Let’s face it, everyone loves a good steal, and we all need a little retail therapy sometimes, but having basic self-reliance skills can help you maintain a study abroad budget now as well as when you’re traveling. Hope all of you guys have been great since the last time we communicated! We’ve all been there… short on money, worried about how you are going to survive until you get some more… so that’s why today we are bringing to you one of the hottest topics when it comes to studying abroad – how to save money and become a great money manager. Let’s see which are the most useful ways of saving money together:

• Sharing is caring

This is literally the most effective and simple way of saving money as a student. Whether it comes to food, accommodation, bills, etc., splitting the check will result in a lower cost-per-person, making your life easier and less stressful or tension. Cook together with friends! Not only it means you’ll be spending much less money than if you were to buy all the ingredients yourself, but it can be a fun activity and a reason for socializing too.

• Online will always be cheaper

Get into the habit of buying most of your stuff online. Electronics, clothes, even groceries can be bought online these days. E-commerce will always be cheaper than in-store purchases (for reasons such as the lack of paying employees or rent for the display place), so always be smart about your purchases

• Ask for student discounts

This is another useful manner of saving some of your finances. Even though they might not advertise this, a lot of shops or commercial centers do offer discounts for students. So go ahead and ask the cashier about it every time you go shopping, even though it might not be on display. Who knows, it may actually be your lucky day

• Hunt for vouchers / coupons

Believe it or not, there will always be someone (or something!) offering sale coupons in the campus streets. Or online for that matter. There are websites for example on which you fill out the survey and you get paid in vouchers for doing it, so might as well try that to save some daily bucks, don’t you think?

• Keep a monthly expenses log

That’s right! Keep all your purchase receipts. Write them down in a separate log, add them up have a total of your expenses at the end of each month. That should give you an accurate impression on your spending habits – whether or not you should tweak that money tap a bit for the next month. It may sound like a knit-picking thing to do, but it really helps in terms of money management.