College costs a lot of money – the education, food, housing, etc. You name it, you probably pay for it during college. Therefore, your extra spending money is either non-existent, or there's hardly any. It can be very difficult to not go blow all of your money at the mall or Starbucks (my personal weakness). Here's some ways you can save money in college:
1. Budget
AH, MATH! Budgeting, though it requires a bit of thinking, is actually very helpful and can save you a ton of money in the long run. For a couple weeks (or a month if you're feeling motivated), keep all of your receipts. At the end of the couple weeks or month, go back and look at your receipts. See where you spent your money and how much you've spent overall. Better than you thought? Worse than you thought? Now knowing how much you spend, you can make a budget. There are many apps you can use to help you budget your spending money, such as Mint.com, Good Budget, and Mvelopes.
2. Plan your week
On Sunday, have an idea of how your week will go. Where are you going to eat your meals for this week? Do you need to go grocery shopping? Is there anything you need to purchase for school, sorority life, etc? Make a list at the beginning of the week so you can stick to something. If you don't, you may end up going to the grocery store with some ideas of what you need, spending more money than you planned. Keep the list flexible, because items you need will pop up.
3. Share
Are you craving some chocolate ice cream? Or maybe that cheesecake you saw advertised from the Cheesecake Factory? Instead of eating all of it yourself, save your money (and maybe your figure) by sharing it with a friend! Most of the time, when it comes to cravings, you just need a little bit to satisfy yourself. I understand the difficulty of sharing (the S'Mores Cheesecake is very difficult to share for me), but trust me – your bank account will thank you later
4. Shop for deals
There are a ton of stores that always have sales or good deals going on – you just have to find them. Look up sales online or go to the discounted rack in stores. If you take the time to hunt a little bit, you can find the best deals.
5. Think of the future
Will you need a car in the future? Or maybe an apartment right after college? Thinking of your needs in the future may help motivate you to save some money. Set aside some money every week or so and put it in savings. After a while, it'll build up. Think, if you put aside a dollar a day today, in a year you will have $365. Sounds like a pretty good deal, right?
6. It's okay to splurge
After saying all of this, it is okay to splurge every once in a while. There are those moments when you will be weak and buy a ton of clothes that you wanted, but maybe didn't necessarily need. Just remember that that is okay. When you are making your budget, set some money aside in case of splurge moments. That way, when you go to check your bank account, you won't totally be freaked out by how much money you just spent at Forever 21. However, if you don't spend your splurge money, you can put it aside or even carry it over to the next month. Then you'll have even a little more money to use!
It's so easy to spend money in college on stuff you don't need, but want. I go through the same struggles when I walk around the mall or even just walk through Target to the grocery section. However, by following these tips, you could save yourself a little extra money while also enjoying your time at college.
