If you want to make some changes to how you manage your money, or find ways to put money aside, read our guide on how you can save money as a student.
Opening a savings account can give you somewhere to keep your money. It helps remove the temptation to spend it if it’s not in your current account. Plus, any interest earned will help your savings grow.
Explore: Guides on saving money
Whether you’re hoping to go travelling or buy a car, setting a savings target can help you stay motivated. You could put a picture of your goal on your fridge, or as a screensaver on your phone, to keep it at the front of your mind.
Building an emergency fund could help pay for an unexpected expense. You could set yourself a target amount, for example £500, and then save a little each week to reach your target. If you have any money left over from your student loan, you may want to use it to kick-start your emergency fund.
Explore: 10 challenges to help you save money
Create a budget, listing all your incomings and outgoings, to help you see where you’re spending money. You may be able to cut back on a few things to help you save.
For example, you could take your own coffee or lunch to uni, instead of buying it. Or make a shopping list before you head to the supermarket, so you’re not tempted to buy unnecessary things while you’re there.
If you can, move the money you want to save into your savings pot at the start of the week, or month. That way, it’s already out of your account and you can use your left over money to plan for the week, or month, ahead.
As a student, you’ll likely get discounts on a range of items, including some broadband suppliers and fashion brands, which can be a great way to save money. To give your savings a boost, you may want to add the discount you’ve saved to your savings.
Rounding up your spending to the nearest pound and adding it to your savings can help your money grow without you really noticing. For example, if you spend £3.80 you could round this up to £4.00 and add the 20p into your savings account.
If you’ve moved into a student house share, make sure to stay on top of your bills. You can use comparison sites to make sure you’re getting the best deal for things like your energy and broadband.
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Whether it’s uni textbooks or clothing, selling your unwanted goods can be a good way to make some extra money, which you can add straight into your savings account.
Instead of spending money on takeaways, try to cook for yourself. If you live with other students, you could take it in turns to cook for each other to spread the cost of buying ingredients.
Explore: How to save money at the supermarket
See our financial education and student hub for more guides on money management at uni.
