Black-haired female winking one eye thinking, holding and pointing at piggy bank

Budgeting 101 Infographic: Saving Money in College

Stressing out because you don't have enough money to pay your bills and have fun in college? These tips will help you master budgeting and save some cash.

College isn't cheap. Even with scholarships, there’s still a lot of pay for: housing, books, groceries, gas—plus, you shouldn’t overlook spending some money to have fun. One thing almost all college students have in common is not having enough money, but it doesn’t have to be that way. With some diligent financial planning, a little creativity, and a bit of effort, students can live comfortably on or off campus without having to worry about where their next meal is coming from.

3 important steps to follow

There are three cornerstones of financial survival in college: Setting up a budget, saving money, and earning extra cash. Some tasks are rather easy, such as calculating expenses and sources of income. The most challenging aspect of financial survival is usually saving money. Nobody likes to cut back on discretionary spending, especially when it comes to food, drink, and entertainment. And while an important part of college is socializing, if frivolous spending is creating an endless financial hangover, those social activities won’t be nearly as much fun. Start saving with these ideas about how to manage your money and get the most out of your college experience! 

College budgeting infographic

By ValoreBooks.com

How to create a college budget

  1. List all your monthly expenses, including tuition, room and board, textbooks and school supplies, transportation, personal spending, and frivolous spending.
  2. List all your monthly sources of income/cash.
  3. Make sure your expenses do not exceed your sources of income/cash.
  4. Track your expenses as they add up.

Related: Money Management: The Best Budgeting Templates for Students 

Tips for saving money at school

  1. Buy or rent used textbooks.
  2. Make your own coffee or tea.
  3. Take advantage of free meals offered on campus.
  4. Don’t use your credit card unless you have to.
  5. Pay your credit card bill in full every month.
  6. Pay all of your bills on time.
  7. Buy food and drink items that are on sale.
  8. Shop around before renting an apartment.
  9. Find the least expensive cellular plan that fits your needs.
  10. Use your phone only when necessary.

How to earn extra cash 

  1. Sell your used textbooks.
  2. Become a tutor.
  3. Babysit, house sit, or dog sit.
  4. Become a driver for Uber, Lyft, or other driving services.
  5. Get a work-study job on campus.
  6. Sell clothes you don’t wear anymore on websites like Ebay or Poshmark.

With these practical, easy-to-implement tips, even college students with one or two years under their belts may learn something new to help them spend more time on their studies and less time worrying about finances. Good luck and happy saving! 

While you’re working on your budget, use our Scholarship Search tool to find extra money for college!

Like what you’re reading?

Join the CollegeXpress community! Create a free account and we’ll notify you about new articles, scholarship deadlines, and more.

Join Now

Tags:

About ValoreBooks

ValoreBooks is a marketplace solution for students to buy, rent, and sell college textbooks online. The ValoreBooks platform also offers stores an avenue to sell or liquidate excess textbook inventories at market rates and gives textbook sellers access to more customers.


 

Join our community of
over 5 million students!

CollegeXpress has everything you need to simplify your college search, get connected to schools, and find your perfect fit.

Join CollegeXpress
Khush

Khush

High School Class of 2021

CollegeXpress is a multi-maneuver platform that has been helping students in their college applications and scholarship hunt process. For me, CollegeXpress has been a boon. I've been able to find my dream university via CX, and I've also been able to apply to thousands of scholarships through it. All the thanks to CollegeXpress for doing such a great job for free. I express my sincere gratitude to you for doing such a wonderful job. I recommend CollegeXpress without any reservations.

Yuhlani Patterson

Yuhlani Patterson

High School Student

CollegeXpress has helped me find so many scholarships that fit me. They match me to colleges I have specific interest in to make searching for colleges way easier and more efficient. CollegeXpress refers me to schools that have my major of interest and backup schools if I want to change my mind. CollegeXpress also gives out their own scholarships, so you have even more of a chance at gaining multiple scholarships. This website has helped me de-stress from the pressure of not being able to afford college, [of finding] what schools are right for me, and how to find easy access to scholarships that most people never knew existed.

Leah Maciel

Leah Maciel

High School Class of 2021

CollegeXpress has helped me with all aspects of applying for college. The website is extremely easy to navigate and gives access to so many resources. I was able to research all of the colleges I was interested in, find out any information I wished to know about, and keep them organized in a list. I've also been able to research scholarships and save them as resources for later. I've used many websites in my college and scholarship search, and CollegeXpress has by far been my favorite one to use.

Asia Stockdale

Asia Stockdale

High School Class of 2021

CollegeXpress helped me overcome a huge hurdle. Because of the small town I live in, I felt like I would never achieve more. I felt like I could never go beyond because of costs. I feared I wouldn’t be able to find scholarships. I had no idea of where to start. With CollegeXpress, I easily found scholarships—they came to me. It was a helper, and I was instantly matched with opportunities to go above and beyond educationally.

Keaun Brown

Keaun Brown

$2,000 Community Service Scholarship Winner, 2020

As I transition to furthering my education, I can say with certainty that it simply wouldn’t be possible without the help of generous organizations such as CollegeXpress. Those who initially founded CX had no idea their platform would give a plethora of information to a first-generation homeless kid native to the ghettos of over half a dozen states. Everyone at CX and Carnegie Dartlet gave me a chance at a future when the statistics said I had none. And for that, I thank them.

College Matches
X

Colleges You May Be Interested In

Transylvania University

Lexington, KY

Canisius College

Buffalo, NY