Top 5 Easiest Ways to Save Money in College
95% of college kids are broke. If you’re reading this- you probably are too!
In this post, I’ll talk about the 5 best ways to save money in college.
I have been working since I was 16 (about three years now), and I have saved over 40% of my total income from those three years. Not too shabby.
BUT it wasn’t easy! Saving comes with sacrifices and real FOMO sometimes, but it the end I know it will be worth it.
Saving money is especially hard in college, but through my teenage years I have helped other people save money and made a list of
The Top 5 Easiest Ways to Save Money
1.Money Doesn’t Exist
This is my personal favorite method. I act like I literally don’t even have one dollar to my name. So much so that I don’t even bring my wallet with my most places (as long as I’m with someone else that I can pay back if an emergency happens.)
The only caveat to this is you most likely have apple pay on your easily accessible phone- I recommend turning apple wallet off in settings while you go out or just try to forget you have your entire wallet on your phone. Have a friend hold it for you or leave it in the car since I’m sure everyone around you will have theirs on them.
By convincing myself I have actually nothing to spend, it stops me from falling too hard for the newest makeup product or clothes.
This one takes a bit of convincing, but if you lie to yourself long enough- you’ll believe it!
This works if you have $5 or $5000, if you are a huge spender, you’ll find a way to spend it. So, don’t even give yourself the option!
2.Go Used- Better for Your Wallet and the Earth
Opting for the used option on Ebay, Facebook Marketplace, or the used book option on Amazon, is a great way to get textbook and other school supplies for cheap. I recently had to buy a financial calculator for my class this semester, and instead of paying $30-$50 for it, I payed $11 with shipping on Ebay!
Of course, this goes for just about anything- furniture for your dorm, clothing, accessories, etc.
Not only can you save $$$ buying used, it’s also way more sustainable.
Check out this article by The Week that states the average person can save $150 A MONTH buying used, plus the benefit of helping out the planet.
Did you know the average item of clothing is only worn 7 times before it’s thrown out or donated? Instead of following the newest microtrend, wear what you have or buy used!
3.Sit On It
This is a pretty popular method, and for a reason! There’s something about shopping in a store that makes you want to buy everything. You get so caught up in the new products and everyone around you is spending-so why shouldn’t you? WRONG!
If you see something in a store you really like, take a picture and wait at least a week before buying it. If you still realllyy want it, buy it. Chances are, those “I’m shopping so I want to buy everything” jitters will wear off and you’ll realize the product you would have spent a million dollars on is actually not that great.
Save you from buyers remorse!
4.Make What Money You Do Have Work For You
Whatever money you do have from a part time job or birthday money, you can make more money of it by doing practically nothing.
Put your money in a high-yield savings account rather than your current savings account that’s probably earning 0.0001% interest. You can look at the bank accounts with the highest return rate here.
Earn a few extra bucks by simply setting up an account and putting in money.
Another tip slightly related to this: Apply for scholarships. People don’t take this as seriously as they should (including me). People think you can only apply for scholarships in high school, but you can actually apply all throughout college. There are plenty of scholarships for undergraduate and graduate students. You can find good scholarships here.
5.Remember Why You’re Doing It
My final tip that takes the most discipline is to be okay with missing out on materialist things and experiences. Recognize the benefits of staying in and saving money.
Remember: missing out on temporary fun to build permanent stability is NOT a loss.
You probably will lose that lip gloss you bought, never wear that top, oh and you already have 30 water bottles. It is just not worth it.
I would say experiences are more than materialistic things, but even that may not be worth it in the long run. Especially if it includes spending hundreds on drinks.
Saving your money makes spending it much more rewarding and fulfilling. Going out every once and a while and splurging on nice things feels wayyy better than buying 20 new things you never touch every week. Retail therapy is not therapy at all!
Saving money that you can then invest will provide you with financial stability and independence which is must more beneficial than spending for short-term “satisfaction.”
In this post I talked about the 5 easiest ways to save money in college, and what it can lead to in the future.
