Dec 30, 2020
How To Really Stretch The College Student Budget!
Everyone wants to save money, and similar is the case with students. But how do you really stretch the college student budget? With limited pocket money, students need to manage many things, so that they need to save a few dollars from the month’s pocket money.
Quick Tips on How to make the most of the college student budget:
- Limit the fun outside such as going outside for eating
- Do not waste money on snacks
- Do not purchase without the need
- Rent or buy used textbooks
- Sell your last semester books back. This can be done in places such as the Facebook marketplace.
- Use public transport and prefer to walk
- Ride a bike or cycle to avoid fuel expenses
- Avoid using credit cards
- Pay your bills on time to avoid late fees
- Cut out the vices
- Avoid doing unnecessary phone calls
- Prefer to share living to save your money
- Shop where they offer a student discount
- Use your student card for conveyance and other services
Some other options and ways to save more money are here.
Make a budget:
Saving money needs a lot of discipline. You must have a firm determination, and it is not an easy task to do. Budget planning is the most fundamental way to deal with your cash. You can make a budget, and it is helpful for you to save some amount of cash monthly. In this way, you will come to know how to stop yourself from buying unnecessary things. You can save yourself from overspending. Moreover, it helps you to save from the stress of adjusting to a lack of funds.
Track your progress:
Do not overthink your budget planning and saving plan. It can disturb you and cause anxiety. You can use online budgeting tools to make your budget plan, and it will help you keep a record of your expenses. In this way, you can be disciplined and will stick to it without much stress. You can stick to your budget by shopping from the places that offer discounts for the students with ID. In this way, you can save maximum on your groceries.
The best way to track your progress is through the use of a planner. If you want to know what the best planner for students is then check out our post on the best student essentials or check out this great Student budget book.
Use 50% of your income for your needs:
If you are doing a job or getting pocket money for your expenses, you should manage your home expenses. For this purpose, you must avoid taking loans. Moreover, try to spend a minimum amount on your basic needs such as groceries, housing, basic utilities, transportation, and many more. Anything that goes beyond this amount will be taken to the debt repayment and saving.
Another great idea is to boost your income and make your money work for you. As a student, we know that it can be hard to find ways of making money and there is no get-rich-quick scheme. But we have written an in-depth article on how to make money as a student.
Set your goal:
You must consider your aims related to money-saving. Do not spend on services and products that can disturb your financial goals. You can work with limited resources and budget.
Financially educate yourself:
A key point that many College students forget is that if you don’t know what to do with your money or how to make more of it then you will always struggle financially.
That is why it is essential to Financially educate yourself whether that be by taking an online course on investing or reading books on how to manage money.
One book that we have read and highly recommend is “The Four Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss”
The Four Hour Work Week — $14.24
Forget the old concept of retirement and the rest of the deferred-life plan — there is no need to wait and every reason not to, especially in unpredictable economic times. Whether your dream is escaping the rat race, experiencing high-end world travel, earning a monthly five-figure income with zero management, or just living more and working less, this book is the blueprint.
Conclusion:
Saving money is highly important for everyone, especially for students, because they learn how to live with discipline in their life. We all know that emergencies are unexpected. Therefore, when it occurs, you need funds to manage it. You may face issues because these are not part of your budget. So, saving money is important as you can manage emergencies. We hope that these tips will help you with money-saving.
