9 Locations
A good bookshop is a refuge in Berlin, and the city keeps plenty of independents alive alongside the chains. The right bookshop offers more than shelves, with staff picks, readings and a chair to settle into. This overview gathers Berlin locations for browsing and buying.
Independents across Prenzlauer Berg, Kreuzberg and Charlottenburg specialise in everything from art and architecture to crime and children's books, while English language shops serve international readers. Many host author events and reading groups, and several double as cafes. Weekend afternoons are ideal for a slow browse with no rush to leave.
Browse the addresses below to find a bookshop across Berlin, from tiny specialists to well loved institutions.
Bookstore, reading café, and delicatessen in one: Buchkantine, located in Moabit on the Spree, combines literature with culinary aspirations across approximately 400 square meters. Browse books, drink cappuccino, taste champagne - all with a view of the water.
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Novels in all languages, audiobooks, specialist literature e.g. from the fields of computer science and natural sciences, as well as films and music of all genres - Dussmann, the large culture department store on Friedrichstraße, is a true mecca for culture enthusiasts!
She said on Kottbusser Damm in Neukölln has been both a bookstore and a specialty coffee shop since 2020. The shelves exclusively feature books by women and queer authors, many from marginalized perspectives. At the counter, freshly baked cinnamon rolls are available daily. Authors read from their new books here one to two times a month.
ocelot on Brunnenstraße in Mitte is an independent bookstore with a café and large windows overlooking Volkspark am Weinberg. The shelves feature literary fiction, poetry, English titles, and many small publishers, while a La-Marzocco machine graces the counter. For this reading café in Berlin-Mitte, it means: come early, as the few tables fill up quickly.
Café Tasso on Frankfurter Allee in Friedrichshain is both an organic café and a second-hand bookshop: over 20,000 used books are available on the terrace, on the ground floor, and in three basement rooms, each costing 2.50 Euros. The reading café is run as an inclusion enterprise. A novel from the shelf costs less here than the cappuccino you drink with it.
Frau Polda in Maxstraße on Leopoldplatz is a bookstore and Italian bistro in one, opened in 2025 by a publishing professional and a restaurateur from Tuscany. Between novels, children's books, and English titles, there's focaccia from 3.40 Euro and Aperol Spritz. In this reading café in Wedding, a chapter is often followed by focaccia under the tree.
Since 1892, the Marheineke Markthalle in the Bergmannkiez has represented what Kreuzberg is all about: down-to-earthness, cosmopolitanism, and quality under one roof. Across approximately 2,500 m², regional organic products meet international street food stalls, fresh pasta meets Turkish börek, and Greek cuisine meets Arabian specialties.
LeseGlück in Ohlauer Straße, Kreuzberg, is a neighborhood bookstore with coffee and a couch, founded in 2007 and awarded the German Bookstore Prize in 2021. The shelves feature German and English titles, many from independent publishers. Tips at this Berlin reading café come from the owners, who also present books on radioeins.
Shakespeare & Sons on Warschauer Straße in Friedrichshain is an English-language bookstore with its own bagel bakery: Fine Bagels hand-rolls and New York-boils its bagels. Tables are set between the shelves for browsing. In this reading café in Berlin, the next novel is usually already on the table before the bagel arrives.