How to budget for life as a student at university

Navigating university life is exciting, but it often comes with financial pressures and challenges that can be daunting. Between tuition fees, rent, textbooks and social activities, learning how to budget as a student is essential – especially if this is your first time living away from home or supporting yourself.

Budgeting isn't just about making ends meet. It's also about having control over your finances so you can enjoy your university experience without unnecessary stress, and focus on what matters to you.

To help you get started, we’ve compiled some top tips and ideas to consider when it comes to setting up a student budget – including your very own student budget template.

Looking to create a student budget that works for you? Start here.

When creating your personal student budget, it’s important to start with your income. This is any money you receive on a regular basis.

For a lot of students, a large portion of your income to manage university living expenses is your student loan.Your student loan is usually split into two parts: tuition fees, which are paid directly to the university, and your maintenance loan, which is paid into your bank account.

Make a note of how much of your maintenance loan you will receive each term, as well as other forms of income that will support you in paying university costs. Make sure to include all your potential income sources:

• Earnings from jobs. Lots of students choose to work alongside studying in order to support their student living costs. This could be working in retail or supermarkets, as a barista or bartender, or through freelance jobs like writing or paid tutoring. Make sure to include an estimate of how much you might earn here depending on your typical hours.
• Funds from a scholarship, bursary or grant. These are often paid directly from your university or an external company or charity to your bank account. Often, you may be eligible if you’re from a low-income family or have particular personal circumstances. If you think you may qualify for additional financial support, make sure to apply for a few different schemes to maximise your chances.
• Parental or family support. If your family is able to support you through university, make an estimate of how much they'll chip in and categorise this as income.
• Extra or ad-hoc cash. If you’re keen to make a little extra, consider budgeting for selling clothes or second-hand books once you're done with them. It's another small way you can increase your income during term-time.

The second step to creating your student budget is to factor in your expenses. This should include both the essential and non-essential outgoings you will have throughout the year.

Your student budget should be as specific as possible and include all the costs you might not have even considered. To help you get a head start, here’s a breakdown of some of the uni costs you might not have considered yet:

• Textbooks and course materials
• Computer software like Microsoft Word or Adobe Suite. Your software needs will depend on your degree!
• Society membership fees
• Costs associated with sports societies, like insurance or team kits
• Printing fees

• Prescription charges for medicines
• Gym membership
• Laundrette – make sure to check if you have a machine in your accommodation, otherwise, you may need to pay per use!
• Rental deposits and fees for cleaning accommodation
• Homeware, from your bedsheets to your frying pan to your scented candle

• Travel to and from uni, for example bus passes to campus
• Travel from home to uni, if you’d like to go home during term-time
• Maintenance costs for your car or bicycle if you have them

• Overdraft charges if you enter your overdraft
• Technical issues, like a broken phone screen or lost headphones
• Your phone bill
• Streaming subscriptions – Netflix, Spotify, Disney+ and so on

When creating your student budget, it’s crucial to distinguish between essential and non-essential costs. This differentiation helps ensure that your basic needs are covered before you allocate money to other areas, making it easier to manage your finances effectively throughout your university life.

Your essential costs are expenses that you must cover to maintain your day-to-day living and ensure you have everything covered for your degree too. These are the non-negotiable expenses that take priority in your budget, such as your rent payments and utility bills (if not included), groceries, transport, course materials and your phone bill, to name a few!

Your non-essential costs are those that are not crucial for student living and should be considered after all essential expenses have been accounted for. Examples include:

• Eating out and takeaways. These can quickly add up!
• Entertainment. Going to the cinema, concerts, student theatre, parties or events and streaming services
• Clothing and accessories, beyond what you need. This might include things like costumes for themed nights out!
• Hobbies and leisure activities. This could be your society fees or a gym membership
• Trips and vacations. Any travel outside of daily travel to uni or home
• Luxury items like non-essential electronics
• Late return fees for library books (best to try and avoid if possible!)
• University balls – for example, the annual Law Ball if you study law. These are usually optional but you may wish to attend!

You can think of your non-essential vs. essential list as things that are a ‘want’ versus things that are a ‘need’. Whilst covering essential living expenses should always be your priority, budgeting doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice all non-essential spending.

Striking a balance between essential and non-essential expenses is key, and you can do this by carefully planning your student budget to allow room for some of the activities that make university life so enjoyable and full of opportunity.

To help you along the way, we’ve compiled our top tips and tricks on how to budget as a student at uni so you can start the term feeling prepared and free from any of the stress of financial planning.

By carefully recording your expected income and estimated costs, you can accurately create a budget that reflects your university spending habits.

Make sure to prepare your budget before term starts, so you can avoid any unexpected hiccups or going too far into the dreaded overdraft!

As a uni student, every penny counts, so keeping in the know about the best discounts and freebies is a key way to keep your outgoings down and still have space in your budget for treats throughout the year.

Many retailers or brands will offer a standard discount across stores as long as you have student identification, so it’s worth looking into setting up an account with UNiDAYS or Student Beans or getting an NUS TOTUM card.

Offers will mostly help reduce the cost of non-essential items, so you can maintain the right balance between the things you want and need.

Banks tend to offer special accounts for students, which often come with more flexible overdraft terms as well as additional perks. Don't get too swept up by freebies, though – your main priority should be having a safe place for your finances. When choosing a bank account, consider:

1. The overdraft amount
2. Overdraft repayment terms and interest rates
3. Incentives like vouchers, cash or discounts

You may also want to consider how easy it is for you to use online or mobile banking for tracking your finances – lots of banks now offer apps where you can keep a close eye on your spending.

Eating out or ordering in is far too easy, especially when deadlines ramp up and you’re stuck for time. It’s good to treat yourself occasionally, but being on a first-name basis with your Deliveroo driver can end up being a big drain on your bank account.

Our advice is to choose 3-5 staple meals that you can cook at home and in bulk to save costs. When you cook, make lots of portions that you can save for later in the fridge or freezer.

At most universities, you’ll have the option to buy books and textbooks second-hand from students from the years above. This is a great option to cut back on your expenses – especially on texts that you might need for one module but won’t necessarily use again! If you can’t find any at your university, you could head to your local second-hand bookshop or try online too.

Once you've finished each year of uni, go through your books and decide which ones you need to keep, if any. Then you can sell the rest on for a little money back!

If you want to subscribe to streamers or software, first chat to those around you before opting in. It might be a good idea to share the costs of subscriptions with your family or friends.

It’s easy to get caught up in the university ‘bubble’ and lose track of what’s coming out of your bank account – which can lead to some nasty surprises at the end of term.

Tracking your spending regularly, either weekly or monthly, is a good idea to stay in the loop on whether you’ve over or underspent (and if your budget needs to change mid-term).

When setting up your uni student budget and template, it’s a sensible idea to factor in an emergency fund. You never know when something unexpected might happen, so it’s good to be prepared in advance and have a backup allowance. This is particularly useful for unfortunate mishaps like misplaced house keys or a broken-down laptop!

Electricity and heating bills are often some of the most important – and costly – expenses for students. If you're not already, get in the habit of turning lights off, saving energy wherever possible and putting your heating on a schedule that works for you and your housemates. For example, investing in a fluffy dressing gown or a hot water bottle will be cheaper than turning the radiators on full whenever you're home!

If you’re struggling to manage your student budget, don’t hesitate to ask for help. Many universities offer financial support services to help guide you in your budgeting with one-on-one help and manageable solutions.

Don't feel ashamed for needing support, either – getting by at university can be difficult and no one is expecting you to have all the answers. The sooner you reach out for help, the easier it will be to get out of a financial bind.