How Can You Save Money with Online Shopping or in Stores Near Your College

College expenses can pile up pretty quickly. Apart from tuition, textbooks, and accommodation expenses, it is living costs that you should keep an eye on.  How to save money at college is one of the common concerns among students.

As published in a Forbes article, student debt loan in the US now stands at $1.7 trillion. So, saving even small amounts of money could help you get ahead of the curve and not be held back by financial duress. 

Here are a few simple tips using which you can save money while shopping online or at a store near the campus.

Make a Budget

Put pen to paper or leverage an app and draw up your monthly budget. Then, write down every payment you make, right from rent to the cookies you buy. Having a cohesive view over the money you spend will help you identify unnecessary expenses which you can curtail, and the money could be directed towards savings. 

Leverage Your Student ID

How to save money at college? The most straightforward answer would be using your Student ID. Always ask if the stores offer a student discount. Restaurants, theme parks, ticket booking platforms, shopping centers, theatres, and several businesses offer student discounts. 

If you plan on making expensive purchases, even brands like Apple, Amazon, HP, Dell offer student discounts.

Look for Used Textbooks

Instead of buying brand new textbooks every semester, search for used textbooks at online stores and marketplaces. If you have friends at college who are a year ahead of you, buy textbooks off them at discounted rates. You can save hundreds of dollars purchasing second-hand textbooks. 

Split Subscriptions Among Roommates

If you are a full-time student having Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Spotify, or Apple Music subscriptions might be a lot. You will spend a lot of time and money on these services, something which you are already short on. Instead, look to split such subscriptions with your roommates. 

Plan Your Grocery Shopping

Cooking your meals is a much cheaper option than eating out every other day. By learning to cook, you learn a valuable life skill and also save money. You could go grocery shopping with your roommates and split expenses. 

But do not entirely go the frozen and pre-packaged meal way. Instead, learn some easy recipes with the help of YouTube. You can whip up scrumptious meals with just a few ingredients. 

Use College Amenities

Most colleges today are designed to shape students not just academically but to make them better global citizens. And the college infrastructure is developed with this vision in mind. Leverage all amenities at your disposal. Instead of spending on a gym membership, go to the one at your college. Visit the library. Make the most of college meal plans.

Go Thrift Shopping

Be it clothes, accessories, furniture, or other décor items; you never know what gem you might discover while thrift shopping. Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, eBay, and other online platforms are excellent ways to land a bargain deal.

Making a budget and having a clear view of what you spend on is an essential step towards saving. The points mentioned above are not an exhaustive list of how to save money at college, but they will get you started on developing saving as a habit.