How to save your cash for better things.
For most of us, studying isn’t exactly a time of great wealth. Existing on a combination of student loans, parental support and savings can be tough. Money saving hacks can be a lifesaver when it comes to keeping a tight rein on your finances while also ensuring that you get the most from your student life. Below are our favourite money-saving hacks but you can also find more info here.
- Name drop everywhere you go. I.e. flash your student card or mention that you’re a student in every shop, bar, pub or form of transport that you visit or use. The likelihood is that there will be a student discount that you can take advantage of.
- BYOB. If you’re going out for dinner then find a Bring Your Own Bottle restaurant and just pay the corkage. Buying alcohol in the restaurant will significantly increase the overall bill and BYOB restaurants mean you can choose your own tipple.
- Buy your food in bulk. Whether you’re meal sharing with the rest of your student house or cooking all your meals for 1 in a single session, you can save a lot of cash by cooking with larger quantities and then making the leftovers last.
- And if you don’t want to buy in bulk then go vegetarian. Meat is the most expensive item in most shopping baskets, especially if you have a tendency towards the nicer cuts. Vegetarian food today is so much more than tofu and vegetables. It’s tasty, nutritious and – most of all – it’s cheap.
- Be a top budgeter. Budgeting is not exactly a fun student activity that you’ll remember for the rest of your life. However, the resources it will give you to enjoy your student days will be the stuff of great memories. Budgeting is simply the balancing of your income and your outgoings. Get that right and you’ll always have enough funds for fun and you can avoid graduating with debts that will take a lifetime to clear.
- Get a bike. Cycling has great benefits for your health and also for the environment. Plus, it’s awesome for your bank balance too. Apart from the initial investment of the bike itself, as well as the odd bit of maintenance, it costs nothing to get from A to B on a bike and most educational institutions have plenty of bike facilities. So, you won’t have to pay for the cost of public transport but you won’t be late for class either.
- Split the cost of your basics. It can be much cheaper to share the cost of household basics, such as washing powder and washing up liquid, with housemates than to bear these costs yourself
- Stay in. Student life is often about the people that you meet and the conversations that you have – and you don’t need to be in a pricey bar to do that. Swap some nights in the pub for drinks at yours – or in the park in the summer months. That way you’ll miss out on none of the social side of student life but you’ll get to keep your finances on track too.