When you enter college, times get tougher. You are away from your family, harder classes, and less money to spend. Like me, many other students are paying for college, as well as their rent and other organizations that they might be apart of. The time of spending money is over and we are trying to save as much as we can to pay for the things we need. These are a few tips on how to save some money.
Stop eating out as much.
When it comes to wanting to go out, I know its hard not to. Trust me, I love take out just as much as another person, but eating out too much can be one of the main places where your money goes. Go to the grocery store more often and cook at home more. If you still want to go out from time to time, then here's a little tip: Use coupons and look for deals that the restraunt might be having!
Make a list when going to the grocery store.
If you are like me, when i go grocery shopping, I go down every isle and pick up everything that looks good to me. I can't do that anymore, so I started making a list. I find recipes like I would like, write down the ingredients I need for it and the I go to the store. This way I know exactly what I am there for, so I can get in and get out without spending so much money.
Buy the great value brand.
When shopping, you might have your certain brands that you stick to, but the great value brand is just as good. At first I was a little put off about great value and didn't want to use it, but then I compared the different brands. The great value brand had the same taste at a smaller price point. So why pay more for just the name?
Don't buy new textbooks.
Textbooks can be expensive. Before you going to the campus bookstore, see if someone has a textbook you could borrow. If not, buy or rent used textbooks from site's like Amazon or Chegg.
Student Discounts are a thing.
A college ID card can mean big savings to students. Places like Apple, Microsoft and Dell offer student-only pricing on laptops, and often attach a free gift card to the purchase for printers, e-books or apps. Hunt for these deals during non-holiday seasons when college-oriented products are expected to reach their lowest price.