When living on a student budget, most are simply trying to survive. Money is extremely tight, and time is consumed by studies which limits the possibility for work opportunities.
Despite its notorious reputation, it is possible to not only survive on a student budget but also thrive. With a few money-saving tricks under your belt, you can lower stress levels, live more comfortably, and place greater focus on your college or university work.
Ensure you’re receiving all student finance
First of all, you should guarantee that you are receiving all the income you’re expecting from your student finance. This financial aid is your lifeblood when studying. You don’t want to be worrying about needing to earn a substantial amount of extra money to cover your expenses.
Use a budgeting app
Working out a budget is imperative for everyone – including students. When you have a clear picture of your income and outgoings, it’s much easier to plan out your weekly or monthly budget.
Thanks to technology, budgeting has never been easier. Various budgeting apps are on the market and have several advantages, including the following:
- Keeps all your finances in one place
- Sends out real-time push notifications if you’re in danger of going over budget
- Sets aside money each week to build a small nest egg
- Groups purchases into categories
Save with coupons
When you consider how easy it is to search for and utilize coupons, there’s no reason not to use them in your day-to-day life. This is particularly the case when you realize there are coupons for virtually everything.
Want to buy new bedding from Bed Bath and Beyond? There will be a Bed Bath and Beyond coupon available to reduce the price. Want to treat yourself to a Domino’s Pizza? There will be a coupon code. How about a VPN subscription? You guessed it; there’s a coupon for that too.
Thanks to the prevalence of discounts and coupons, it opens the opportunity for you to enjoy more dispensable products and services during your student days.
Learn to cook
Students have a bad reputation when it comes to cooking. However, developing this skill can save you a lot of money. After all, surviving on dining plans, ready meals, and takeaway food isn’t cheap.
Thanks to YouTube tutorials and endless recipes on the internet, it is easy to learn how to cook. By doing this, you can plan meals out with inexpensive ingredients. Bulk buying ingredients will further help stretch your food budget in the long run.
Create a makeshift gym
As a student, maintaining a healthy lifestyle can be tricky. Yet it is important to do so for your mental health. Sadly, gym memberships can be a costly expense – especially for cash-strapped students.
Despite this obstacle, there are still methods for fitting in exercise during your daily routine. You could begin by creating a makeshift gym at home. Create some floor space and perform core exercises such as crunches and push-ups. Use a multipack of cans for reps or purchase inexpensive equipment such as a skipping rope to use at home.
Exercise also doesn’t have to remain in the house. You could join a sports team, for example, or cut out any use of public transport and walk instead to get around.
