burgin

Lunchtime bliss: go sit in one of the many armchairs dotted around the shop and dig into a new book before you buy. Or don't buy. The staff are great, super helpful and knowledgeable. There's enough book choice to keep most people happy, and you can always order something in if it's a little more obscure.

  • Sam Thomas

Good selection of books despite the store being relatively small. Cafe is awful, food isn't good and it's all very overpriced. Staff are good. The only thing that annoys me is they've crammed a lot of freestanding tables in so you're weaving all over the place to get to the books you want.

  • Jessica Chamley

Beautiful, calming atmosphere, Waterstones stocks a wide variety of books including visual novels and stationary. The store is lay out in an order that makes sense and everything has its place which is lovely and adds to the calming atmosphere. Definitely a must visit for any book lover.

  • Amoghalila Blakey

Friendly staff - a very quiet place to be for a chat with a friend, no competing with music. Not a lot of choice for savoury food, it seemed to be sandwiches or toasties but I enjoyed the mozzarella cheese and tomato foccacia toastie I opted for. Good choice of cake and good coffee.

  • Anima Seteine

A great selection of books, and a really chic cafe with a quiet atmosphere as well! The staff always seem to prepare their hot drinks with great care, which was wonderful to see. Many of the books are a bit expensive, but you can get a stamp card that essentially gives you 10% off.

  • Max Schofield

In this day and age it is wonderful to find such a huge space filled with a fantastic array of subjects and titles. The staff are extremely knowledgeable and the shop offers a good email service alerting you to new titles etc. An absolute treasure. Excellent coffee as well.

  • Danny Liddle

I love this place. So welcoming and fantastic selection of all genre books. One of my favourite things to do on a Sunday afternoon is go down, choose a few books and sit in the cafe browsing my new collection. Could spend all day in here. Highly recommended for books worms

  • Devrim Gulsen

Fantastic and massive are the best two word to describe this pawn of the book company. It has a wide selection of all kinds of book stocking almost anything you can think of. A bright clean atmosphere tops it off. Honestly the best Waterstones I have ever been to.

  • Miss G.

A lot of books to choose from. They have organised shelfs for all kind of types of books and kids books organised by age. So it's easy to find what you looking for. They do have nice section on board games but how ever they don't have additions to board games.

  • Chris Fraiel

Its sister store on Deansgate has 5-10x the stock but this shop still has books in dozens of categories and it was easy to find a few books for different age birthdays coming up. The staff were really cheerful and helpful. Nice cafe with drinks and cakes.

  • Oliver Harrison

I go here all the time, the staff are always really friendly and it's has a fairly decent selection. Today one of the workers, a really nice guy who knew his stuff, reccommended 2 LGBT books to me, would have loved to pick his brain some more!

  • Marcella Ch

Brilliant book shop, way more books than you'd think for a fairly small shop. Was pleasantly surprised to walk into the back and find a cafe with vegan baked goods and no extra charge for plant milks! This gingerbread brownie was delicious!

  • Dean Hulme

Staff in both the café and the main shop are always pleasant and helpful. Great standards in the café, with a good selection of cakes. Do very well at creating a relaxed atmosphere despite being in one of the busier sections of the Arndale.

  • John Pickworth

Friendly staff, nicely laid out store with lots to leisurely browse. Bit expensive generally but there are bargains to be had too. Was last there to meet the great Tony Christie for his book signing, a really entertaining read by the way.

  • Mike

Nice store, the selection didn't quite match the scale of the store (huge store, but mostly limited popular choices filling the majority of the shelves) my own criticism really and that applies to most book stores I visit. Nice staff too

  • Gary Pearson

Great to be able to use the cafe at the Manchester Arndale branch. Always very friendly and chatty. Just love relaxing with a book and taking my time over tea and scones. Shame the management won't let them order raspberry jam!

  • Kim Berley

If you nip to the back of the store, it takes you out the way of the busy arndale and there's a cafe there -the coffee is pretty good. The shop itself sells everything from books, to boardgames, stationary, and graphic novels.

  • Tom Cheesewright

Big, airy and bright and a lovely place to discover books you didn't know you wanted. Staff relaxed and knowledgeable. Nice cafe in the back - not itself a destination but a decent place to take the weight off mid-shop.

  • Ez Tiger

Great Bookshop, despite not always having certain books I want. Love getting a free book with the 10 stamps on my Waterstone's card. The Cafe is always a nice relaxed atmosphere to sit & read with a nice Pot of Tea.

  • zakslittleworld21

Decent books. Buy for my son all the time especially when theres buy ine get one half price. Hes 3 now and ive been getting all his books since he was born. Can always find what your after and nice little cafe

  • Martin Benton

Needed a book about Stockholm, it was there and just what I wanted, perfect. Now needed a book on Switzerland..they came up with the goods again..great. Needed another book for Northumberland..result.

  • Carl Foster

Go in this shop with my daughter she love's books not 100% why but not complaining but recommend this shop for any book your looking for, Simply because staff friendly an very approachable

  • awesome tv

I mainly go for coffee staff are lovely, coffee very good and such a relaxing atmosphere. The only thing is I wish people on their own would not sit at tables for four it's a bit selfish.

  • Cam Jenkins

Great service, I couldn't find the book I was looking for and I was still able to get a member of staffs help. Queueing was a long wait but again friendly service at the checkout.

  • Rebecca Edwards

Nice shop for browsing. Quiet and peaceful in a busy shopping centre. Cafe was nice but a very limited choice with nothing savoury for celiacs. Very helpful staff in the bookshop.

  • Barry Widdowson

A good selection of books in varying genres and types. Easy to find what you're looking for with very helpful and friendly staff available if you can't. Nice little Costa too.

  • Nathan Boon

One of my favourite stores to visit,lovely layout and helpful staff. A great selection of stories for children that helps keep my daughter happily engrossed in reading.

  • Bob Dent

Large selection of books and the staff are super friendly and helpful. I cant always work out the way they arrange the books but the staff always find what I'm after!

  • Nichole Africa Mendoza

Wonderful place! Helpful staff and good stock. The air con is broken though, which makes it hard to stay in there and browse for long. Please fix the air con!!

  • Dawn Struttman

Clean and safe. Set up for great social distancing. Went in with a friend, not wanting anything... Ooops bought a book... Brilliant!!! Staff were lovely.

  • Jeanette Esson

Went with my daughter. Bought a couple of books for her. Great staff very helpful, finding what we were looking for. Even a cafe at the end of the shop.

  • Ashley Coyle - Moore

The staff are very welcoming and will have a chat about your book! Large Waterstones with plenty of choice and a great showing of new and classic books

  • Jana Bukolovska

Favourite place in Manchester (after the other Waterstones on Deansgate). The caffè is very nice, great, lovely people working there, great drinks ❤️

  • adele brown

A great store its huge so guaranteed to find a book to buy there. Had to knock off a star for being located next to the Manchester City store …

  • PENFOLD. MCFC61

Excellent service and a superb book store plus you can sit in there indoor cafe while perusing there s and other merchandise before you buy. …

  • Ruth Coulson

We had a coffee in the cafe and it had such a calm, lovely atmosphere. Staff were really helpful too. Large shop with great choice of titles.

  • Phoebe Bradbury

Always enjoy a Waterstones visit and this one was no exception. Lovely atmosphere. I had tea in the cafe and the lady on the till was lovely.

  • Sabina Andersson

I love coming to browse and having a coffee, but they rarely have the complete series of books I like so I end up having to order online!

  • Nicholas P McCoy

Great bookshop, well laid out with very helpful staff. Not the size of its sister shop on Deansgate but has always a good book to buy.

  • EuropeanTransport TV

Brilliant Waterstones, with a large selection of books. The manga section is great for someone like me who enjoys it. Very happy.

  • Caroline Wilson

Usually go in for a look around before stopping at the cafe which is always a good place to relax. The vegan cakes are good too.

  • Nav Singh

A better range of books than the Altrincham branch. A good atmosphere for reading and finding the book you want. Friendly staff.

  • Louise Ogden

Book shop and coffee shop have a lovely atmosphere. Staff have good customer service skills and are able to help you.

  • Ian Robinson

Such a well organised book signing with Ella Toone at Waterstones in Manchester; was truly a memorable experience ❤️

  • Ertug Ekenler

Neatly organised, better than many other Waterstones I've been to. They also sell magazines which is a further plus.

  • Carol Corrigan

Good, large store. Lots of genre choice. I could have spent hours browsing. Friendly, helpful service at checkout.

  • Suzi Donoghue

What a beautiful store! The displays were perfectly laid out and the service was really friendly and helpful :)

  • Juliana Yotova

Amazing book shop, I couldn’t leave for two hours as I was going through all the titles. Highly recommend it.

  • hoda javdani

This Waterstones branch was large and beautiful and had a good variety, but it was not comrehensive at all.

  • Safe to Surf !

Great bookshop, huge store. Easily the biggest Waterstones I've been in. In the Arndale, V helpful staff.

  • Dave English

Awesome bookshop and great coffee shop for chill out time with that ambience of information beside you.

  • Layla McArthur Brown

Incredible range of books here, great cafe and the staff are incredibly knowledgable and friendly.

  • claire lavin

Very nice store with friendly staff just wish ever over was showing and that books were cheaper

  • Fiona

Really helpful staff, looked up everything I was looking for and showed me where to find them.

  • Gabriel Tham

Not the biggest Waterstones in Manchester but cosy environment to pick up some new titles.

  • Ray Hf

Quite complete collection of books there. Friendly and helpful staff. Good experience.

  • Henock Solomon Ayele

Amazing time with my friends Thanks to Zain for his lovely service 5 Thank u …

  • Mahtab Uddin

Great store, good coffee, and cordial staff. That's all you need in a bookstore.

  • Ann Weidmann

Great selection of Manga graphic novels to the delight of my granddaughter.

  • fg michel

Been there many times still a good shopping trip to do while in manchester

  • christina snape

Had a walk round and then had a coffee, lovely friendly staff …

  • Vicki Long

Could stay in there all day . The gentleman serving was so helpful .

  • Anastasios Kyriacou

Lovely and unexpectedly large book store with a really cosy café.

  • Michael

I assume it's pretty great. Can't read tho so was a bit confused

  • Karen Gleeson

Coffee lovely. Drink your coffee in peace and go on your laptop.

  • Charles Haworth

I love books. Here are some books in this very store

  • Zander Lewis

Very well run shop. Far too warm in summer though.

  • Crazy Cr33p3r

Brilliant staff, lovely shop, great collection

  • Ayesha Sanfo

Best place to bring your family eat and learn

  • jelle hoekstra

Waterstones is my alltime favourite store!

  • Chris Ratcliffe

Great selection of education books

  • Ihor Mudrak

Nice place, excellent service

  • Jignesh Ghelani

Best place for book lovers

  • Ned Husein

Huge selection, nice staff

  • Owen Morris

Nice place with good food.

  • Fergus Leung

great collection of books

  • Mark Rosenberg

Good coffee place.

  • Paul Webb

Great book store

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