Budgeting is hard. Many of us don’t know how to begin making a budget, especially students. It’s not cheap being a student in today’s time. From living essentials and necessities to tuition and academic activities, everything costs thousands of dollars a year. Not only does it become hard to manage money, but it’s also harder to save it as a student.
However, there are many different and simple ways a student can save more and spend less, living nicely. We’ve listed a few great tips down below!
Don’t Buy Books
Maintaining a normal lifestyle as a student is expensive. From buying furniture to purchasing school supplies and books, students end up spending all their savings and income quickly. So, instead of buying new books and school supplies, it’s more convenient and cheaper to buy them on eBay and other e-commerce websites where second-hand books are sold. You will save more than 50% and also sell them at the same price after use.
You can also ask to swap books with your seniors or juniors if you don’t want to spend any money at all.
Cook at Home
We understand sudden cravings and temptations but when you’re a student, you have to bog down those feelings because it’s expensive to give in. Treat yourself once in a while but try to find your favorite recipes online and cook at home to avoid spending on meals.
If you don’t have time to cook, you can always shop in bulk, buy canned food, and heat it in the microwave for a few seconds before your dinnertime. Most students also maintain portion control when they cook their own meals. Not only do they eat healthier, but they save money while doing it!
Discounts Are Your Lifesavers
Knowing where you can save money is important. You will find several discounts on food, travel, retail, and entertainment if you’re a student. Most places always offer a ‘student discount’ voucher or code to support young students. You can always Google for student discounts in your area to know if you can save money in one place. We say if you’re going to spend money, either way, try and spend less.
Cancel Unnecessary Subscriptions
Unnecessary subscriptions are the easiest way to lose money subconsciously. Cut out subscriptions that are no longer of use to you. Whether it’s a gym membership, a cable subscription, a phone plan, or an internet plan, you can always go for cheaper alternatives.
Rather than going to the gym, workout in the park, or join a sports team, go prepaid if you don’t want to renew your phone service, look for cheap internet plans instead of splurging on slow internet speed and look for subscriptions that actually save you money.
Fix a Budget
This is the very first step of managing your money. Start a budget to cover every incoming and outgoing expense. Keep track of where your money is going. The best way to do that is by checking your monthly bank statements since your credit and debit transactions from your account will be recorded. Manage what you can measure.
Thanks to technology, budgeting has become a lot easier. You don’t have to draw up a spreadsheet on Excel to track your spending. There are several budgeting apps out there to help you become more financially responsible. Let’s take a look at some of the best budgeting apps you can use to manage money more efficiently.
Budgeting Apps You Need
- PocketGuard
As its name suggests, you will have your own budgeting guard wherever you go with PocketGuard. If you want a user-friendly, simple, and easy to use a budgeting app, PocketGuard is your savior. Not only will it be your friend and tell you to stop overspending, but it also categorizes your spending and helps in keeping track of it.
It’s built with some incredible features that allow you to set spending limits, set financial goals (debt payoff goal, etc.), view spending pie-chart, and automatically categorize your transactions. Automate your budget and keep a track of what you spend with PocketGuard.
- Simple
Just like its name, the app is pretty simple to use. Simple can handle your bank account for you. It acts as a digital bank without any tellers. It gives you a bird’s eye view of your bank account and budget on a single platform, making it easier for you to keep your budget under control.
It offers a brilliant set of features that help you manage all your finances seamlessly with a single tap on your phone. The best feature of the app is the ‘safe-to-spend’ feature which shows users the ‘safe-to-spend’ amount instead of their bank balance. The safe-to-spend amount is the balance subtracted from savings and bills.
- Mint
If you’re a fan of visuals and understand better through visuals, you will definitely enjoy using Mint. You can sign up on the app for free and enjoy creating goals, budgeting, and combing your personal accounts on a single platform.
Mint’s dashboard displays your financial information in the simplest yet interactive way possible. Manage your bills, report taxes, track investments, monitor credit score, and track expenses with Mint.
- Mvelopes
If you still have a habit of using cash, then Mvelopes is the perfect app for you. This app divides your cash into multiple categories, simplifying your spending budget. The transition from cash to digital has never been smoother, thanks to Mvelopes. You can link multiple financial accounts to the app and the best part is its flexibility.
Because it categorizes your spending, you can view your budget in real-time and know if you can spend a little on that coffee you really needed to start your day.
To Wrap It Up
We know how difficult budgeting is, especially when your finances are all over the place. But thanks to technology, we no longer have to worry about missing out on anything. These money-saving tips and budgeting apps are all you need to manage your finances. Make sure to keep track of your outgoing expenses and avoid going over budget wherever you can.
Baldwin Jackson is a successful digital marketer with expertise in search engine optimization and content marketing. The perfect balance of his analytical ability and creative thinking is what sets him apart from other practitioners in the digital marketing realm. He has helped a lot of small and medium-sized businesses in crafting their digital marketing strategies that are not only cost-effective but delivers results as well.
Baldwin is also a proud father of two kids and a Sports enthusiast. When he is not working, you will find him watching ESPN and NFL network. He has been able to get an amazing package on his favorite channels from Buytvinternetphone.com.
