Easy Ways to Save for College

Let’s face it college isn’t getting any cheaper and unless you’re lucky enough to receive scholarship assistance, you typically have to pay your own way. These are just a few easy ways to save money for your continued education.

Easy Ways to Save for College

• Instead of buying new textbooks, try to find used books online. Or, look into renting them from your college bookstore or Amazon.
• Pay off credit card bills before you attend, to keep from building up extra debt. Once the semester starts, avoid the temptation of using your card except in the case of emergencies.
• Skip the fancy coffee shops and brew your own coffee at home. The cost of that daily cup adds up in a hurry. Invest in a coffee grinder and premium beans. This way, you’ll still have quality coffee at a more affordable price.
• Use a financial management app to help you keep track of your spending. Make sure to track all of your expenses, if you go this route.  Why? It’s much easier to curb excess spending if you have a complete record of where you money goes.
• Cut out your cable plan and consider signing up for a less expensive streaming site. Also, try to limit your cell phone data plan usage both before you go and after the semester starts.
• Consider selling some of the things that you’ll no longer need once you go to college. Sites like Craigslist or Letgo are great for getting a reasonable price for your old belongings.
• Open up a savings account at your bank or credit union and make it a point to deposit a bit of money each week to use next semester. You can use the money to go toward tuition, or hang on to it in case of an emergency.
• If your class schedule for the semester will be light, look into part-time jobs on or around campus that you can take to offset your expenses during the semester.

Saving for college doesn’t need to be extremely difficult. Cutting back in lots of little ways can really add up. Why not give it a try?

Can you think of any other ways to save for college? Please share!

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